Yen Press to Publish Manga Adaptation of Darren Shan's Bestselling Series – Cirque Du Freak
MANGA PUBLICATION TO COINCIDE WITH UNIVERSAL PICTURES' 2009 MOVIE RELEASE OF THE SAME TITLE
NEW YORK, NY (July 31, 2008) — Yen Press, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, today announced that it will publish the first official English-language manga adaptations of the New York Times bestselling young adult series Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan. Jointly acquired from the Christopher Little Agency (UK) and Japanese publisher Shogakukan, the new editions will be adapted into English from the original versions created by Darren Shan and Takahiro Arai which have already sold over 7 million copies in the Japanese manga and prose forms. Brought to life in black and white illustrations, the compelling saga of a young boy's journey into a dark world of vampires will be available at major bookstores and comic book retailers at $10.99 and is rated T (Teen).
Publication of the first three Cirque du Freak manga volumes will be coordinated around the release of the Cirque du Freak movie in 2009 by Universal Pictures. Directed by Paul Weitz, the film will star John C. Reilly, Salma Hayek, Willem Dafoe, and Ken Watanabe. Subsequent manga volumes will release every three months.
“I absolutely LOVE the manga adaptation of Cirque du Freak!” exclaimed Darren Shan, creator of the twelve original novels published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (sister imprint under Hachette Book Group). “[Takahiro Arai] brings freshness and vitality to the story that sweeps readers along in a happy blur…This is more than a worthy companion piece to the books – it's a great piece of story-telling in its own right. It's Shantastic!"
“This has been a great opportunity for us to publish a manga edition of Cirque du Freak not only in Japan, but also in the United States,” said Takahiro Arai. “We are honored that our manga editions will help readers discover the wonderful story of Cirque du Freak. We put our heart and soul into making this book. Enjoy!”
Kurt Hassler, Co-Publisher of Yen Press, added, “Yen Press is thrilled to bring Shogakukan's manga adaptation of Darren Shan's bestselling series to North America. Arai's take on the story is sure to attract both manga fans and long-time fans of the novels alike. 2009 is definitely shaping up to be the Year of the Freak!”
Yen Press is an imprint of Hachette Book Group USA dedicated to publishing graphic novels for adults and young readers. Yen Press' focus is primarily on licensed manga, but also publishes across the wide spectrum of the graphic novel market, including, but not limited to: original manga publications, original American comics/graphic novels, webcomics, licensed adaptations, and children's graphic novels.
Hachette Book Group is a leading trade publisher based in New York and a division of Hachette Livre, the second largest publisher in the world. Hachette Book Group's product lines include adult, illustrated, religious, children's and audio books under the Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Grand Central Publishing, FaithWords, Center Street, Orbit, Yen Press and Hachette Book Group Digital Media imprints.
NEW YORK, NY (July 31, 2008) — Yen Press, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, today announced that it will publish the first official English-language manga adaptations of the New York Times bestselling young adult series Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan. Jointly acquired from the Christopher Little Agency (UK) and Japanese publisher Shogakukan, the new editions will be adapted into English from the original versions created by Darren Shan and Takahiro Arai which have already sold over 7 million copies in the Japanese manga and prose forms. Brought to life in black and white illustrations, the compelling saga of a young boy's journey into a dark world of vampires will be available at major bookstores and comic book retailers at $10.99 and is rated T (Teen).
Publication of the first three Cirque du Freak manga volumes will be coordinated around the release of the Cirque du Freak movie in 2009 by Universal Pictures. Directed by Paul Weitz, the film will star John C. Reilly, Salma Hayek, Willem Dafoe, and Ken Watanabe. Subsequent manga volumes will release every three months.
“I absolutely LOVE the manga adaptation of Cirque du Freak!” exclaimed Darren Shan, creator of the twelve original novels published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (sister imprint under Hachette Book Group). “[Takahiro Arai] brings freshness and vitality to the story that sweeps readers along in a happy blur…This is more than a worthy companion piece to the books – it's a great piece of story-telling in its own right. It's Shantastic!"
“This has been a great opportunity for us to publish a manga edition of Cirque du Freak not only in Japan, but also in the United States,” said Takahiro Arai. “We are honored that our manga editions will help readers discover the wonderful story of Cirque du Freak. We put our heart and soul into making this book. Enjoy!”
Kurt Hassler, Co-Publisher of Yen Press, added, “Yen Press is thrilled to bring Shogakukan's manga adaptation of Darren Shan's bestselling series to North America. Arai's take on the story is sure to attract both manga fans and long-time fans of the novels alike. 2009 is definitely shaping up to be the Year of the Freak!”
Yen Press is an imprint of Hachette Book Group USA dedicated to publishing graphic novels for adults and young readers. Yen Press' focus is primarily on licensed manga, but also publishes across the wide spectrum of the graphic novel market, including, but not limited to: original manga publications, original American comics/graphic novels, webcomics, licensed adaptations, and children's graphic novels.
Hachette Book Group is a leading trade publisher based in New York and a division of Hachette Livre, the second largest publisher in the world. Hachette Book Group's product lines include adult, illustrated, religious, children's and audio books under the Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Grand Central Publishing, FaithWords, Center Street, Orbit, Yen Press and Hachette Book Group Digital Media imprints.
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