Nonnonba and Me too

While roaming around in the bookstore today- something which is no surprise, as I go to at least one a day (sometimes as many as five, seven, who knows), I saw the english translation of the Japanese manga artist Shigeru Mizuki's book Nonnonba, and it is something which is beyond great.  In particular, the depiction of the protagonist (a child, who is clearly modeled on the creator and his own experiences/dreams) hits so close to an emotional home (if not the reality of the situation, which is far removed in history and in place) that it seems a most refreshing wave upon wave of splendor in graphic form.  Unlike a normal comic book which becomes a hollywood blockbuster, with its unbelievable (and utterly predictable) depictions of good and evil in laughable style, this one seeks to peel back the layers that even this jaded and guarded idle fool and inhabitant of the city (where, it is mentioned in the book, people have no sensitivity to things unknown) has.  Is it not about wonder and joy and beauty and dreaming?