Comic-Con '08: Fanfare Ponent Mon Previews New Taniguchi Manga

UK / Spain-based manga publisher Fanfare - Ponent Mon will be making another rare stateside appearance at San Diego Comic-Con, and like his last visit at New York Comic-Con in April, publisher Stephen Robson is bringing another early preview of a book due for release in the fall. This time, it's a full-length graphic novel by award-winning manga-ka Jiro Taniguchi: The Quest for the Missing Girl .

While Fanfare - Ponent Mon's prior releases of Taniguchi's work have been mostly short stories, The Quest for the Missing Girl is a full-length story about a mountain climber and his quest to find the teenage daughter of his best friend in the bustling streets of Tokyo. It sounds simple enough, but Taniguchi puts his own twist on it that makes this a real page-turner from beginning to end. If you want to know more, drop by the Fanfare - Ponent Mon table (C-04) to browse through the copies that Robson is hoping to stash in his suitcase, fresh from the printer.

Fanfare - Ponent Mon's appearance at Comic-Con is also a great opportunity to stock up on their graphic novels, old and new, since their distribution deal with Atlas isn't quite at 100% yet, making their books difficult to find through online and offline booksellers. Robson is promising that this will change as of Fall 2008, but in the meantime, it's worth your while to drop by and browse through his offerings.

At the top of the stack is The Ice Wanderer and Other Stories, which is nominated for a 2008 Eisner Award. Also worth picking up is Disappearance Diary by Hideo Azuma, a strangely humorous yet true-ish tale about a burnt-out manga artist who decides to put down his pens and become a homeless person.

Take a peek at more manga (and European graphic novel) coming attractions in the Fanfare - Ponent Mon Preview Gallery.

Image credit: © Jiro Taniguchi