Dark academia is more popular than ever before — a blend of literary fiction and genre fiction, gothic and grounded. Dark academia books come in many styles, but they all share the theme of, well, dark academia. Putting a firm definition of dark academia can be tricky but it generally involves places of higher education, …
Graphic Novel
It’s hard to ignore the fact that, historically, the genres of sci-fi and fantasy have been dominated by straight, white men, with a few notable exceptions. Over the past few years, however, there has been a colourful shift to queer fantasy and sci-fi books, and books of that genre written by incredible women and authors …
Shoujo is a broad genre of manga that has existed for almost as long as there have been manga readers. The name shoujo literally means “young woman”, and the shoujo manga label is stamped on any manga suitable for (or that appeals to) readers who are young girls. This means that a lot of stereotyping …
Note: This list of LGBTQ bedtime stories was assembled with the help of my girlfriend Issy, an experienced primary (elementary) school teacher and fellow member of the LGBTQ community. If you were read to as a little one, it’s pretty likely that your fondest reading memories are of bedtime. The best bedtime stories to read …
American author Stephen King is considered the undisputed master of horror, with as many published works as he has years on this Earth. But King is far from the only great horror author writing today, so here are some of the best horror books by writers far and wide. Essential Modern Horror Books Beyond the …
Manga is a medium that boasts a long and rich history of stellar sci-fi for readers of all ages. From Osamu Tezuka’s beloved Astro Boy to the pop culture-defining Akira, some of the best sci-fi ever written can be found in the world of manga. The Best Sci-Fi Manga to Read Right Now If you …
Fantasy is one of the most exciting genres of fiction, whether that be across manga, prose, film, or TV. That said, fantasy manga (like all fantasy fiction) can fall into a formula if we’re not careful; a formula where certain specific tropes are expected to be found. This attitude towards fantasy manga isn’t particularly exciting, …
Mixing horror and comedy is nothing new, but with the Mieruko-chan manga, writer-artist Tomoki Izumi is doing something truly fresh and exciting. In manga and anime, horror is a well-trodden genre. In fact, the king of that genre, Junji Ito, is arguably the best horror writer working today (sorry Stephen King fans). But fans of …
The Tokyo Revengers manga is written and drawn by Ken Wakui. It began its run in 2017 but caught the eyes of new readers when the anime adaptation dropped in 2021. For this particular manga recommendation, I’m going to get a little personal and informal (lots of Is and Mes) because it’s the only way …
There are a lot of different ways to read manga in English translation. Two popular ways are to buy tankobon volumes at bookshops or online, or to read manga on the Shonen Jump app via your phone or tablet. A third way to read manga is by buying and using an eReader (a Kingle, Kobo, …