Compiled volume ships October 13
Minneapolis-based independent publisher Uncivilized Books announced on April 27 it has launched the new manga imprint Mangalith, which will launch with an English release of Hideko Mizuno’s 1969 Fire! manga. The compiled book volume with 896 pages will ship on October 14 and will retail for US$49.99.
Image via Uncivilized Books’ blog
© Hideko Mizuno, Bungeishunjū, Uncivilized Books
The publisher describes the story:
Fire! follows the meteoric rise and fall of Aaron Browning, a troubled and poor Ohio teenager. In juvenile detention, Aaron meets the magnetic delinquent Fire Wolf—a motorcycle-riding rebel with an extraordinary musical talent. Their intense bond awakens a fiery passion for music in Aaron.
Aaron moves to Detroit’s gritty factories and underground scene, where he forms the band Fire! to channel his emotions, rebellion, and raw energy. As fame explodes, he plunges into the era’s excesses—sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll, Vietnam-era shadows—embodying the intoxicating yet destructive pursuit of freedom.
Mizuno launched the manga in Shueisha’s Seventeen fashion magazine in 1969 and ended it in 1971. The series won the 15th Shogakukan Manga Award in 1970.
Bungeishunjū published a reprint of the manga for the first time in 23 years in January 2023. The release was compiled across two volumes, each containing a short story that had never previously been released in tankōbon format: “Pink Floyd” in the first volume and “Keith Jarrett” in the second.
Also known for creating the classic shōjo manga Honey Honey no Suteki na Bōken, Hideko Mizuno won the Literary Giant Award at the 39th Japan Cartoonist Awards. She was a resident of Tokiwasō, an apartment building famous for housing some of Japan’s most renowned early manga artists, including Osamu Tezuka (Astro Boy), Fujio Akatsuka (Tensai Bakabon), Fujiko Fujio (Doraemon) and Shōtarō Ishinomori (Kamen Rider).
Tom Kaczynski from Uncivilized Books and Sean Michael Robinson from Living the Line founded Mangalith in 2025. Mangalith’s production team was also behind Drawn & Quarterly’s release of Sanpei Shirato’s The Legend of Kamuy manga.
Thanks to Kim P. for the news tip.
Source: Uncivilized Books (Tom Kaczynski)
