New Comics for New Readers – August 22, 2012

Wednesday is New Comics Day! Each week, The Comics Observer picks brand new releases worth checking out that should be suitable for someone who has never read comic books, graphic novels or manga before.

These are out today! If you like what you see here, click the links to see previews and learn more about them. Then head to your local comic book store, or check out online retailers like Things From Another World and Amazon. Let us know what you think in the comments below or on Facebook.

For a full list of this week’s new releases, see comiXology and ComicList.com.

(Disclaimer: These aren’t reviews. Recommendations are based on pre-release press, previews, and The Comics Observer‘s patented crystal ball. Product descriptions provided by publisher.)

Maya Makes a Mess by Rutu Modan

Maya Makes a Mess
Written and illustrated by Rutu Modan
Published by Toon Books
Genre: Fantasy
Ages: 4+
Grades: 1-2
32 pages
$12.95

Are Maya’s manners fit for a queen?

In the midst of a family dinner with her scolding parents, Maya receives an unexpected invitation to dine with the Queen. Suddenly, her messy manners are put to the ultimate test and she begins to improvise her very own set of rules, with uproarious results.

Filled with humor and exquisitely imagined detail, this book by Eisner Award-winner Rutu Modan is bound to turn every child into a voracious reader.

This book is a collaboration: when she was a child, Rutu liked ketchup so much she used to eat it with everything, even with cookies, or straight from the bottle (but only when her parents were not around). Then when Rutu’s daughter, Michal, was young, she had very bad table manners. Rutu told her: “How badly you eat! What would you do if the Queen invited you to dine at the palace?” Michal answered very seriously: “Well! It just so happens that the Queen is a VERY good friend of mine, and she told me that I eat perfectly.”

Tails Book One by Ethan Young

Tails
Written and illustrated by Ethan Young
Published by Hermes Press
Genre: Fantasy
Ages: 16+
128 pages
$12.99

Quirky, funny, and surreal, Tails follows the semi-autobiographical exploits of hapless and hopeless hipster cartoonist Ethan. Ethan uses his comic book creation Crusader Cat to get away from the real world… and things get interesting when his escapist work starts to talk back to him. Poignant, funny, and daring, Tails is an unflinching portrait of a believable character as he starts to fall into the abyss of an unbelievable world, with the results ranging from hilarious to heart-breaking.

Published as a black and white hardcover, Tails is the first of a three-volume series recommended for mature readers.

Prophet: Remission by Brandon Graham, et al.

Prophet Volume 1: Remission
Written by Brandon Graham
Illustrated by Simon Roy, Farel Dalrymple, Giannis Milonogiannis, and Brandon Graham
Published by Image Comics
Genre: Fantasy
Ages: 13+
136 pages
$9.99

On distant future Earth, changed by time and alien influence, John Prophet awakes from cryosleep. His mission: to climb the the towers of Thauili Van and restart the Earth empire. News of the Empire’s return brings old foes and allies out of the recesses of the vast cosmos.