Brenner, R., (2007). Understanding Manga and Anime. Littleton: Libraries Unlimited.
ISBN-13: 978-1591583325 (amazon)
This is perhaps the definitive guide for librarians interested in anime and manga. It covers the history of the formats, the culture clash between east and west, and explains the visual convention of the formats. It provides introductions to the prevalent genres and provides a list of recommended titles in each genre. It also offers a discussion of the different anime and manga related fan activities such as anime conventions. Finally you’ll find a discussion of how to build an audience and collection of anime and manga titles
Gorman, M., & Smith, J. (2003). Getting Graphic: Using Graphic Novels to Promote Literacy with Preteens and Teens. City: Linworth Publishing.
ISBN-13: 978-1586830892 (amazon)
While this work focuses on the graphic novel format as a whole (of which manga is simply one part), it nonetheless remains an incredibly useful resource for a librarian interested in promoting manga in the library. It offers a serious discussion of the value graphic novels have in promoting literacy and provides sample programs for using graphic novels in a library as part of a literacy program.
Kelts, R., (2007). Japanamerica. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
ISBN-13: 978-1403984760 (amazon)
Japanamerica describes the contradiction between the wildly expressive format of anime and manga and the repressive nature of Japanese society, especially in relation to America. It is an insightful look into the culture and concepts that surround manga.
Levi, A., (1996). Samurai from Outer Space. La Salle: Open Court.
ISBN-13: 978-0812693324 (amazon)
If you have ever watched an anime or read a manga and felt that you were missing something, you might be right. Samurai from Outer Space examines the hidden cultural cues and conventions behind many of the most popular anime series in America. The work gives the reader a new understanding of the meaning behind many anime and explores cross cultural cues in both directions (for instance, how the Japanese interpret Christianity).
Miller, S., (2005). Developing and Promoting Graphic Novel Collections. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers.
ISBN-13: 978-1555704612 (amazon)
Similarly to Getting Graphic this work focuses on graphic novels as a whole. However most of the key issues and objections this work discusses are equally applicable to developing manga collections and, in some cases, also applicable to developing anime collections. In addition, manga is included in the work’s core titles, providing the reader with some initial titles for one’s collection.
Napier, S., (2005). Anime from Akira to Howl's Moving Castle, Updated Edition. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
ISBN-13: 978-1403970527 (amazon)
This work offers a more academic look at the cultural background behind anime. A number of topics are extensively discussed in a search to more fully understand the reasoning behind many of the common anime cliches and stereotypes. The discussion of femininity in anime is particularly fascinating and spans multiple chapters.
Poitras, G., (2000). Anime Essentials. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press.
ISBN-13: 978-1880656532 (amazon)
This is a somewhat more general guide to anime and manga aimed at introducing a new fan to the wider world of anime and manga. The work is easier to understand and follow. It provides a brief history of anime and manga, an exploration of the various cultural themes, genres, and formats anime and manga may arrive in, and an explanation of just exactly what makes anime unique. Librarians may find its exploration of anime related controversies to be particularly useful.
Richmond, S., & Guides, R. (2009). The Rough Guide to Anime 1. London: Rough Guides.
ISBN-13: 978-1858282053 (amazon)
This work promises to be a definitive reference source for anime combining basic information about anime and Japan with a critical evaluation of the themes and concepts surrounding anime. Unfortunately it has yet to be released. It is definitely a title to consider looking at when released, but you may want to hold off on purchasing it until you get a chance to browse it yourself.
Clements, J., & Mccarthy, H. (2006). The Anime Encyclopedia, Revised & Expanded Edition. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press.
ISBN-13: 978-1933330105 (amazon)
This is a definitive encyclopedia of over 2,000 anime titles including both series and feature length works. The entries contain bibliographic information, synopses, and reviews. Its greatest strength lies in its use in reference, especially for tracking anime by director.
Poitras, G., (1999). The Anime Companion. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press.
ISBN-13: 978-1880656327 (amazon)
Poitras, G., (2005). The Anime Companion 2. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press.
ISBN-13: 978-1880656969 (amazon)
The Anime Companion and its sequel provide the reader with a cultural glossary of terms, phrases, and conventions a reader is likely to experience when watching anime or reading manga. It contains a number of phrases or terms that are either unique to Japanese culture or are so ingrained into Japanese culture that they bear especially significance. The glossary also has entries about people, places, and things in Japan which a Japanese viewer would take for granted. As additional bonus, most entries contain an example of an anime in which the entry plays a role.
Thompson, J., (2007). Manga. New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey.
ISBN-13: 978-0345485908 (amazon)
This work provides an encyclopedic series of entries about over 900 different manga series. It provides bibliographic information, synopses, and age appropriateness guidelines for its entries. It also provides manga reviews. These ratings and reviews are particularly useful for collection development. They rate popular series particularly high, though their reviews of more obscure series tend to be somewhat harsher.
Lunning, F. (Ed). Mechademia. Published annually. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. Website: http://www.mechademia.org/
Mechademia is a scholarly publication aimed at examining anime and manga in an academic setting. While the journal often contains useful reviews, its true focus is on exploring facets of the culture of anime and manga.
Creel, S. L. (Ed.). VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates). Published bi-monthly. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press. ISSN: 0160-4201 Website: http://www.voya.com/
Ott, V (Ed.). Young Adult Library Services. Published quarterly. Chicago, IL: American Library Association. ISSN: 1541-4302. Website: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/yalsapubs/yals/youngadultlibrary.cfm
VOYA and the Young Adult Library Services journals are both intended for use by young adult librarians for their young adult service base. Since many anime and manga titles are aimed at young adults. you will find some reviews and collection development advice within them.
These journal articles are intended to provide an overview of the different types of anime and manga related articles you can find in professional library journals such as VOYA and School Library Journal.
Both of these articles chronicle the growing popularity of anime and manga in the Unitied States over the last ten years. The Reid article is particularly notable because of the way it discussed the strong connection that exists between anime and manga sales and popularity (their market bases are nearly identical).
Reid, C. (2004). Manga sells anime--and vice versa. Publishers Weekly, 251(42), 30, 32-3. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Wolk, D. (2001). Manga, anime invade the U.S.. Publishers Weekly, 248(11), 35-6. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
These three articles seek to provide a basic explanation of the anime and manga phenomenon in the United States with a particular emphasis on introducing the format to a layperson. The articles contain several glossaries of anime and manga related terms and provide some initial collection recommendations. The Halsall article warrants a close look because it chronicles the experiences of a layperson that investigated anime and manga for their patrons but became enamored of it themselves. It provides an excellent rationale for their value as an art form and for their inclusion in a library.
Bauer, M. (2001). Anime, manga, and otaku culture: a quick study guide for the uninitiated. Voice of Youth Advocates, 24(3), 186-7. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Bunche, S. (2004). A layman's lexicon of manga and anime. School Library Journal, 50(8), supp24. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Halsall, J. (2004). The anime revelation. School Library Journal, 50(8), supp6-supp8, supp11-supp13. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
These two articles cover the how and why for incorporating graphic novels (including manga) into the library. They each provide excellent justification for their inclusion as well as advice for cataloging and shelving graphic novel material.
Heaney, M.J., (2007). Graphic novels: a sure bet for your library. Collection Building, 26(3) 72-76. Retrieved May 12, 2009, from Emerald Management Xtra. DOI: 10.1108/01604950710761625
O'English, Lorena., Matthews, J., & Lindsay, Elizabeth (2006). Graphic novels in academic libraries: From Maus to manga and beyond. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 32(2), 173-82. Retrieved May 12, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
These articles provide a framework for moving beyond simple collection development. Purdy offers a variety of web resources to use for further investigation of anime. Fletcher-Spear and Kan provide a framework for hosting Anime screenings in the library, how to do it, how to get permission, why you’d want to do it.
Fletcher-Spear, K. (2002). Anime contacts for screening permissions. Voice of Youth Advocates, 25(4), 250-1. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Kan, K., & Fletcher-Spear, K. (2002). Showing anime in the library. Voice of Youth Advocates, 25(1), 20-3. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Purdy, R. (2005). Anime and manga on the web. Voice of Youth Advocates, 27(6), 458-9. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from Library Lit & Inf Full Text database.
Animé Café, (2004) Retrieved May 12, 2009, from http://www.abcb.com/
This webpage has two features you’ll find particularly useful. First is a general “anime encyclopedia (which is more accurately a subject dictionary) containing short entries on popular Anime titles, publishers, and commonly used terms. The second is the “parent’s guide to anime” which reviews and assigns movie ratings to popular anime titles. This second section will be particularly useful for librarians seeking to select noncontroversial titles.
Anime News Network, (2009). Retrived May 12, 2009, from http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/.
This site is the most comprehensive anime or manga related site on the web. It has an extensive encyclopedia containing detailed information about most Anime and Manga titles, as well as entries on members of the anime and manga industry. It also offers extensive and comprehensive anime and manga reviews and a number of anime related articles and features.
Poitras, G., (2007). Gilles' service to fans page. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from Web Site: http://www.koyagi.com/
This is the personal site of a noted Anime scholar, Giles Poitras. It contains supplements to his The Anime Companion. It contains a large amount of information about Anime and manga, especially as it exists in America. Pay particular attention to his “the Librarian’s Guide to Anime” at http://www.koyagi.com/Libguide.html.
Brenner , R., (2007, July 15) Collection development "anime": Anime's brave new world. Library Journal, (12). Retrieved May 12, 2009 frin http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6457207.html
This is a brief overview of anime collection development written by one of the most well known authors in the field. While the definition of anime provided and her suggested titles are useful, pay close attention to the “Counsel & caveats” section of the article for some particularly useful information.
Zabriskie, C., (2009). Managing manga in your library. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from Diamond Bookshelf. Website: http://bookshelf.diamondcomics.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=20&s=181&ai=76640&ssd
This article is an excellent introductory guide to manga collection development. It provides a basic description of manga, offers suggestions for how to incorporate manga into a library and how to catalogue it. It also offers suggestions for using manga to attract young adult patrons.
The following three best seller lists can be found online and provide an excellent tool for collection development. You can use these lists to as a way to find new popular titles and review them to see if they fit into your library.
Amazon.com (2009) Amazon.com books bestsellers: The most popular items in manga. Retrieved May 12, 2009, from Amazon.com Website: http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/books/4367/ref=pd_ts_b_nav
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Amazon.com (2009) Amazon.com movies & TV bestsellers: The most popular items in anime & manga. Retrieved May 12, 2009, from Amazon.com Website: http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/dvd/517956/ref=pd_ts_d_nav
Gustines, G.G., (2009) Graphic books best seller lists Retrieved May 12, 2009, from the New York Times. Website: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/graphic-books-best-seller-lists/
Joining one of these discussion groups puts you in the position to call upon the resources of a whole community of librarians and other people who share your interest in adding anime or manga to the library.
GNLIB-L Graphic Novels in Libraries Mailing List, (2009). Retrieved May 12, 2009 from http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GNLIB-L/
YALSA Anime Discussion Group (via ALA connect), (n.d). Retrieved May 12, 2009 from http://connect.ala.org/node/70742 (You must be a member of YALSA and sign up to ALA connect.)