Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. Learn more
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle Cloud Reader.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
The Calculus Affair (Adventures of Tintin) Hardcover – December 1, 1991
| Herge (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
The hero of the series is Tintin, a young Belgian reporter. He is aided in his adventures from the beginning by his faithful fox terrier dog Snowy (Milou in French). Later, popular additions to the cast included the brash, cynical and grumpy Captain Haddock, the bright but hearing-impaired Professor Calculus (Professeur Tournesol) and other colorful supporting characters such as the incompetent detectives Thomson and Thompson (Dupond et Dupont). Herge himself features in several of the comics as a background character; as do his assistants in some instances.
The success of the series saw the serialized strips collected into a series of albums (24 in all), spun into a successful magazine and adapted for film and theatre. The series is one of the most popular European comics of the 20th century, with translations published in over 50 languages and more than 200 million copies of the books sold to date.
The comic strip series has long been admired for its clean, expressive drawings in Herge's signature ligne claire style. Engaging, well-researched plots straddle a variety of genres: swashbuckling adventures with elements of fantasy, mysteries, political thrillers, and science fiction. The stories within the Tintin series always feature slapstick humor, accompanied in later albums by sophisticated satire, and political and cultural commentary.
- Print length62 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherFrench & European Pubns
- Publication dateDecember 1, 1991
- Dimensions8.66 x 0.51 x 11.65 inches
- ISBN-100828850143
- ISBN-13978-0828850148
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Customers who bought this item also bought
Editorial Reviews
Review
Spielberg first acquired rights to produce a film based upon the Adventures of Tintin series following Hergé's death in 1983, and re-optioned them in 2002. Filming was due to begin in October 2008 for a 2010 release, but release was delayed to 2011 after Universal opted out of producing the film with Paramount, who provided $30 million on pre-production. Sony chose to co-produce the films. The delay resulted in Thomas Sangster, who had been cast as Tintin, departing from the project. Producer Peter Jackson, whose company Weta Digital is providing the computer animation, intends to direct a sequel. Spielberg and Jackson also hope to co-direct a third film.[6] --Wikipedia
I'd like to read this book on Kindle
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Product details
- Publisher : French & European Pubns (December 1, 1991)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 62 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0828850143
- ISBN-13 : 978-0828850148
- Item Weight : 1.25 pounds
- Dimensions : 8.66 x 0.51 x 11.65 inches
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Hergé, one of the most famous Belgians in the world, was a comics writer and artist. The internationally successful Adventures of Tintin are his most well-known and beloved works. They have been translated into 38 different languages and have inspired such legends as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. He wrote and illustrated for "The Adventures of Tintin" until his death in 1983.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonReviewed in the United States on July 18, 2018
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
The above aside the Calculus Affair is one of THE MOST exciting Tintin stories you can read - awesome adventure and fun for Tintin fans. Minor gripe is that the Thomsons are missing in this adventure blistering barnacles!!!!
Herge once again displays originality and sophistication in his artwork and story setting, combining for a great atmosphere. Borduria (its capital city, Szohod, anyway) is more modern-urban than its rival Syldavia as portrayed in "King Ottokar's Sceptre." There, Borduria was referenced but not much seen, while Syldavia's capital, Klow, featured a magnificent castle, royal garb and decor, and some people in peasant garb (outside Klow, it was just peasant garb). Here, Syldavia is referenced but not seen, except to the extent of one Bordurian-goon vs. Syldavian-goon scene in which the groups fight for the possession of Professor Calculus. When Captain Haddock asks Tintin how to tell which one to go after, Tintin says he should go for the ugliest.
Herge always displayed contempt for military authority and authoritarian regimes in his books, and here it is no different. Symbolically, the city Tintin and the Captain first go to after the kidnapping is Geneva, based on a clue left by a thug spying at Marlinspike. Professor Calculus had communicated about his machine with Professor Topolino, an expert in ultrasonics. Calculus was worried about the dangerous consequences of his invention, but a planned meeting in Geneva was aborted because of the kidnapping. Professor Calculus did not want to cooperate with the Bordurians because he did not want his weapon used for warlike purposes. Herge emphasizes, even satirizes, the crassness of the Bordurians in their desire for military power. His social commentary was clear.
"By the whiskers of Kurvi-Tasch" is an amusing catch phrase Herge supplies for Borduria's ruler, but the operative villain of the story is the Nazi-like official Colonel Sponsz. Despite his evil nature, Colonel Sponsz has human feelings, for he enjoys opera star Signora Bianca Castafiore's singing, something Captain Haddock certainly never does from the start of the series! But Sponsz is also a sourpuss loser, sort of like the bumbling officers in "Hogan's Heroes." Also noteworthy is that Borduria's ruler (who we never actually meet) has elements of Hitler himself (greeting is "Amaih Kurvi-Tasch"), as well as Stalin (shape of mustache). The Belgian Herge, anti-fascist by nature, reverted to form after the occupation.
Signora Castafiore, who sang in Klow in "King Ottokar's Sceptre" and sings in Szohod here, gives key help to Tintin and the Captain. No scene has her upsetting the Captain with her voice this time, but someone who does is gas-bag insurance salesman Jolyon Wagg, who makes his first appearance as the full-of-himself tormenter of the always irascible Haddock. He is introduced at the beginning of the book when he "pushes" himself into Marlinspike during a rainstorm, and he comes back again at the end. As for the Captain himself, his drinking is limited to a bottle of Swiss wine in Geneva, providing a humorous aside.
Four and a half stars, just short of five.
This tale contains more than the usual share of gags and mishaps, subtle sarcasm and humor, set against a backdrop of real circumstances- the cold war and arms race of the 50's, the struggle to develop hideous weapons, with recognizable parodies of historic figures. This is partly why the tintin books are so good at educating and opening the imagination and curiosity of children to the wider world.
What I find striking is the accuracy of the illustrations, which not only depict buildings and places as they really were in the 1950's (for example the Cointrin airport or the cornavin hotel), but also evoke the countryside and the atmosphere of each country.
Don't buy this until Herge Group create a true digital version of these classic BD books.
Top reviews from other countries
Avoid this insulting trash, buy the hard copies from anyone except Amazon.
Now in my late 20's, I have decided to purchase all the Tintin books so that when my 2 year old is a bit older, I can share the world of Tintin with him :-D













