Three Great Bits Of Top Shelf News

Firstly, the delightful all-ages book Owly is returning in February.

Top Shelf is proud to announce that the all-new OWLY picture book by Andy Runton is in the current Diamond Previews and available for pre-ordering! This 40-page full-color hardcover picture book (with a dust jacket) is published by Simon & Schuster under license from Top Shelf, and we’re all very excited to add this new dimension to the Owly Universe!

Owly and Wormy want butterflies! But when they come home from Mrs. Raccoon’s nursery with a milkweed plant that’s supposed to attract some fluttering friends, what they get instead are chubby, green bugs! But green bugs are not butterflies! Will butterflies ever come to the forest? Only time will tell… Bold, graphic, and full of fun, this wordless storybook gives all-ages readers the wings they need to start reading on their own, and a firm footing on the idea of metamorphosis as they watch old friends become new friends.

Secondly, their offering for Free Comic Book Day next year consists of 3 new all-ages tales.

And while we’re celebrating the all-new OWLY picture book, here’s a sneak peak at this year’s 2011 FREE COMIC BOOK DAY book, the TOP SHELF KIDS CLUB – 2011, featuring not one, but SIX all-ages tales! In this FCBD edition, we’ll not only present three adventures from our established all-ages series OWLY by Andy Runton, JOHNNY BOO by James Kochalka, and KORGI by Christian Slade; but we’ll also feature three all-new stories from three brand new all-ages series debuting in 2011: OKIE DOKIE DONUTS by Chris Eliopoulos, PIRATE PENGUIN VS NINJA CHICKEN by Ray Friesen, and UPSIDE DOWN by Jess Smart Smiley. Perfect for everyone in the family. With a great cover by Chris Eliopoulos this time around to boot!

Finally, they have a sale on some of their goodies throughout December.

Two Age Of X: Alpha Covers

I loved the alternate universe multi-series that was Age of Apocalypse back in the heyday of the ’90s. Marvel gave us an alternate world where Magneto replaced the dead Professor X as leader of the X-Men, Wolverine had one arm and Cyclops was a bad guy not to be messed with. More recently we’ve had the more grounded House of M story which showed a world without mutants. Next up is Age of X. Below are two covers for the series which launches on January 26. That’s Australia Day! Read more about the series with an interview with Mike Carey at CBR and discover some redesigns of classic X-Men too.

Your First Look At All-New Covers To AGE OF X: ALPHA

Marvel is pleased to present your first look at two all-new covers to Age of X: Alpha #1 from superstar artists Chris Bachalo and Olivier Coipel! Mutankind’s Final war starts here! In a world where the X-Men never existed, the survival of mutantkind rests on the shoulders of the few remaining mutants who are on their last leg. Who are they and at what length will they go to keep their kind alive? Get your answers to these questions and more in Age Of X: Alpha #1! Keep your eyes peeled this week for another Age of X Historical Log inside select Marvel Comics. Be sure to head out to your local comic shop to find the next clue you will need to unravel the mystery that is Age of X.

AGE OF X: ALPHA #1 (NOV100514)

AGE OF X: ALPHA #1 COIPEL VARIANT (NOV10515)

Written by MIKE CAREY

Pencils by MIRCO PIERFEDERICI, PAUL DAVIDSON, GABRIEL HERNANDEZ WALTA, HARVEY TOLIBAO & CARLO BARBERI

Cover by CHRIS BACHALO

Variant Cover by OLIVIER COIPEL

Rated A…$3.99

FOC – 1/3/10, On-Sale – 1/26/10