Teach your friend that manga books begin on the last page. Published in the traditional Japanese written format, the story panels run right to left. Occasionally, publishers flip the format to make it more accessible to Western audiences.
Familiarize them with the manga style. Manga drawings feature wide-eyed, innocently drawn characters, save for the comic's villains. Manga produced in other countries, like Brazil and the United States, sometimes employs a much more generic style of drawing that relates more to science fiction and super-hero type illustration.
Buy your friend books from manga publishers. Tokyopop, Viz Media and Kodanclub.com currently reign as top manga companies, but hundreds of smaller publishers release books and magazines every month. To introduce them to the latest releases, tell your friend to check www.animenewsnetwork.com.
Introduce them to Shōjo manga. These manga stories, drawn by women for women and girls, often refer to historical characters and mother-daughter relationships. Manga magazines like Shojo Beat serialize stories such as Crimson Hero, which tells the tale of feisty teen-age volleyball star Nobara and her teammates.
Remind your friend about "Sailor Moon." This manga, created by Naoko Takeuchi, become a media mainstay in America in the 1990s. The story, concerning a group of young girls with magical powers, became a cartoon series, a musical and dolls and toys.