Ancient Rome, Nazism, the French Revolution: The Infographics collection is a new way of recounting history. Its signature graphic style is original and fun and appeals to new, and often younger, readers. Translation rights to the collection have been sold in twelve languages including English, Dutch, Spanish and both traditional and simplified Chinese.

 

To launch this collection France Livre interviewed Sandrine Paccher, Director of Foreign Rights for Éditions de l'Observatoire, Presses Universitaires de France, Passés Composés, des Équateurs and Belin Éditeur.  

 

France Livre: Would you briefly describe this collection and explain why Passés Composés chose to publish it? 

Sandrine Paccher: This was the director of Passés Composés, Nicolas Gras-Payen’s concept. He wanted to publish a book using infographics that would be an actual history book but with a unique author's "voice". His goal was to publish new, beautiful history books that would appeal to traditional readers as well as attract new ones.

 

France Livre: What makes these books original? 

Sandrine Paccher: This is a new way of narrating history that breaks with the more traditional methodologies. This collection provides a new approach to the material: historical events are presented in a new way, unfettered, providing a refreshing new perspective for readers. And its original and impressive artistic format is an attempt to reinvent the "coffee table book" on historic subjects, whose sales are declining.

 

France Livre: Do you have a favorite title in the collection? 

Sandrine Paccher: It's difficult to choose. I find all Passé Composés’ Infographics titles remarkable, but maybe L'Infographie de la Rome antique (Ancient Rome in Infographics), because it’s the first one I saw.  It’s a truly beautiful book! Nicolas Guillerat, the graphic designer, is a true artist.

I discovered a new reading experience which actually changes depending on how much time you want to devote to each work. You could spend two minutes or an hour on each double page spread. It provides different levels of reading, which is one of the book’s key strengths.

Ancient Rome in Infographics approaches ancient Roman history both thematically and chronologically. It covers the history of ancient Rome from the birth of the Roman Empire to the Punic Wars. It covers broad topics, for example: civil wars, public and private religions, the empire’s fiscal and political structures, how Roman buildings were constructed and the battle of Alesia.
 
France Livre: How many copies have been sold in France? 

Sandrine Paccher: To date, over 100,000 copies have been sold, which shows a real enthusiasm for the collection and confirms that this concept is resonating with readers.

France Livre: How have booksellers and the press in France reacted to the collection?

Sandrine Paccher: The release of every Infographics title is an eagerly awaited yearly event because the press and booksellers appreciate its appeal. Since Passés Composés editions launch in 2019, we have published six Infographics volumes. Nicolas Guillerat and Julien Peltier, the graphic designers, each have their own style, as do the illustrators, and they are accompanied by great historians. We were also awarded the 2024 Editorial Creation Award at Trophées de l'édition for this series.

France Livre: How did the rights sales happen? 

Sandrine Paccher: Foreign publishers are very impressed by the Infographics concept and the meticulous work of the graphic designers and authors. This new way of presenting history, using combined text and images is working well. There are few examples of this kind of work either in France or abroad, and The Second World War in Infographics (Perrin) has paved the way for us. The dozen or so foreign language publishers of the Infographics collection are loyal and keep a close eye on it.

France Livre: What strategies are you using to convince foreign publishers of the collection’s appeal?

Sandrine Paccher: Actually, the graphics and the quality of the text speak for themselves, but some Infographics volumes have universal appeal such as Ancient Rome in Infographics and War in Infographics. They hold more promise than others. Editors who leaf through the books at international fairs often want to leave with them. These are books that stand out and are remembered. 

The publishing houses that have acquired Infographics titles have committed to most of them. However, publishing them requires patience as it can take some time to translate and adapt them. Some publishers have been acquiring the translation rights before the works are released in France. In this case the two-page spreads are sent as soon as they are ready, and the books are released at the same time as ours. This is the case with Spain’s Critica and Italy’s L'Ippocampo.

 

Interview by Katja Petrovic 

March 2026