Cathedral
JOHN HOWE
If you don’t know his name, you most certainly know his art, as he is one of the two Art Director behind Peter Jackson’s Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit movies!
Are these terms meaningful to you?
Then dive into this wonderful book: Cathedral.





About Cathedral
Cathedral is an ode to the grandeur of Strasbourgâs famous cathedral, written and illustrated by a young John Howe, fresh from the vast expense of British Columbia, Canada, to Strasbourg on an art scholarship.
For the first time, English readers will be able to plunge into the world of heroic fantasy, fascinating with medieval history and architecture, and be captivated by extravagant architectural details and memorable, unique characters, all wrapped together with a plot that holds our attention:
Cathedral is a tale. For children? Yes. Just for children? Of course not!
The Summary
High above the city, which was just waking up, stood this immense cathedral woven of stone lace and gargoyals. This morning, as the misty dawn still envelops its spires in ribbons of mist, a young boy, Nathaniel, sets out to climb its staircases, one after the other…

Cathedral’s editions
Cathedral was first published in Strasbourg (in French) in 1987 by a small publisher, Bueb & Reumaux. It was reprinted several times but, strangely, never got the chance to travel beyond the shires of the nation!
However, nearly 40 years after its creation, Cathedral is FINALLY available to English-speaking readers! We have worked hard to make this book everything it deserves to be.Â
Skilled illustrator and experienced book designer, Armel Gaulme, has redesigned it from scratch, adding a new cover and new endpapers. And⊠this is the result !

Cathedrale (in french)
Editions Bueb & Reumaux, 1987

Cathédrale (in french)
Editions La Nuée Bleue, 1994

Cathedral (in english)
Editions Caurette, 2025
Who is John Howe ?
John Howe, a master of fantasy illustration, is famous for having brought the worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien to life, through film (thank you, Peter Jackson) and much-celebrated illustrated editions of The Lord of the Rings.Â
Now, cast your mind back to the end of the 1970sâlong before he bore his current resemblance to Gandalf the Greyâwhen young John, barely out of high school, traded the misty vistas of his native Vancouver for the cobbled charm of Strasbourg, France, to study art. And that is where and when our grand tale begins!

âThe story is nearly forty years old, or at least the original story was. It grew out of an unexpected encounter, first as a few images, finally finding words â in English initially, before being translated into French, for the first publication by Bueb & Reumaux in 1987.
That original text has gone astray, perhaps for the better; at any rate, it is not to be found, so this text is both new and old, trying to recapture something of that very youthful and naive enthusiasm, and not burden it with experience.
In a sense, pursuing the mirage of the lost text echoes one of my enduring preoccupations: striving to retain the capacity for wonder and imaginingâŠâ