The Manga Bible

I've always had an interest in manga. The Manga Bible really made me realise just how little I actually knew about where it all came from. What I expected to be a book about the names and series that everyone knows turned out to be a much deeper look at the history of manga and how it has evolved over the years. It goes back to the days of the art form and works its way through the different eras, styles and genres that have helped shape what manga is today. One of the things I enjoyed most was discovering how much variety there is within manga. We all have those names that immediately come to mind when someone says manga. This book goes far beyond them. It introduces you to loads of creators and works some of which I'd never heard of before while also looking at the people who became some of the biggest names in the industry. The sections on creators were particularly interesting. There are than 70 profiles throughout the book including some of the names in manga such as Osamu Tezuka, Akira Toriyama and Hayao Miyazaki. What really stood out to me was how much history and culture is tied into manga. It's not just about drawing comics and creating stories. The book looks at how war, politics, technology, gender and wider cultural changes have influenced manga over the years. That made it a much more interesting read than I expected because you're not just learning about manga itself you're learning about the world around it and how that world helped shape the stories people were creating. I also loved seeing how manga went from being something largely associated with Japan to becoming such a big part of pop culture. We're now at a point where manga, anime, games, movies and merchandise all overlap. You can really see that evolution when you look back at where it started. The book even covers things up to modern day, including the continued growth of genres such as isekai and the global popularity of series like One Piece, Bleach, Demon Slayer and Naruto. For me the biggest takeaway from this book is how much there is to manga. There are different stories, genres, artists and influences that its almost impossible to know everything. And that's what makes a book like this so enjoyable because every time you think you've got an understanding of manga there's another creator, another style or another part of its history that you can go away and explore. If you're already a manga fan there's plenty to sink your teeth into.. I also think it's an introduction for anyone who is just starting to get into manga and wants to understand more about the medium beyond simply picking up the latest popular series. The Manga Bible left me with an appreciation for manga, as an art form and more importantly made me want to discover more of it. If you're a manga fan this is definitely one to have on your bookshelf.