If you are ready to add a Manga collection to your school library, Rudes offers everything you need to know to get started. Understanding Manga, how this genre connects to reading and literacy, as well as programming, and titles by age group are offered to get you started.

In today's developing view of education, a disquieting trend looms--the erosion of students' right to choose what they read. This erosion, fueled by an alarming surge in censorship attempts, casts a shadow over the very essence of intellectual exploration. Recent years have witnessed an unprecedented number of challenges aimed at restricting…

Coming of age themes are common in young adult novels, and graphic novels in particular often address these issues as illustrated memoirs. This article explores engaging and interesting graphic novels about growing up, useful resources for school librarians and other educators using this format, and the value of using graphic novels to support…

"Princess Mononoke," "Akira," and "Cowboy Bebop" may not be household names. But in the world of anime, or Japanese animation, they are among the top 10 films ever made. With its complex plots and moral messages, anime is as intelligent as some of the best feature films. From the epic fantasy "Ninja Scroll"…

Art, like beauty, as the adage goes, is in the eye of the beholder. Art also is a living, breathing thing that evolves over time, so what is considered "art" is ever changing--how many of the great artists whose works today sell for fortunes were failures during their lifetime? The 20th century unknowingly gave birth to new variations of art that…

Many educators now agree that graphic novels inform as well as entertain, and to dismiss the educational potential of the graphic novel is to throw away a golden opportunity to reach out to young readers. This dynamic book takes a look at the term "graphic novel," how the format has become entwined in our culture, and the ways in which graphic…

Libraries receiving the corpus of a comics publisher are presented with challenges, especially regarding preservation and access for special and circulating collections. Libraries must consider user research needs and collection relevance. Library literature is consulted and recommendations are made regarding bibliographic description, subject…

What is the appeal of anime? For one thing, the graphic storytelling is uniquely compelling and spans multiple genres. It tends to be targeted to different audiences: young children and families, males or females aged 10-18, or strictly adults for the mature genre called hentai. In America, almost all animation is produced for and watched by…

This essay discusses 13 pictorial devices with which one must be familiar to understand the illustrations in Virginia Lee Burton's "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel." Color constancy, implied background, sharply drawn lines, abstractions of caricature, use of perspective, face on objects, and picture book narration are noted. (EJS)

Describes a project in which students are involved in producing an animated videotape recording and discusses the advantages of modern videotape equipment over other film media. An outline of the process covers materials used, storyboard and artwork production, videotaping procedures, and audio dubbing. (CLB)