Mafalda: Book One [Hardcover]

Introducing the Latin American comics sensation starring a hilarious 6-year-old whose spunky self-confidence will inspire budding activists and curious readers of all ages. 

Mafalda may be small—but her hopes for the world are as big as her heart!

Six-year-old Mafalda loves democracy and hates soup. What democratic sector do cats fall into? she asks, then unfurls a toilet paper red carpet and gives her very own presidential address. Mafalda’s precociousness and passion stump all grown-ups around her. Dissident and rebellious, she refuses to abandon the world to her parents’ generation, who seem so lost. Alongside the irascible Mafalda, readers will meet her eclectic group of playmates: dreamy Felipe and gossipy Susanita, young-capitalist Manolito and rebellious Miguelito. Quino’s bright irony and intelligence bring the streets and neighborhoods of Buenos Aires to life.

You can clearly see Mafalda is small, but her hopes for the world and her heart are huge and as sincere as can be. Generations of readers have discovered themselves in Mafalda, and learned to question, rebel, and hope. 

Since Quino first drew her in the early 1960s, Mafalda has captured public imagination in Latin America and beyond. Her wit and empathy have made her an enduring favorite. The strips are excellent, full of keen satirical observations, focused especially on the political and social situation in Argentina in the ‘60s and ‘70s . . . But this isn’t some didactic political cartoon that only exists in archetypes. Mafalda is full of wacky, non-sequitur jokes and vibrant art. —James Folta, Lit Hub's Favorite Books of 2025

“Mafalda is a six-year-old genius. Imagine Lucy from the lƒ&