Many of you have watched a Superman cartoon or movie. But did you know he first appeared in comics（连环漫画）? Do you want to learn more about popular comic books around the world? Take a look!

    Do you find reading boring? Have a read of some comic books. You will learn to love their colorful pictures and simple language.

    Comic books usually tell stories through cartoons. The US and Japan have some great comic books. But they are not the same.

    Their names are different. People say "comic books" in the US but "manga" in Japan.

    American comics are often about superheroes—characters like Superman and Spider Man. So action is a major part of American comics. But Japanese manga like to tell stories of ordinary people. Luffy in One Piece（《海贼王》）is such an example.

    American comics make people excited with super powers, while Japanese manga comfort（安慰）people with moving stories. Natsume's Book of Friends is about a teenage boy. He can see spirits（精灵）. He is confused （困惑的）at first but later he makes friends with spirits.

    you are not interested in these two kinds, why not try some from China? Xia Da, 32, is a great comic book artist from China. Some of her comics are about school life. Others show the beauty of Chinese culture.

    A city without cars would be very strange, right? But Venice is such a city.

    Venice is in the northeast of Italy. It wasn't built on land, like Beijing or Shanghai, but on more than 110 islands. Seawater is everywhere around the city.

    Even so, travel isn't difficult. The waterways have always been the best ways to get around. There are 117 waterways and more than 400 bridges that can guide you where you want to go. People in Venice move from place to place by boat. They like to enjoy the scenery and cool summer nights while taking boat trips. They can talk to other people as they go along.

    Venice grew out of small islands in saltwater lakes when some Italians escaped from a war more than 1,500 years ago, and built homes there.

    Water makes the city special, but it is also a big problem.

    Once, people used too much underground water. This made the city get lower little by little. Now the city has gone down by 23 centimeters. Another problem is the rising seawater. The temperature has risen over the years. This has made the ice of the Arctic Ocean (北冰洋) melt (融化).

    Every year, high waters hit the city in autumn and winter. When a lot of water comes, more than half of the city is underwater.

    Scientists are trying different ways to stop the city from getting even lower.