Reviews - The Graphic Library

Shangri-la frontier vol 1 by Katarina

1/2/2025

Cover of Shangri-La Frontier volume 1. Rakuro is in a blue bird mask with two swords crossed in front of him.

Illustrated by Ryosuke Fuji

High school student Rakuro Hizutome spends most of his free time playing kusogi, terrible immersive video games that have horrible flaws and plot holes. One day, his favorite video game clerk suggests he try out a well-made game, so he jumps into Shangri-La Frontier, a huge open-world game with tons of players. Rakuro initially sacrifices gear in his character creation in order to get better weapons, so he opts for a ridiculous bird mask and no armor. As he grinds through the first few new player areas, he takes a chance on a night time encounter, and his decision fundamentally impacts the future of his gameplay in SLF.

My love story with yamada-kun at lv999 vol 1 by mashiro

11/11/2024

Cover of My Love Story with Yamada-Kun at Lv999 vol 1

Akane is a young college student who just got dumped by her boyfriend. He fell in love with another girl he met online on a game they all play — Forest of Saviors. Akane only started playing the game as a way to do something with her boyfriend, but she kind of likes the game now. FOS is hosting an in-person event, so Akane decides to show up looking extra cute in an attempt to make her ex jealous. Instead, she runs into an annoying member of her guild who has been rude to her online! In an effort to not look desperate, Akane gets the flippant Yamada to pose as her boyfriend, and ends up tangled with him even after the meet up despite his terrible attitude!

Turns out my online friend is my real-life boss! Vol 1 by nmura

8/3/2024

Cover of Turns Out my Online Friend is my Rea-Life Boss! volume 1. Hashimoto and Shirase are standing back to back. Shirase is on the phone in a business suit while Hashimoto is in a white shirt with a tie holding his phone.

Hashimoto is an innocent, rather oblivious office worker who doesn’t particularly get alone with his boss. Every proposal he turns in is ripped to shreds and has to be redone. Hashimoto’s only reprieve is an online game where his best partner, U.M.A., helps him take down tons of beasts and tackle tough quests. The two befriend another play, Salted Salmon. U.M.A. suggests they all meet in person and try to be friends in real life since they get along so well online. At first, Hashimoto is hesitant and concerned the transition won’t be smooth. But meeting his online friend reveals it’s actually his boss! Cue many misconceptions and misunderstandings, and Salted Salmon even gets tangled into the comedy of errors as they try to work everything out, including their feelings for one another.

In the land of leadale vol 1 by dashio tsukimi

11/13/2023

Cover of In the land of Leadale volume 1. Cayna is sitting on a green hill with a few flowers around her. She's in a green tunic with a belt around her waste. She has a white cape flowing behind her and short blond hair with a headband in her hair. Her tan boots come up to her knees and her hands are on her knees. She's smiling and looking off into the distance. Puffy clouds are in the blue sky behind her.

One morning, Keina wakes up in the world of Leadale in the body of her high elf Cayna. In the physical world, Keina knows she is hooked up to life support, and she vaguely remembers a power outage that might have caused her to be thrown into her VRMMORPG. Now that her medically fragile body has probably died, she now has to make the most of her second life as a very powerful elf in a fantasy world that has moved on from the time she was playing the game. How much has the events of the game changed the society, and what can she do to survive and not be found out as a powerful magic user!

Cat + Gamer vol 2 By Wataru Nadatani

7/1/2022

Cover of Cat + Gamer volume 2

Booklist review

Sara's Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Grades 8-12

Reviews of previous volumes in this series: vol 1*

Publisher: Dark Horse Manga
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
ISBN: 9781506727424 (Paperback)

Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Animals, Slice Of Life, Video Games, Dark Horse

Cat + Gamer vol 1 by Wataru Nadatani

7/1/2022

Cover of Cat + Gamer volume 1

Booklist review

Sara's Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Grades 8-12

Publisher: Dark Horse Manga
Publication Date: May 24, 2022
ISBN: 9781506727417 (Paperback)

Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Animals, Slice Of Life, Video Games, Dark Horse

Oldies but goodies - CLASSIC MANGA YOU CAN ADD TO YOUR COLLECTION TODAY - PART 5

4/15/2019

Scott pilgrim by bryan lee o'malley

O'Malley's 2004-2010 classic is still a tale that resonates with today's teens. This is one of those rare non-Japanese manga that actually has staying power. The manga version is close to the movie adaptation (one of the books-to-movies that turned out alright) in that Scott is dating a high schooler, he dreams about a mysterious girl, and he has to fight off the evil exes of his dream girl, Ramona. Scott has other adventures and battles, and yes, the baddies do disappear into a pile of coins just like most video games.

CAN'T PLAY THE VIDEO GAME? READ THE MANGA! PART 2 OF 3

10/8/2018

My second installment of Read the Manga focuses on Kingdom Hearts, a hugely popular and expansive series that spanned several generations of consoles, some that are extremely hard to find now. Reading the manga is a great way to catch up on stories before playing the ones you do have.

KINGDOM HEARTS by Shiro Amano

Kingdom Hearts is a mash-up between two favorite universes: Disney. and Final Fantasy. Disney has repeatedly created worlds that captivate our imaginations, and there are an abundance of Final Fantasy video games with iconic characters. Kingdom Hearts pulls these two franchises together by asking the main character to save each of the different Disney Worlds while teaming up with Disney characters and interacting with our favorite Final Fantasy characters. Similarly to the Legend of Zelda and other Japanese manga for children, the main themes of this series include friendship, belief in oneself, and determination. Some of these storylines can be complex, so these titles would most likely be enjoyed by ages 10+.

Can't play the video game? Read the Manga! Part 1 of 3

9/8/2018

Several popular video game franchises have adapted popular games into manga. This can be a great addition to your library because of console availability: not all of your students have the ability to purchase all of the consoles to play their favorite games. Reading the manga versions is a great way to keep up with a beloved series without spending hundreds of dollars on gaming systems.

The Legend of Zelda: Legendary Editions
by Akira Himekawa

There are currently five volumes in this series, and with the wealth of Zelda games, there could be more to come. All of these volumes reflect the adventurous, light-hearted universe of the games, and are suitable for ages 8+. One major departure for all of these titles is that the dungeons and puzzle-solving that fans love about these games does not translate to manga storylines, and are thus mostly absent from the novelizations.

Like many stories from Japan that are targeted at children, these volumes center around motifs of friendship, trying your best, being courageous, and the classic good-versus-evil.