| May
6, 2008
A Sizzling Start to Summer
Today marks the release of Nobuko
Takagi’s English debut with her novel Translucent
Tree. Obsessed with a memory of a young girl, Go returns
to the place where his career started 25 years earlier and seeks
out the girl, now a single mother. A chance reunion turns into
a torrid love affair, each enraptured by an irrepressible yearning
for one another. Rich in description and alive with sexual tension,
each page is juicier than the last. So, curl up on your couch,
relax on the beach, or settle into your hammock and enjoy this
early summer sizzler—guaranteed to please!
Click
here to read a free preview.
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| April
29, 2008
The Critics Agree: Dororo is Awesome… and
It’s On Sale Now!
Dororo, Manga Maestro
Osamu Tezuka’s tale of a swordsman’s hunt for the
48 demons who stole his body parts, hits the stands today, and
there hasn’t been this much buzz amongst the hoi polloi
since the debut of the iPhone… and with good reason. Until
today, American fans of Tezuka’s classic have only dreamed
of what wonders Dororo had in store as they drooled enviously
over the original Japanese editions. Just to further whet your
appetites, check out the following spate of reviews. Yes, Dororo
is that good!
Ain’t
It Cool News
Advanced
Media Network
About
Heroes
Manga Maniac
Cafe
Mecha
Mecha Media
ComicMix
Daily
Yomiuri
Jog—The
Blog
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| April
29, 2008
There’s a New Kid in Town
Vertical would like to welcome
its new Art Director, Peter Mendelsund! Mendelsund is a multiple
award-winning graphic designer who has designed book jackets for
almost every major publisher in America and abroad. His design
work appears in several permanent museum collections, has been
featured in numerous magazines, and his editorial illustrations
show up frequently in the New York Times and other publications.
Mendelsund’s designs for the three-volume Osamu Tezuka epic
Dororo were already garnering buzz on the internet months
before the first volume’s debut and elicited more than a
few Tex Avery-esque, eye-popping, tongue-dropping reactions from
the fans who saw the cover to volume one in person at the recent
New York Comic Con. His juxtaposition of character vignettes over
a collage of internal organs and body parts cleverly references
the main character’s quest to find the body parts his father
gave to 48 demons when he was a baby. Mendelsund’s first
full season of designs will appear in Fall 2008, including the
much anticipated Tezuka classic, Black Jack. For more
on Vertical’s latest design acquisition, check out the nifty
recent article from Publishers Weekly.
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| April
23, 2008
We Took Manhattan
Brain matter oozes from our ears
and the flesh on our faces sags from fatigue, but we here at Vertical
are still giddy from the New York Comic Con held this past weekend
at the Jacob Javits Convention Center. 64,000 fans of comics,
manga, gaming, movies, television, and pop culture thronged the
aisles, getting autographs, collecting promotional goo-gaws, buying
cool stuff, attending panels, catching advanced movie previews,
or just being seen in their homemade costumes. Marketing Manager
Stephen Vrattos and Publicist Jessica Hatakeda hosted the debut
of Vertical’s attractive new booth display, festooned with
colorful eye-catching posters—designed by Vertical’s
own Hiroko Mizuno and Glen Isip—promoting The Guin Saga,
Aranzi Aronzo, and Osamu Tezuka. More than a few people asked
if the posters were available for sale. Fortunately, Stephen and
Jessica had a multitude of tchotchkes to assuage the rabid mobs.
Making their first appearance amongst the ever popular Guin leopard
masks, Aranzi mini-posters, mechanical pencils, and Apollo’s
Song bookmarks, were Black Jack syringe pens and
Vertical horror bookmarks. By the end of the convention on Sunday,
not even The Grinch could have done a better job of cleaning out
the booth. But the bestest part of all was meeting our adoring
fans and gushing with them over our incredible books. Thanks to
all for stopping by. We’ll see you next year!
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| April
22, 2008
Put on your Thinking Caps
The latest in Vertical’s
devilishly devious, yet delightful, puzzle books—Extreme
Sudoku: New Challenges from the Master
and Original O’Ekaki: Intelligent Designs from Its Creator—are
on sale now. Oh, sure, you’re thinking, I know Sudoku,
and you very well may be familiar with the ubiquitous computer-generated
examples plastered throughout the daily newspapers. If you’re
lucky, you’ll even work up a yawn when you play them. But
Vertical puzzles will have you working up a satisfying sweat,
because Vertical puzzles are conceived and designed by the nefarious
mind of Japanese puzzle genius Tetsuya Nishio. They are not for
the faint of heart. Rather they are for those puzzlers who appreciate
a brain-busting challenge. And not only did Nishio create Vertical’s
O’Ekaki puzzles, but also he invented the game!
O’Ekaki is the entertaining creative logic puzzle that utilizes
both the right and left sides of your brain. It’s
like Sudoku, but with a pay-off as the answer comes in the form
of a cool picture that you’ve uncovered with your pencil…
if you completed the puzzle correctly. So escape the
brain-numbing ennui of the work day, by exercising your brain
with the most challenging and entertaining puzzles available.
Only from Vertical, of course!
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| April
21, 2008
Dororo’s A Hit!
Still a week away from the first
volume’s debut on bookstore shelves and already Dororo
is capturing the hearts of the critics. But don’t take my
word for it (I do tend to gush); check out what these prominent
reviewers have to say…
Scott Green of
Ain’t It Cool News writes:
“It’s the pioneer
of the manga tradition wading neck deep into the mire of freakish
swordsmen, ghouls and historical messiness: Kurosawa and Leone
meets Romero… Dororo stands as a classic that
showcases Osamu Tezuka’s unique approach to manga and
to the world.”
Serdar
Yegulalp of Advanced Media Network bestowed upon
Dororo its prestigious Platinum Award, writing:
“Tezuka blends high-adventure
plotting with deep and thoughtful themes in his inimitable style…
It seems a shame it’s only all been in Japanese until
now.”
And Andrew
Wheeler of ComicMix put it this way:
“Well worth reading —
(Tezuka) was a master entertainer, and Dororo is nothing
if not entertaining.”
Remember, Dororo, Volume 1
is available Tuesday, April 29, 2008!
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April
17, 2008
Start Spreadin’ the News…
Vertical will once again be exhibiting
at the New
York Comic Con, April 18-20, 2008. Marketing Manager Stephen
Vrattos and Publicist Jessica Hatakeda will be the usual suspects
manning the booth, giving away tchotchkes, doo-dads, and assorted
ephemera to the rabid throngs that will most assuredly be descending
upon the coolest booth at the show. As always, we’ll be
offering your favorite Vertical titles at unheard-of show prices;
it’s the perfect time to stock up on Aranzi Aronzo craft
books, Osamu Tezuka classics, The Guin Saga, J-Horror
trades, and more. Plus, there will be advance copies of upcoming
titles available, including volume
1 of our latest Tezuka release (Hint: It begins with D
and ends with ORORO). This year, be the one to tell others
what they missed!
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| March
26, 2008
No One Does Fandom Like Boston!
From the Bruins to Red Sox to
Saint Patrick’s Day, I thought I had seen it all in this
town! Boston always has energetic fans, but they all pale in comparison
to the crowd this past weekend! Hoards of anime and manga fans
flooded the city; the Prudential was taken over by Cosplay fans
and their paparazzi! The wait to get into the convention averaged
five hours, and the die-hard fans were not teetered in the slightest,
they forged on for three days, some with heavy costumes—some
very warm looking ones too! A big thank you goes out to everyone
who braved the Boston wind tunnels and made the show a huge success!
An extra special thank-you goes out to Lisa!!!! Lisa, we here
at Vertical are extremely grateful for your energy at directing
ALL the people to the Vertical booth. The last day when feet were
sluggish, Lisa adorned a leopard mask and spread some happiness
with free hugs and free masks outside our table! Nothing says
love like a leopard-masked hug and enthusiasm like Lisa’s!
A big Vertical HUG goes out to our fan Lisa, you rock!
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| March
25, 2008
Refresh Your Accessories This Spring!
Just in time for the flowers and
nice weather, our lovable little characters from Aranzi Aronzo
are back with tons of new projects in their latest book, Cute
Stuff! If you are getting bored of your scarf and hat,
pick up the book and brace yourself for oodles of Aranzi Aronzo
accessories. Cute Stuff is filled with patterns and easy-to-make
instructions to keep you busy through the last haul of winter.
In stores today, don’t miss out on new cute accessories—pouches
and purses and bags, oh my!
Click
here for a free preview!
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| March
18, 2008
Epic Romance Takes Root
Nobuko Takagi’s transcendent
love story Translucent
Tree arrives at bookstores in April, but fans of epic
romance can sample the passion now with the
first chapter, free of charge. In the tradition of Graham
Greene’s The End of the Affair, Marguerite Duras’s
The Lover, and the works of D.H. Lawrence, this story
of a single-parent divorcée rediscovering love in a little
town in rural Japan will touch your soul. Drink in the preview
and reserve your copy today.
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| March
5, 2008
On the Road Again… Destination: Boston
Too long have us Vertical-ites
been cooped up at the home office. We miss our adoring fans! Fortunately,
Anime Boston is right
around the corner to bail us out with their annual Bacchanalia
of all things anime/manga-related, one of the biggest and most
highly regarded in the country. Marketing Manager Stephen Vrattos
and Publicist Jessica Hatakeda will be on hand to give out free
Guin masks, To Terra… and Apollo’s Song
bookmarks, Aranzi Aronzo mini-posters, mechanical pencils, and
answer any questions you may have about Vertical books and our
publishing plans for 2008 (We love talking about ourselves!).
We’ll also be selling stuff at incredible convention discounts,
so start saving your shekels and mark these dates on your PDA:
Friday, March 21 to Sunday, March 23 at Boston’s Hynes Auditorium.
Hope to see you there!
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| March
4, 2008
March Comes in Like a Leopard
Vertical has just the thing to
offset those winter blues: The
Guin Saga, Book Three: The Battle of Nospherus and The
Guin Saga Manga: The Seven Magi, Volume 3. Both books
are on sale now and both will most assuredly warm the cockles
of your heart and stave off the late-winter cold until spring
arrives. As the third chapter of the five-part “Marches
Episode,” The Battle of Nospherus makes the high-octane
excitement of the two previous volumes seem like a PBS pledge
drive as the mighty Guin rallies the disparate tribes of the Sem
against the invading Mongauli Army, and the secret of Cal Moru
and the real reasons for Lady Amnelis’s interest in Nospherus
are revealed.
Meanwhile, the third and final
volume of The Seven Magi explodes with sword-wielding
action, as King Guin finally learns the identity of the powerful
sorcerer that has crippled Cheironia and threatens the very existence
of reality. Monsters and mayhem, death and destruction, all captured
in pen-and-ink by the Michelangelo of Manga, Kazuaki Yanagisawa,
whose work Randal
Strock of SFScope calls “stunning.” The Guin
Saga, Book Three: The Battle of Nospherus and The Guin
Saga Manga: The Seven Magi, Volume 3… the perfect antidote
for the Ides of March!
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| February
13, 2008
Accessories So Cute… They’re Scary!
Scarcely have Fun Dolls
and Cute Dolls taken America’s bookstores by storm—leaving
a swath of French knots, yarn clippings, and tangled thread from
lesser craft books in their wake—than the nation’s
craft community have begun screaming, “MORE!”
Before you take up your knitting needles, Gorilla Glue, and ergonomic
scissors to storm the Vertical offices, America’s “cute”-est
company presents Cute Stuff. Aranzi Aronzo—the
mischievous duo who revolutionized crafting with their combination
of “cute” and “attitude”—have created
a tome of tempting techniques for creating everything from key
rings to tissue covers styled with the snarky whimsy you’ve
come to love and expect. Cute Stuff won’t hit your
favorite book purveyors until March, but the Vertical crew is
nothing if not sympathetic to the needs of its faithful readership,
so we’ve provided an incredible sneak
peek complete with actual instructions for making “Long
Doll” bags.
No …Thank You!
[Webmaster's Note: We're testing
a new Flash-based preview system; you'll need
Adobe Flash Player 8 or higher to view the preview. You can download
the latest version of Flash for free here. Also, the Tell-A-Friend
feature is inoperable at the moment; still, don't forget to tell
your friends! Enjoy the new preview and let
us know what you think!]
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| January
23, 2008
Talking with Takemiya
Attention all lovers of great
manga! Shojo pioneer and To
Terra… and Andromeda
Stories creator Keiko
Takemiya recently spoke with Deb Aoki of About.com concerning
her life’s work. As one of the legendary seminal Magnificent
49ers—a women’s manga collective in the 1970s—the
trailblazing Takemiya founded what is known today as yaoi.
Her revolutionary ideas and themes influenced many of today’s
foremost science fiction films, including The Matrix
and The Terminator. Vertical published the 3-volume To
Terra… in 2007 and a successful animated version of
the trilogy ran in Japan in 2007 to great acclaim. Vertical began
publishing Takemiya’s noteworthy Andromeda Stories
toward the end of 2007, and the final volume of the 3-volume space-spanning
soap opera is due in March. In the meantime, check out her enlightening
interview.
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| January
22, 2008
Two New Guin Books On Sale NOW!
The
Guin Saga, Book 2: Warrior in the Wilderness and
The Guin Saga Manga: The Seven
Magi, Volume 2 have hit the stands, and not a day too
soon. The frenzied mob outside the Vertical offices demanding
more Guin was starting to get a disquieting, feral look in their
eyes. And we at Guin Central understand. When last we left the
leopard-headed amnesiac warrior in the prose novels, he was literally
taking a leap of faith. But don’t take my word for it. Read
what Scott Green from Ain’t
It Cool News had to say:
“Kaoru Kurimoto manages the flurry
of situations being set up and resolved like the trick of
putting a hand on a table with fingers spread out, then stabbing
a blade between the outstretched digits. The speed and coordination
is that amazing.”
As for Guin’s manga-nized
and royal counterpart, his kingdom was being overrun with dark
sorcery, giant spiders, and bodacious sorceresses when the first
volume closed. And what are the top reviewers saying? Take a gander
at Serdar Yegulalp from Advanced
Media Network’s comments:
“A blanket recommendation
for The Guin Saga Manga goes out to three types of
people: those who are already Guin lovers; high-fantasy fans;
and anyone looking for something nicely off the beaten path.
There’s only one more volume for this particular story,
so I’m hoping other Guin manga adaptations will follow
suit in the future. We should be so lucky.”
Of course, by the time you’ve
read all this, the book might be sold out. So what are you waiting
for?!!
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| January
10, 2008
A Fifth Printing for The Cute Book
Maybe it’s the characters’
snarky attitude or the combination of “scary” and
“cute” that explains the phenomenal popularity of
the book. Perhaps it’s a fortuitous by-product of the nation’s
current fascination with all things Japanese. Or it could be a
resurgence in crafting not seen since the days of Michelangelo
has overtaken America. Whatever the reason, people just cannot
seem to get enough of Aranzi
Aronzo and The Cute Book, which has recently gone
into an astounding fifth printing. Find out for yourself why bookstores
and libraries across the United States cannot keep this irresistible
book on the shelves by running out and getting a copy of your
very own. And make sure you pick up Aranzi Machine Gun, Volumes
1-3, Fun Dolls, Cute Dolls, and The
Bad Book as well, before it’s too late.
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| January
8, 2008
Shark Attack!
The wait is over… One of
Vertical’s most highly anticipated novels is ON SALE NOW!
When Arimasa Osawa’s Shinjuku Shark made its debut
in the early 90s it was an instant sensation, earning both the
Eiji Yoshikawa New Writer Award and the esteemed Japan Mystery
Writers Association Award. Combining the irreverent, anti-authoritarian
attitude of Dirty Harry and the reckless bravado of the
Die Hard movies’ John McLane, Detective Samejima,
“The Shark”, was loved by men and women alike. Adaptations
to film, television, even manga, quickly followed, and the series
continues—gaining momentum as it enters the twenty-first
century—with its ninth book winning the Japan Adventure
Fiction Association Award in 2006. And Vertical is providing a
hearty chunk of Shinjuku Shark to sate the bloodlust
of our fans until they can get their very own copy. Read
the entire first chapter right here, right now!
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| June
5, 2007
Ode
to Kirihito a Quill Finalist
Osamu Tezuka’s sprawling
epic of intolerance and deceit has been recognized as a finalist
for a Quill Award in the Best Graphic Novel category. The Quill
Awards are the book industry’s Oscars and there are few
higher honors in publishing. Category winners will be announced
on September 10 at the awards ceremony to be held at Lincoln Center
in New York City and broadcast on NBC. Check local listings for
exact time and channel. For more information on Ode to Kirihito
go to www.vertical-inc.com/books/kirihito.
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