A Florida Classic Gets a Graphic Novel Remake
Andre Frattino, the illustrator behind A Land Remembered: A Graphic Novel
Image: Courtesy Andre Frattino
Published in 1984, Patrick D. Smith’s best-selling novel A Land Remembered tells the story of the MacIvey family through three generations, starting off with Tobias MacIvey, who encounters the unpredictable conditions of the Florida wilderness with his wife and son in 1858. Eventually, their descendent, Solomon MacIvey, makes a fortune off real estate but realizes that human greed is destroying Florida's rich history.
After reading the book in 2013, Andre Frattino, an illustrator with a degree in sequential art from Savannah College of Art and Design, saw the potential to turn it into a graphic novel and pitched the idea to Pineapple Press, the Sarasota company that first published Smith's novel. Earlier this year, Pineapple released A Land Remembered: A Graphic Novel, and feedback so far has been overwhelmingly positive, according to Frattino.
“People were thrilled,” Frattino says. “Everyone I have talked to admired Patrick Smith’s work and are ecstatic that the book has been adapted and in a lot of ways refreshed through this different form of storytelling.”
A page from A Land Remembered: A Graphic Novel
Image: Courtesy Andre Frattino
Frattino says he felt a personal connection to the original novel because he has close family ties, just like the MacIveys, and has a deep love for Old Florida. He was born and raised in Gainesville, which is close to where the MacIvey family first settles in the book. Frattino previously wrote and illustrated three graphic novels for Pineapple Press centered around paranormal activity.
Frattino designed the illustrations for A Land Remembered to look organic and naturally formed, so readers of all ages, including fans of the original book, can easily follow along. The book took him nearly three years to complete because he wanted to make sure the fashion and wildlife in the book were historically accurate.
“I visited a lot of nature parks, historical reenactment parks and landmark locations to capture the real actual flavor in the story,” Frattino says. “I read up on the fashion of Seminole Indians during this time and what people were wearing, trying to make sure it was very authentic.”
For more info about A Land Remembered: A Graphic Novel, visit the Pineapple Press website.
See the graphic novel's cover and more sample pages here:
