A fresh and intriguing manual of tremendous use for English-language manga fans.
An engrossing guide to manga symbols translated from Japanese.
Kouno, an award-winning Japanese manga artist, offers a detailed look into the world of manpu, the iconography used in manga, which comprise everything from symbols hovering around characters’ heads and bodies to elements in the backgrounds of the panels. In his introduction, Tokyo-based author, reporter, and translator Matt Alt describes the rich history of manpu, from symbols adopted from foreign cartoonists to ones developed by Japanese artists for what was initially a national readership; today manga and anime adaptations have achieved phenomenal global success. Surprisingly, this is the first English-language guide to understanding manpu. The work opens with a table of contents showing each symbol and the pages where it appears. Kouno’s manga panels portray each manpu in context, with explanatory text on the side; many manpu appear on multiple pages, reinforcing readers’ grasp of their meaning. Some will be intuitive to Western readers, but others are deeply embedded in a Japanese cultural context that’s explained in text boxes. An interesting afterword teaches the flow of manga reading, information that will be particularly helpful for beginners. This is a useful book for those who are looking to get into manga but don’t know where to start, but it’s also riveting reading for anyone interested in manpu’s cultural roots.
A fresh and intriguing manual of tremendous use for English-language manga fans. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9781772943085
Page Count: 132
Publisher: Udon
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2024
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today.
A beautifully heart-wrenching graphic-novel adaptation of actor and activist Takei’s (Lions and Tigers and Bears, 2013, etc.) childhood experience of incarceration in a World War II camp for Japanese Americans.
Takei had not yet started school when he, his parents, and his younger siblings were forced to leave their home and report to the Santa Anita Racetrack for “processing and removal” due to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066. The creators smoothly and cleverly embed the historical context within which Takei’s family’s story takes place, allowing readers to simultaneously experience the daily humiliations that they suffered in the camps while providing readers with a broader understanding of the federal legislation, lawsuits, and actions which led to and maintained this injustice. The heroes who fought against this and provided support to and within the Japanese American community, such as Fred Korematsu, the 442nd Regiment, Herbert Nicholson, and the ACLU’s Wayne Collins, are also highlighted, but the focus always remains on the many sacrifices that Takei’s parents made to ensure the safety and survival of their family while shielding their children from knowing the depths of the hatred they faced and danger they were in. The creators also highlight the dangerous parallels between the hate speech, stereotyping, and legislation used against Japanese Americans and the trajectory of current events. Delicate grayscale illustrations effectively convey the intense emotions and the stark living conditions.
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today. (Graphic memoir. 14-adult)Pub Date: July 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-60309-450-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Top Shelf Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2019
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