InFurNation Rotating Header Image

Book

The Tough Streets of Tokyo

A different take, but no less important, can be found in A Story of Seven Lives by Shirakawa Gin. “Nanao used to be a house cat, but after tragedy struck, he was abandoned on the rough streets of Tokyo. Now, alongside his best friend and fellow stray Machi, Nanao has to fight every day just to get by. Aside from foraging for food and finding somewhere to sleep, Nanao and Machi must remain vigilant about all sorts of dangers, including humans who want stray cats gone. When a woman named Yoshino starts feeding the neighborhood cats, Nanao reluctantly bonds with her. But the woman has emotional scars and a past entwined with Nanao’s. Can Nanao help her heal, and perhaps heal himself in the process? The entire three-volume series will be released in English in one oversized omnibus edition.” Which is available now from Seven Seas.

image c. 2024 Seven Seas Entertainment

Shiba Shiba Coco-Bop

The things you can make into a manga… Shibanban Super Cute Doggies is written and illustrated by Yasuteru Ogoshi. “A full-color book for the popular Shiba Inu characters appearing in LINE stickers and stationery! Meet Aka, Kuro, Cha, Shiro, the Roly-Poly Pups, and the rest of this colorful cast of adorable Shiba Inu dogs! Whether they’re venturing out into stormy weather in a raincoat, lazing at the beach, napping in a cozy dog bed, or eagerly eyeing dinner someone left out on the table, their fun (and sometimes mischievous) antics are sure to put a smile on your face.” Available now from Seven Seas.

image c. 2024 Seven Seas Entertainment

Eldritch and Endearing

Sometimes we can’t believe the stuff we get to write about here… Things like The Adventures of Cthulhu Jr. and Friends, a new “all ages” graphic novel from Source Point Press. “A wannabe supervillain has to capture the son of Cthulhu (who just happened to move in across the street for the summer) in order to be admitted into the League of E.V.I.L. Hilarity, hijinks, and, yes, even a little (all-ages appropriate) horror ensues as the ‘dastardly’ villain starts to realize that perhaps his priorities are misaligned… unlike the stars, which are entering their proper alignment for the return of The Great Evil One!” Told you. It’s available now, written by Dirk Manning, with art by Scoot McMahon and Sean Burres. Oh, and there’s a Cthulhu Jr. plushie available too!

image c. 2024 Source Point Press

Now You See Them…

Less serious stuff, for younger readers (mostly). It’s the Bigfoot and Nessie series of hardcover graphic novels, written by Chelsea M. Campbell and illustrated by Laura Knetzger. Volume one is The Art of Getting Noticed. “Meet Bigfoot and Nessie! Yes, that Bigfoot and Nessie. Only…Well, things are a little complicated right now. Bigfoot is having trouble fitting in with his family. He can never quite manage to get himself into the picture, much to the disappointment of his mom, dad, and sister, who always want to be in the spotlight. When he meets Nessie, who’s equally desperate to get away from the cameras, he begins to ask himself the ultimate question: What’s the price of fame after all?” Volume two, The Haunting of Loch Ness Castle, is also available now from Penguin.

image c. 2024 Penguin Workshop

Not Like Us… but Like Us

Cartoonist and illustrator Jed McGowan has created their first graphic novel, My Life Among Humans. “A nameless alien data compiler comes to Earth to study humans, setting up shop on the outskirts of a small desert community in North America. Working under forced labor, it must watch humans in complete secrecy while sending regular reports to its manager back home. Using spore-like technology to read the minds of his hosts, the alien quickly takes a special interest in Will, one of his early subjects. That interest proves to be a problem when the alien is accidentally revealed to Will’s family and it takes desperate measures to save its own life.” Check it out now from Oni Press.

image c. 2024 Oni Press

You’ve Got A Friend

A deceptively simple concept lies behind this new black & white illustrated book. “Always there to comfort and listen, stuffed animals provide a reassuring presence in many a childhood. With Toys Talking, acclaimed illustrator and author Leanne Shapton explores their inner lives, to reveal that their thoughts and feelings are just as complicated as our own. The concerns of these bunnies, bears, and ducks range from the mundane to the existential, and with each new pairing of character and text, we see a deeper portrait of their pensive, quiet world. Shapton holds a mirror to our own lives, to our insecurities and concerns, by revealing that the objects who comfort us have worries of their own.” See what we mean over at Drawn & Quarterly. Then go digging in your attic.

image c. 2024 Drawn & Quarterly

Don’t Incite One

Creator Mac Smith has been getting attention in circles both furry and non-furry for their on-line comic Scurry. Various in-print compilations have been offered over the years, but now Image Comics have brought us the most complete collection yet with the Scurry Graphic Novel. “Enter a world where humanity is gone and only animals have survived. Wix, a brave scout from a colony of house mice, must embark on a perilous journey into parts unknown, where he’ll face dangerous threats, fantastic new creatures, and a destiny he never expected.” It’s available now in trade paperback.

image c. 2024 Image Comics

Feline is Family

The first sentence of the description for this new manga series probably sums it up better than we ever could: “After losing his mother at a young age, Nekota is taken in by family friends… who happen to be a couple of human-sized walking, talking cats. Not only do his new parents have paws, tails, and furry pointed ears, but now he also has an adorable little sister, Neneko-chan! As a high schooler, he’s integrated well into their household, and his precocious adoptive sister has fully accepted him as her big brother. Whether she’s showing him things she brought home from elementary school, purrsistently asking him to play with her mouse toy, or waking him up at the same early hour every morning for breakfast, life with this charming feline family is never dull!” My Sister, The Cat by Senko is available now from Seven Seas Entertainment.

image c. 2024 Seven Seas Entertainment

The Syndi-Cat

Here’s a rather unique manga we came across. You can tell just by the title: Ex-Yakuza and Stray Kitten, written and illustrated by Riddle Kamimura. “After being abandoned in the cold rain, tiny kitten Sabu should have been grateful to find a new home. But when he’s rescued by Jin, whose every atom screams ‘yakuza’, Sabu suspects he’s out of the frying pan and into the fire! Yet Jin’s scarred hands and face hide a sweet man beneath… a man who pampers kitties with baths and bottle-feedings!” Several volumes are available from Seven Seas.

image c. 2024 Seven Seas Entertainment