The third volume of the manga book "Tattaka Takamaru-kun" featuring Hirosaki city's mascot character Takamaru-kun will be released on April 11th.

Takamaru-kun was created in 2009 as a mascot character for the 400th anniversary of the construction of Hirosaki Castle, and became the mascot character for Hirosaki City in 2011. As Hirosaki Castle was also known as "Takaoka Castle," the character was modeled after a hawk, and he still appears at events and in newsletters within Hirosaki City, and is very popular, especially among children.

The manga will mainly feature four-panel comics that were serialized in the local newspaper, Mutsu Shimpo, as well as original stories and spot the difference games. Five "Vegetable Crayons" with illustrations of Takamaru-kun are included (Dokon). "Vegetable Crayons" are crayons that are safe for children to use, developed by Aomori design company "mizuiro" using rice and vegetables as ingredients.

The outer box, which features a crayon-style illustration of Takamaru-kun, is large enough to store volumes 1 and 2 and can also be used as interior decoration.

An event to commemorate the release, titled "Takamaru-kun 4 Days", will be held at Junkudo Bookstore Nakami Hirosaki Branch (Dotemachi, Hirosaki City) from April 11th to 14th. On the 13th and 14th, Takamaru-kun will be Junkudo Bookstore's manager for one day and will hold an autograph session. The event will start at 11am and 2pm. There will also be photo spots and coloring workshops.

Takamaru-kun's creator, Shogo Seno, a game creator living in Tokyo, even visits Hirosaki Park privately, having his wedding photos taken there thanks to Takamaru-kun. Seno says, "It was the happiness of my life to encounter the wonderful city of Hirosaki. I would like to continue to look for ways to help Hirosaki together with Takamaru-kun."

The price is 1,980 yen.