Jake Tapper Writes and Illustrates The Butcher for Top Shelf Productions
Top Shelf Productions will publish Jake Tapper’s debut graphic novel, The Butcher: The Decades-Long Hunt for Klaus Barbie, One of the World’s Most Notorious Killers, on June 1, 2027. Tapper both writes and illustrates the book.
The nonfiction graphic novel follows Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie, the people who helped him evade justice, and the Nazi hunters and journalists who pursued him. According to the publisher, Tapper researched material in German, English, Spanish and French for the project.
Tapper describes the work as one of his most difficult and rewarding projects, combining historical research, narrative construction and illustration. Top Shelf editor-in-chief Chris Staros highlights the contrast between those who enabled Barbie’s escape and the people who sought accountability.
The full-color softcover will be available wherever books are sold for $19.99, under ISBN 978-1-60309-615-7. A limited, signed and numbered hardcover, priced at $49.99 under ISBN 978-1-60309-626-3, will be exclusive to the IDW Publishing online store.
The cover and author portrait accompany the announcement. Photograph of Jake Tapper by Elliott O’Donovan.
