Introduction to Anime and Manga and Laugh Riot

Bolte, Mari. Introduction to Anime and Manga: From Magical Girls to Pirate Kings
January 1, 2026 by Twenty-First Century Books ™
Copy provided by the publisher

I wasn't imagining it: between 2019 and 2022, sales of manga quadrupled in the United States. It seemed like my students had very little interest in the format before the pandemic, and came back from lockdown obsessed with drawing manga characters and reading the books. While I have had Poitras' 1999 The Anime Companion: What's Japanese in Japanese Animation in my library for years, I was glad to see an updated book that takes a good look at the history of both manga and anime... and also includes the LAST quarter century of progress.

There were so many astonishing statistics, like the fact that 35-40% of printed work in Japan is manga! The format goes back to the 1700s, with a variety of artwork that tells stories, but took off in 1985 with magazines. This mirrors what was going on in the US at the same time (which I know from reading Hoena and Hampton's Comic Books: A Graphic History!). While the books in the early twentieth century were largely collections of comic strips, Astro Boy, in 1951, was the first book that more closely resembled the manga we know today. He was a very popular character, based on the styles of Mickey Mouse and Betty Book. The large eyes are still a hallmark of this style. Otaku culture arose, and women started to be more involved in the industry in the 1960s. I loved the fact that in 1968, reading was the top leisure activity in Japan!

Anime started in the early 1900s, but because of the fragility and expense of film, little of the productions survive. This was not helped by a devastating earthquake in Tokyo in 1923 that also destroyed many of the films. There were some propaganda films during World War II, but most of these were destroyed. It was thought that there were no surviving copies of one of the most famous films, Momotaro, but a copy was found in 1983. Astro Boy, of manga fame, was made into anime in 1963. It was interesting to hear that the Golden Age of anime was the 1980s, with films by Miyazaki being very popular, but it was a bit alarming to hear that Dragon Ball didn't come out until 1986, and Pokemon until 1994. My children were obsessed with Pokemon, but it WAS a very long time ago!

I had not known that there were different categories of manga that targeted different ages and genders of readers. It's significant that there is not a category for women over sixty; this might explain why I don't have much of a personal interest in the books. Shonen is aimed at young boys, Josei for teen romance readers, Seinen for male students or men at work, Gekiga for adult audiences, and Kodomo for children. This last category includes topics like Hello Kitty. Some of the tropes of manga are discussed.

It makes sense that anime and manga were not as popular in the United States until the 1990s, because it was hard to get books and films from other countries. It wasn't surprising that there were a lot of bootleg media that introduced the American audience to Japanese productions. The illegal file sharing of the early 2000s would surprise some young readers, who don't know a world without subscription services like Crunchyroll, or one where the public library wouldn't have digital books from all over the world.

While I've read several books on the history of comics in the US, I haven't seen as much on anime and manga. This book is part of a larger series that includes other topics like Understanding Manga: From Fox Spirits to Fashion Icons, From Pocket Monsters to Jujutsu Sorcerers, and From Zodiac Animal Shifters to Demon Slayers. The only quibble I have with this book is that Speed Racer and Kimba the White Lion, the only two Japanese imports I was aware of for a long time, were not included! This series will be popular with young readers beginning to explore the world of these Japanese arts as well as avid devotees.

Krovatin, Christopher. Laugh Riot

March 3, 2026 by Scholastic Inc.
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Jeremiah is having a difficult time in middle school. His parents are in the middle of a bitter separation, and his father frequently asks him to take care of his nine-year-old sister, Keri. At school, he has to deal with bully Ricky Almeda, who picks on him and his friend Natt. There's even Mrs. Bunley's evil dog, Chowder, who barks at Jeremiah and scares him on his way to school. The only thing that makes him feel better is drawing a comic strip with a character called Laugh Riot who is able to strike back against all of the inequities in Jeremiah's life. Of course, even this gets him in trouble with his teacher, Mr. Clayborn, who won't accept his math homework when it has a doodle on it. All of this has Jeremiah very angry, so he pushes back against Ricky's treatment, even though Ricky's friend, Will, says that Ricky is having a hard time himself. When both Chowder and Mr. Clayborn are injured in real life in ways eerily similar to Jeremiah's drawing, he is both aghast and pleased to have this power over the universe. He even draws a comic that has him coming to the rescue of Janelle, a girl on whom he has a crush, and marvels at how smoothly he handled the situation that arose. Things get dark when Jeremiah asks his mother to take him and Keri to a school lacrosse game, and he witnesses first hand how his drawing of Ricky losing his shorts on the field comes true. However, there is also an almost fatal crash involving field lights that Jeremiah doesn't remember drawing, although it is in his sketchbook. When more and more things occur, he asks both Natt and Will for help. They set up a camera to tape Jeremiah at night, and find that he is drawing in his sleep... or when he is possessed by Laugh Riot. Jeremiah's mother and father are alarmed when he scares Keri with one of his drawings, and the mother tries to send him off to a facility for observation. Jeremiah thinks that maybe this is a good idea, since he knows that Laugh Riot has gone too far. What's really going on? Can Jeremiah manage to extricate himself from this unusual situation? (Don't want to spoil the twists at the end.)

Strengths: Had I been able to draw comics that wreaked vengeance on my middle school nemeses, would I have? Absolutely!!! This is middle grade wish fulfillment at its finest. Would I have had the regret that Jeremiah experienced? Probably not as much, but that's why this book is so good. Jeremiah is dealing with a lot; his parent's separation comes after years of fighting, and is still acrimonious. He struggles with school work, has to deal with Ricky's idiocy at school, and is just FED UP. Laugh Riot is a great way for him to deal with his feelings... until it isn't. Blowing up a math teacher's hair? Depantsing Ricky? These fates make perfect sense, even though they are cruel. Natt and Will make an unlikely team to help Jeremiah, and the awkwardness of Will inserting him into Jeremiah's life is perfect. Of course Ricky has his own family problems, and its good to see that his family gets therapy, but the real draw here is the level of evil that Laugh Riot brings to the story. There's a huge twist at the end, and I loved the way that Keri was brought into that. There could possibly be a sequel, but I'm also completely okay with just ending this tale on an unfinished note. 
Weaknesses: I've decided that all of the BEST Scholastic titles are paperback only. This is infuriating as a school librarian, since paperbacks don't hold up at all. Also, I'm not sure I understood the ending, and might have to check the final print edition, which I also hope has a few more drawings. 
What I really think: Krovatin does a great job coming up with unusual plots and scary stories, and has come a long way since his 2012 Gravediggers. (Red Rover is a demon, NOT a dog.) This is a fantastic story that middle school students will love. Order an extra case of this title if you are having a Scholastic book fair. The cover confused me a little at first (it made me think of Basye's 2008 Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go), but this was a twisty, dark story with plenty of middle grade angst that should do well with my students. The only other books I can think of where drawings come to life are MacHale's 2010 The Light and Silberberg's 2013 The Awesome Almost 100% True Adventures of Matt and Craz.