First Second Books has announced four juvenile and two general release titles for its Summer 2014 list:  Ben Hatke’s The Return of Zita the Spacegirl, This One Summer by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki, Shackleton--Antarctic Odyssey by Nick Bertozzi, Gene Luen Yang’s The Shadow Hero, Emmanuel Guibert’s How the World Was--A California Childhood, and Andre the Giant--Life and Legend by Box Brown.
 
Ben Hatke’s The Return of Zita the Spacegirl is set for May 13 release.  The second book on the trilogy, Legends of Zita the Spacegirl,  hit the New York Times Bestseller list, as well as ranking at #194 on the September 2012 Diamond Top 300 list (see "Top 300 Graphic Novels Actual--September 2012").  This final chapter sees Zita wrongfully imprisoned on a penitentiary planet, where she must escape before the evil prison warden can execute his plan of interstellar domination.  The 240-page book will be available in both HC ($18.99) and TP ($12.99).
 
Cousins Mariko and Jillian Tamaki (Skim) have a new teen graphic novel release, This One Summer, a tale of secrets, sorrow and growing up.  The 320-page book will release on May 6, and will come in both HC ($21.99) and TP($17.99).









Nick Bertozzi has chosen Ernest Skackleton as the next subject in his historical explorers biography series, which includes Lewis and Clark (see "Siegel on the 2011 List").  Shackleton--Antarctic Odyssey tells the story of Shackleton and the dozens of men who undertook one of the most ambitious Antarctic expeditions ever--many of whom nearly died on the journey.  The 128-page paperback releases on June 17, with an MSRP of $16.99.
 


Gene Luen Yang’s Boxers and Saints is on a lot of Best of 2013 graphic novel lists (see "'Time' Magazine's Best Comics of 2013") and his American Born Chinese was a National Book Award Finalist and winner of the Printz Award.  So expectations will be high when The Shadow Hero, with art by Sonny Liew (Marvel’s Sense and Sensibility, Vertigo’s My Faith in Frankie) debuts on July 15.  The story is a reimagining of The Green Turtle, the first Asian American superhero, created by Chu Hing in 1944 for a short run in Blazing Comics.  This tale is an origin story, of a reluctant superhero forced into the job by... his mother!  The 176-page paperback will have an MSRP of $17.99.
 
The first of two general (non-juvenile) graphic novel releases is Emmanuel Guibert’s How the World Was--A California Childhood, set for August 12th release.   This is a prequel to Guibert’s first graphic biography, 2008’s Alan’s War, which was the WW II adventures of Alan Cope, an American GI stationed in France.  Here he focuses on Cope’s childhood during the Great Depression.  The 160-page paperback will have an MSRP of $19.99.
 



The other title of interest the Andre the Giant biography first announced back in July (see "First Second Does Andre the Giant"). The graphic novel biography of actor/ wrestler Andre Roussimoff by Box Brown will be titled Andre the Giant--Life and Legend.  Releasing May 6, the 240-page paperback will carry an MSRP of $17.99.