Very Detailed insight into Manga
579866
Waaaay more in depth than the "Japanese in Mangaland" titles... covers tons of grammar and structure of the Japanese language... almost reads like a dictionary at times... I am just beginning my study of Japanese, and I love Manga, so I thought this book was an interesting concept... It offers incredibly detailed insight into Manga, as it relates to Japanese culture, while teaching you the language at the same time... My only complaint is the size of the font used in the text; it's too small.
2417034
Digs deeper thans most books on Lr. Good read!
3262449
For those new to manga, this is a great starting point. As of right now, this possibly the most popular one that's still running partly due to the anime that accompanies it. Isayama does a great job at immersing the reader into the dark world  and gives a new twist to the meaning of the apocalypse.

Rundown:
Get this if you are interested in dark stories, a manga fan in general, or simply enjoy reads with plenty of violence and hopelessness. While you can find plenty of online versions
4469443
Okami has a very special art design and this books offers a big insight on the research done to get there.
2923066
AMAZING story. Great in depth characters, with a very dark and tragic story and setting. The MC is also not one of the most common types of characters I've seen out there. The whole manga is filled with crazy meaning and messages that add depth to the story and keeps it even more interesting. Even after finishing the whole story several times I still found something new each time that I hadn't noticed before. Highly recommend.
1691836
I bought the paperback version and I enjoy learning from it. I love the colors in it. Camilla does a great job providing variety of hairstyles, face shapes, eyes, and poses. There is also a section that teaches you how to draw "chibi" characters and manga animals. I have attempted to learn how to draw anime online and youtube videos, but failed every time.  I finally decided to buy an manga learning book and I'm glad I chose this one.
721273
The book was very informative and heavy with information about the characters. It goes back and forth from manga to anime (mostly talks about the manga) but the art inside is amazing! Great book for I huashi manga and anime fans. :)
1128356
The Official Character Book to Bleach is a nice buy for fans of the manga as well as the anime. I myself only own a few manga volumes (Tank'bon) as I'd rather watch the story instead of reading it. If I hear the anime follows the manga, then I am usually in favor of that anime, because I think there is a lot one can miss when just reading the story via the manga.

This book, done in manga style, reads left to right, actually has some of the Bleach panels inside, and the overall book gives a run down of the first 21 volumes of Bleach. There are two main styles, as I have grown to call them) in this book. The first is a character profile, which shows a drawing of that character and other information such as birthday and their zanpaku-to's name. Some characters like Ichigo appear many times throughout the book. Secondly, some of the pages have a black background with white writing, and instead of focusing on characters it will focus on parts of the story instead.

If you are a big fan of the anime like myself then I would recommend getting this book. Now that the first three uncut box sets are out, that follows the first 21 manga volumes, then this book will act as a guide. You could read this book along with watching the episodes to help fill in any information you may have missed while watching the anime. Or you could read this book after watching the first three box sets, like I did, to help refresh all that had happened. I was quit surprised that I did miss a lot of things in the anime that I got out of this book!

Another reason why I recommend this to fans of the anime is because there is a lot of stuff that happens in Bleach! You have the main characters, and then you have all the 12 Captains and even a lot of members of the squads that make it into the storyline. That is a lot of people to remember! When the story leads into special moves, like kido spells, and zanpaku-to names, it's easy to forget which character can perform which move (especially gets complicated with bankai!)! One more thing that this book has helped me with is the actual names of the people. Some other animes that I have watched (like Naruto and DBZ) have easy names to remember. The names in Bleach, to me at least, seem harder to pronounce and to remember. So if I was reading this book I would definitely get tripped up on a lot of the names, but after watching the anime and then reading this book, I can almost fly through the 300+ pages with ease.

Overall this Bleach Character Guide is well done. Besides getting a refresher (and really if you haven't read the manga or watched the anime buying this book would be pointless), the book also has other short stories, guides to kido spells, an interview with creator Tite Kubo, as well as a poster (that is actually kind of hard to get out of the book!) and stickers! If you're a fan of the anime and or manga, shill out the cash to get this - you won't regret it!
4491227
I'll start by saying that this book is huge. At nearly four hundred pages and more than fifty models, there is quite a bit to digest. To go along with that, there is also a section on digital manga production and all the required tools needed to produce manga on the computer. Another good thing about this book is that the models actually look as if they were taken out of manga and not some Americanized version of manga (I bought three how to dram manga books over the years and everyone disappointed me for this reason). And to add, the book itself is just beautifully made, with glossy pages and colorful artwork.

But it's not exactly a "how to draw" book but more of a "draw this" book. It presents a model, shows the steps in creating that model, and then moves on to the next. It never goes into the detailed anatomy of a manga character, it doesn't give variations on the models, and the steps aren't as detailed as I'd like (six for each model). Though you can learn some from this book, it won't be much since you're very limited to what you can draw. It left me disappointed in the end. I want to learn a craft on my own, yet it seems this isn't the book to start me in that direction.

As for recommendations, this book still isn't bad enough to be ignored. If you just enjoy manga art and want to learn the absolute basics, then this would be a good book for you. It has some interesting, stylized techniques that would be good to learn. If you know the basics, however, then I'd recommend skipping this and moving on to the superior, Japanese produced "How to Draw Manga" line of books.
2431340
I enjoyed this book immensely. I'll admit I was a bit reluctant to purchase this volume. I've read other books by this mangaka and while they were good, I just didn't find myself quite as impressed by them as other reviewers seemed to be. For one thing, while she is a competent artist, Fumi Yoshinaga's characters faces are amazingly similar from series to series. It's like watching Gerard and Jacques with different hairstyles and hair colors live lives in different eras of time. That aside, her drawings are good and I like the fact that she's able to convey the characters feelings by their expressions. The scenes in Ichigenme in which Tamiya and Tohdou find themselves in bed together and yet exchange no spoken words are excellent.

While there is a certain amount of sex in this volume, it's never graphically displayed. Truthfully I wish it was a little more explicit but then that's just me. In my opinion it's the story that truly stands out here. It's well expressed, easy to follow and interesting. The situations are believable and I like the slowly building relationship between Tamiya and Tohdou. You won't find instant declarations of love and devotion here but a gradual understanding that grows between the two of them. I like that and I truly love this manga. I hightly recommend it and am eagerly looking forward to volume two in the series.
3882628
Until "Flame of Recca", my only manga experience was the "Oh My Goddess!" series. I bought this on a whim and my instincts proved right. Some of the characters are standard manga/anime types (the sweet and innocent heroine, the mysterious dark lady, etc), but the stories are action-packed. The artwork has a "sketchy" quality but the panels are well layed out and easy to read. There is never any confusion over what is happening on each page. I should note that this book is printed in the original Japanese format and thus reads right-to-left. I'd never read a "backwards book" before this ("Oh My Goddess" is edited to read left-to-right) and found that I actually prefer the original format. When reading edited mangas I can't help noticing discrepancies between flipped and non-flipped panels and it drives me nuts.
Warning: VIZ (the publishers) rated this book "T+", or "for Older Teens", and with reason. It contains obscene gestures, some profanity, suggestive dialogue, and one scene of frontal female nudity.
1088364
Great reads included! Good promotional incentive too check out different manga. Looking forward to other releases from Kodansha. I admit I was skeptical but this made me want more!!!
288006
Basilisk is another one of those unforgiving manga. It has plenty of bloody action, nudity, and other mature themes that have yet to arise so early in this manga series. It goes about telling its story as graphically as it can and doesn't try to win over readers but rather scare them off. Manga like this, I think, deserve far more credit than the more mainstream stuff. They want to present as pure a story as they can, in a no-holds-barred kind of way.

The story in Basilisk certainly provides all the fuel needed to make this a very dark and mature manga. It follows the story of two rival ninja clans, the Iga and the Kouga (some may recognize this from Ninja Scroll) who are charged by the Shogun to have a ten on ten battle to decide who will be the next shogun in line. Unfortunately, a truce was established between these two warring clans, and some of the members have been able to put aside their differences, including the children of the leaders of the opposing clans. Gennosuke and Oboro are madly and love and plan on wedding very soon, yet have no idea that their happiness is at stake because of the breaking of the truce. But how will they react when they find out that the clans are no longer at peace? That question has yet to be answered, as what follows is a game of shadows and conspiracy and plenty of bloody fighting between these opposing clans.

This manga is good simply because of the promise of the future. By what I saw in this volume, volume two and every one after that will no doubt be action packed and have a lot more intrigue. Plus, I can't wait to see how the love story will play out in the middle of a war between a ninja rivalry fiercer than the Yankees and the Red Sox.

To add to the great story, though, is even greater art. Though at times the character designs were somewhat goofy, it made it easy to distinguish them, which was very helpful considering the size of the cast in Basilisk. You may not know their names, but you'll definitely know what they look like. Another unique aspect of the art is the real settings used as a background in the panels, though given somewhat of a faded or foggy look to make the characters blend more easily. Early on, this was disconcerting, but looking back I actually appreciated the experimental style of it. It helped to make Basilisk stand apart from other manga.

As for recommendations, if you plan on getting the anime, then I'd definitely tell you to get the manga. The manga goes far deeper into the story than the anime will, this much I'm sure about. Also, if you liked the Ninja Scroll anime, then you'll fall right into Basilisk. They both have the same themes of action and blood in Feudal Japan. Beyond that, if you're a fan of dark, mature manga such as Berserk then you'll love Basilisk.
2198970
When I bought this book I was a little weary because it was a little pricy.  But once I took it home and read it, boy was I glad that I got it!  It provides a break down of all the Senshi, Tuxedo Mask, and all the  enemies from SM and SMR.  What made me really happy though, was the  information that was included about the Outer Senshi and the Sailor  StarLights.  I had not seen any eps with them yet and the information in  this book was a real treat.  I've been an SM fan for quite a while and I  constantly find myself scouring my room trying to find this book because of  the vast range of information it contains.  From a summary of each episode  in SM and SMR, to the inclusion of the missing eps that were not dubbed, a  timeline of the "Sailor Moon Universe" and background information  on many of the places in the Anime, including the Silver Millennium, and  the Negaverse.  This book also includes a breakdown of the names and  information behind each scouts name, planet and other information you'd  want to consider when making your own Senshi for RPG's or Fan Fics.  Even  if you never plan on joining a Role playing game, this book will provide  you with an endless supply of info that I promise you'd spend hours on end  looking for on the net.
4623338
Over the years I have read numerous books on Japanese history.  I have had a lifetime interest in the martial arts (Judo, Jujitsu, Karate-Do, Kenjutsu, Kendo, and Ninjutsu) and I recently purchased this very interesting and informative (288 pages) hardcover book (Ninja: 1,000 years of the Shadow warrior: a new history by John Man).  Even though I was somewhat familiar with many of the details of the Japanese Ninja, this wonderful book had information about the Ninja warriors that I had not read in the previous volumes. In the beginning section there is a map of Japan showing the areas in which the Ninja operated.

There is an enormous amount of material for anyone doing research into the history of the Ninja in Japan.  The following material is covered in this enlightening book: Origins, how to be a shadow warrior part 1, mind and spirit, Anti-ninja: the Samurai, how to be a shadow warrior part 2, deception and charm, a world of violence and undercover Ops, how to be a shadow warrior part 3, magic, building the Ninja heartland, the rise of the conqueror, the calm before the storm, the end of the old ninjas, Nobunagas end, Leyasus rise, the final battles, shadows in retreat, the Nakano spy school, to Japan with love and the last of the ninjas.

If you are interested in the history of Japan and the role the Ninja played in its development and demise this book is for you.  A fantastic read.

Rating: 5 Stars.  Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Shotokan Karate: Practical combat karate for the street).
2867428
I love this manga! The story is fairly simple, but every situation our heroine finds herself in just gives me that, "Oh no what is she doing?!" feeling and it keeps me drawn in. I can't help but wonder what she will do next and if she will be moderately successful. I am aspiring to be a mangaka someday and I must say I love these artists art style! They use little tone and rely more on their beautiful pen work to create a simple, yet dazzling art style. Some may say I am exaggerating about the art, but it really has a simple look that enthralls me. Most manga these days are extremely detailed to the point to where I cannot enjoy the characters or the story because I am confused about what I'm looking at! Overall this is an amazing manga, one of my favorites I've ever read and believe me I've read a lot! I have high hopes for this series and I just have to recommend this, especially if you've had a hard time making friends in school. I didn't have friend trouble, but I also wasn't popular and I can definitely relate to the crazy ideas she has about how popular kids act and such. 5 gold stars!!
1311038
Bought the manga art styled August 19, 2014 paperback edition and it's wonderful!

Lots of beautiful custom artwork throughout the book. There are 8 full-color illustrations at the beginning (which includes clean versions of the cover art), *lots* of black and white illustrations throughout (2-page, full-page, half-page, partial-page) and even a 10 page concept art gallery at the end. For manga/anime fans looking to purchase a copy of the Alice stories, this is highly recommended.