Last year, I visited the comic book equivalent of Shangri-La: The Angouleme Festival, the largest comics convention in the Western world. Absolutely amazing. The comics culture in Europe is very, very different from its American counterpart. Their storytelling traditions, their popular genres, even the production pipeline of their books all give a glimpse to a totally different world. Despite the differences, though, underneath it all flows the same love for stories told through doodles.

The 2009 festival is happening RIGHT NOW, but deadlines, family, and other worthy commitments are keeping me on my home continent. Still, I'm able to experience a small piece of the excitement through theAngouleme iPhone/iPod Touch App! This app lets you download sample pages of all the Official Selections of Angouleme 2009. It's like having a digital bookshelf of the very best European comics in your pocket. Awesome!