Sure, great loss !

Here he is (right) with René Goscinny (left - who was the scenarist - of Asterix between others), on the first publication of their collaboration, Le Petit Nicolas, books of novels about the life of an 8 years old between school, family and friends.
It's emblematic of the French society during the 50's 60's, which is an era seen as a recent "golden age", you know, economic wellness, typical postcard France without all the technology, criminality and social stuffs from the 70's and above. La France a papa, so to say. Simpler-more-authentic-France. Charles Trenet, and so on.
I've read with great pleasure those when i was a kid, and my kid is reading them too.
Funny stories with a bit of adult humor, all in good spirit, without pontificating bullshit & moralistic stances.

Look at those cheeky faces, especially Goscinny, who landmined so many jokes and wordplays in the Asterix dialogs, then regaled generations of readers with their humor and spot-on stories, with double lecture, layered for kids and aduts, both entertaining reads.

Sempé was a great cartoonist, loved by all classes of readers, because published in various classes publications, newspapers. And what a good line of drawing, fluid, simple, expressive...
His wit was soft, not much revendications or political messages, more of an observer of little scenes from the middle class / little bourgeoisie from that time, not spitting on all, not licking any hands, just entertaining readers with consistence over the years, with a fresh style fitting everyday's stories.




He sure will be missed, as all legends do.