English version of a popular Japanese manga

Recently in a local bookstore we came across the English version of "Shonen Jump," Japan's most popular comic book. "Shonen" means "young boy," but the readership of "Shonen Jump" spans both sexes and a wide age range, and it's common to see middle-aged businessmen reading it on subway trains to and from work.

"Shonen Jump" was the first Japanese comic translated into English for the American market and at the time
this article was written in Time Asia (the Asian version of Time), it was the number-one selling comic in the United States. Like most books in Japan, "Shonen Jump" retains its right-to-left format, i.e., it's binding is on the right-hand side, instead of the left. Why didn't publishers change it for the American market? Because market research showed that American kids think it's cool!

Here are a couple of photos from a recent issue, to give you a feel for the artwork, etc.







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