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As the buzz around the manga and anime subcultures deepens more and more books on the subjects are being published. Whether you want to learn more about the culture to enrich your hobby or write an academic work or article, the abundance of books available can prove constructive for you. However, since manga and anime come from the realm of popular culture not all books written about them are equally valuable or informative enough to be deemed constructive MyReadingManga. As in all cases of popular media the risk of encountering a book full of fluff and lacking in useful content is high. Here are a few criteria that will help you spot the best academic books on anime and manga:

The most reliable books are always those written by experts. The first step after picking a subject and being presented with a list of books is to check their authors’ history. Was the book written by a professor or lecturer? If not does he or she has a history of working in the manga or anime industry? The importance of the author’s background should not be taken lightly. Learning from, and later quoting, a knowledgeable person on any subject is always preferable. Avoid books that were written by casual magazines, news groups or enthusiasts. These tend to be superficial and lack relevant citations to back their claims.

If possible always flip through a book to see how the layout and written content appears. Some books on anime and manga are informative enough but are picture-heavy. Books that are filled to the bream with pictures at the expense of text will most likely not provide you with enough information and can prove counterproductive.

The only exceptions to the rule above are encyclopedias. There are encyclopedias created specifically to cater to anime, manga and otaku fans. They often analyse certain products/phenomena while also providing pictures. Encyclopedias usually don’t offer more than one or two pages on each subject but are great for discovering new subject and expending your research scope. They are also often augmented with rare interviews and will always have citations. They are your reference books and will point you to more in-depth books on the subject you wish to research. There are a surprising number of encyclopedias about Japan and Japanese culture but your best bet would be to start reading the basic (yet valuable) manga, anime and otaku encyclopedias.

If you are proficient enough in the Japanese language and are writing an academic work you may opt to add a few Japanese books to your research pile. Japanese experts on manga and anime have written many books on the subject and can provide invaluable information on how these trends operate in their native country of Japan. When writing about manga and anime citations from Japanese books will greatly enhance the credibility of your work and will give you priority over researchers who chose only to include books written by Western experts.

To conclude, in order to spot the best academic books on manga and anime you should familiarize yourself with the names of the leading experts in the field, and always check if the book in case has sufficient text and a good amount of citations. Specialized Encyclopedias tend to offer less information but broaden your horizon, while available and accessible books in Japanese can be wonderful resources and give you an important edge. The story of Naruto began when sixteen years ago a Nine-tailed demon fox attacked the ninja village of Konohagakure. Its power had the ability to flatten mountains and bring forth tsunamis. It was destruction, chaos and death rolled into one.

Konoha, the strongest of the five shinobi nations, was on the brink of destruction. In order to save the village from total annihilation, the village leader known as the Forth Hokage gave his life to seal the demon fox into an infant Naruto.

Before dying, the Forth Hokage asked that Naruto be treated as a hero. But people in Konoha were suspicious. Instead of granting the Fourth Hokage his dying wish, people began to shun Naruto and treat him as if her were the demon fox himself. Naruto grew up without friends of family. He expressed himself by pulling pranks on other people as a way of getting attention. His school work suffered and as a result he failed three times in the ninja exams.

A teacher at the ninja academy, Mizuki told Naruto that there was another way to pass the test. That is to steal a scroll from the Third Hokage. All Naruto had to do was to master a technique from the scroll and he would pass the test. Unknown to Naruto, Mizuki was tricking him. He only wanted the scroll for himself as this scroll contained hidden and forbidden techniques important to Konoha.

But Iruka found out Mizuki’s plot and intercepted Naruto and Mizuki. During the confrontation, Naruto found out that he was the container of the Nine Tailed Demon Fox, and finally knew why the villagers hated him. Mizuki urged Naruto to release the demon fox’s power and to kill Iruka. But Iruka intervened and told Naruto that he was not a monster. Enraged, Mizuki attackes Iruka but before he could strike, Naruto unleashes the technique he learned from the forbidden scroll. He creates hundreds of clones and attacks Mizuki. Shocked that such a prankster and failure could master a high level technique in a short time, Mizuki is stunned and finally defeated by Naruto.