The world wars are a fertile creative ground for literature. The politics, drama, trauma, and action of World Wars 1 & 2 provide the perfect backdrop for big themes and philosophical questions. This is evident by the sheer number of best books on World War 1 & 2 that are out there for us to …
The 2020 Netflix anime Beastars turned a lot of heads upon its release. Created by the animation studio Orange, Beastars stood out as being, arguably, the first great 3D animated anime series. Beastars also utilised experimental voice recording and sound engineering, a stunning jazz soundtrack, a beautiful stop-motion OP, and complex philosophical debates wrapped up …
There is no end to the surrealism, the beauty, the variety found in Japanese literature. Japanese authors and stories expose the human heart; they travel through time and place and dreams. And the best of these tales can be found in Japanese short story collections. Many of the best Japanese authors, known for their award-winning …
For several years now, YA fantasy authors have carved out a beloved and celebrated niche in the world of fantasy and science fiction literature. YA fantasy books stand on their own in this crowded genre, attracting fans new and old. However, like its parent genre, YA fantasy has also become a bustling space. Thus, separating …
Alongside Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Jujutsu Kaisen is the biggest name in shounen manga and anime right now. Many, myself included, have praised it for revitalising the shounen space and ushering in a new age of shounen. When you watch or read Jujutsu Kaisen, you’re experiencing something wholly new; something that wears its inspiration …
Boys’ love manga (BL manga), like other romance manga, is an all-encompassing genre. You will find anything from fantasy to your standard slice of life stories. As the name suggests, the stories in Boys’ Love manga are always about a romantic relationship between two boys (or men). These manga often also often have a larger …
Much like how Netflix ushered in a new Golden Age of TV, a similar age has hit the world of shonen manga and anime. Every decade or so, we’ve had a wave of instant classic shonen manga, but the past few years has seen a real revelation. From future classics like Demon Slayer and Hell’s …
Written and drawn by Ichigo Takano, the Orange manga is a thought-provoking and heartwarming story told through the eyes of its main protagonist, Naho, a second year high school student. We also follow the story of Naho’s 27-year-old future self (seen mostly through letters from the future). But while Orange is told through her eyes, …
Romance is a curious genre, given that so many books, films, TV shows, even video games often feature romances but aren’t necessarily of the romance genre. When it comes to romance manga, however, the romance really is the point. Romance manga also stretches so many different genres, the terms of which can be a little …
When the Horimiya anime burst onto Funimation in Winter 2021, it turned a lot of heads, and many of us became instant fans. The Horimiya manga, however, has been a huge success for quite some time, racking up insane sales numbers. The question — for both new fans of the anime and manga readers who …
