Inubaka: Crazy for Dogs, Volume 1

Suguri is 18 and plenty old enough to be out on her on—or so she thinks. She sets off to Tokyo, the big city, with her mutt, Lupin, to try to find her own way. When Lupin gets amorous with a stranger's purebred at a highway rest stop, Suguri sees it as the perfect opportunity to sweet-talk the dog's owner, Teppei, into letting her work at his pet store, Woofles. Suguri is like the dog whisperer; she shows an uncanny ability to know what each dog needs. She's hapless, disorganized and has no idea how to live on her own, but Teppei puts up with her as long as she uses her skill to take care of the puppies at his store. Sakuragi draws realistic but obscenely cute puppies to tell the stories of Suguri's adventures in the big city, from chasing down a missing Corgi pup to learning to let go when the dogs are sold. Suguri is adorable, Teppei is charmingly put out by his new employee, and Teppei's loafer friend, Kentaro, is around to provide a bit of comic relief. Inubaka is a sweet if scatological story about characters who are all crazy for dogs. (Feb.)