My Brother's Husband: Volume I

One of Amazon.com''s Top 10 Graphic Novels of the year

''[My Brother''s Husband] arrives in the UK garlanded with praise from, among others, Alison Bechdel. It''s not hard to see why. Not only is it very touching; it''s also, for the non-Japanese reader, unexpectedly fascinating'' Rachel Cooke, Observer, Graphic Novel of the Month

''When a cuddly Canadian comes to call, Yaichi - a single Japanese dad - is forced to confront his painful past. With his young daughter Kana leading the way, he gradually rethinks his assumptions about what makes a family. Renowned manga artist Gengoroh Tagame turns his stunning draftsmanship to a story very different from his customary fare, to delightful and heartwarming effect'' Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home

Yaichi is a work-at-home suburban dad in contemporary Tokyo; formerly married to Natsuki, father to their young daughter, Kana. Their lives suddenly change with the arrival at their doorstep of a hulking, affable Canadian named Mike Flanagan, who declares himself the widower of Yaichi''s estranged gay twin, Ryoji. Mike is on a quest to explore Ryoji''s past, and the family reluctantly but dutifully takes him in. What follows is an unprecedented and heartbreaking look at the state of a largely still-closeted Japanese gay culture: how it''s been affected by the West, and how the next generation can change the preconceptions about it and prejudices against it.