Do Nonfiction/Comics/Manga count as reading?

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What counts as reading? Do manga, comic books and non fiction count as reading? I'm curious because I did a class about reading for fun and I asked to bring a manga because it is was reading for fun. I was told to bring a novel. This world is confusing.

Yes, all of those that you listed count as reading. However, in the context of the class, they are probably expecting you to read a specific genre, ie. a novel, so you should look for a novel that you would like to read. Maybe you can find a novel version of some of the manga/comics that you enjoy?

It's not that confusing once you figure out the purpose- in this case, it's about the literary form.
Comics and manga largely show action and environment and character's emotions and leave the text to dialogue.
The novel describes action and environment and emotion-

In a reading class, I'd imagine the emphasis is on taking a closer look at the language, i.e. the actual words used, and how they relate to what is being described.
Since the comic doesn't use language to describe, it is not useful for this course.

Comic and manga are therefore better discussed in art or even more (and somewhat paradoxically) film appreciation classes, where the focus is on composition and sequence of images.

You often have arbitrary definitions in classes. Sometimes the instructor or leader of the class will create her own set of definitions that may not be the same elsewhere. You may say that the meanings of words aren't as rigid as most Aspies would like.