The North American small press manga publisher Glacier Bay Books has launched a new Kickstarter campaign for the reprint of the critically acclaimed alt/underground manga F by Imai Arata, alongside the English release of two new titles: Flash Point by Imai Arata and Spring Tides by Andrew White. Following the success of their previous campaign, which introduced eight new books, Glacier Bay Books has reached over 50% of its $27,000 crowdfunding goal a week after its launch. You can support the Kickstarter campaign by clicking here.
All three books are fully prepared for print, with the campaign designed to determine the size of the print run and raise the necessary funds for production. Each book will be produced with high-quality materials, featuring sewn binding, cream interior paper, and monochrome interiors, with Spring Tides printed in a soft blue ink to enhance its ethereal atmosphere.
Have a closer look into each manga:
Flash Point by Imai Arata
FLASH POINT, the stunning new award-winning modern political manga from Imai Arata about viral conspiracy theories, social media lynching, and the 2022 assassination of former prime minister of Japan, Abe Shinzo. Flash Point is translated by award-winning translator and manga historian Ryan Holmberg and features an interview with the author.
F by Imai Arata
F, a disturbingly compelling alternate history of contemporary Japan in the shadow of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, which imagines the incursion of extremist foreign radicals after waves of protest following the fallout of the catastrophe. Imai’s English publishing debut and one of our highly regarded 2021 publications which saw a somewhat limited release at the time, this is a work that sparked interest and was recognized as a notable / best book of the year at multiple venues, and has since become something of a hot topic in cult / avant-garde manga circles due to the shocking modern political commentary. F is translated by award-winning translator and manga historian Ryan Holmberg, and featuring an essay contextualizing the work.
Spring Tides by Andrew White
SPRING TIDES is the Glacier Bay debut of poetic-comics artist Andrew White. A two-part story narrating in images, sounds, and sighs as much as it does in text, the emotional landscapes and physical turmoil of a young couple isolated after a flood submerges the earth and then slowly recedes — but might return at any time. As they try to understand what happened to them, and how they might recover, SPRING TIDES weaves together themes of isolation and of both personal and global collapse that recall the initial onslaught of the Covid 19 pandemic and soon after, as society attempted to reconfigure and reconstruct itself.
Once the Kickstarter campaign concludes, Glacier Bay Books will send the books to print in early to mid-September 2024. The printing process is expected to take about a month, followed by a 1-2 month shipping period to their U.S. warehouse. Ideally, backers will start receiving their copies in November 2024. European backers might receive their books earlier, as a portion of the titles will be sent directly from the printer to Sendai Editora, Glacier Bay Book’s EU distribution partner in Portugal.
The Kickstarter launched on August 20 and closes on September 19, 2024, at 9:00 AM PDT.
Find more about Glacier Bay Books and purchase from their selection of alternative and indie manga here.
