A History of Modern Manga

by Insight Editions

Discover the major events and artists who have shaped the history of modern manga, with this deluxe expanded volume.

Amid reconstruction after World War II, Japan saw the emergence of modern manga, which quickly became a favorite pastime of its citizens. Over the decades, the art form bore witness to the anxieties and dreams of several generations of Japanese citizens, reflecting both dark and joyful experiences.

The history of manga is inextricably linked to the social, economic, political, and cultural evolution of Japan. Essential to the daily lives of its inhabitants and to its economy, manga is one of the drivers of the international development of one of the world’s largest economies.

How did the manga market reach one billion copies annually in less than half a century? Who are the major players in this incredible expansion?

Discover, over the pages and years, the major events and artists who have marked the history of modern manga in this new, updated and expanded edition.

DEFINITIVE Beginning with the advent of modern manga in 1952, A History of Modern Manga covers the development and impact of the art form through to present day.

THE ULTIMATE Discover fascinating new details about essential entries in the manga canon, including Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball, Death Note, Naruto, Berserk, and more .

STUNNING Features original, full-color illustrations as well as artwork from the featured manga titles!

PERFECT GIFT FOR MANGA A History of Modern Manga is a fantastic gift for manga enthusiasts, as well as fans of Japanese history.

A MANGA HISTORICAL Explores the unique ways in which historical events you may already be familiar with impacted and influenced manga as we know it today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Manga, History, Art, Japan

204 pages, Hardcover

First published April 4, 2023

Reviews

[Natasa · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this was a fascinating and a fun read, I would have preferred to have a Japanese person (or persons) among the main authors.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

what a great book, a history of Japan, manga and anime. the book gives a two page spread to each year from 1952 -2022 featuring a particular creator and showing examples of their wok and placing it in context of current events in Japanese culture, politics and film. there is also a 30 page section devoted to genres w/in manga.
This would be a terrific gift!

[Spudpuppy · Rating 5 out of 5]

OBAN STAR RACERS MENTIONED YET AGAIN LETS GOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

This is maybe the best book in this style that I've read on the history of manga? I loooooved that it included historical and cultural context, and I thought the authors included were really good. It was also refreshing to read one of these that wasn't biased against shoujo/josei lmao.

I'm not a Shuzo Oshimi stan but I was a bit surprised they didn't get their own page, but otherwise I personally didn't think there were any glaring omissions. If anything, I was surprised by how many authors did get a shoutout, including literally all my favorites lol. I never in a million years expected to see Setona Mizushiro mentioned here, much less TWICE.

I really loved to see Kaori Yuki, Akiko Higashimura, Kyoko Okazaki and Ai Yazawa get their flowers, although in my biased opinion I would've loved to see a bit more love for Yuhki Kamatani, Akimi Yoshida, Chica Umino and Moyocco Anno (although Anno at least got lots of mini shout outs which I appreciated). A Satoshi Kon page would've been great too, but I understand that his film work is a lot more prolific than his manga, and the mentions of his films were appreciated.

One error I noticed: Yumiko Igarashi is alive. I'm not sure why they gave her a death date in 2021 because it's 2025 and she's very much alive right now. No idea what happened there lmao.

Overall, I really liked this. If there's ever an updated edition (and I hope there is!) I would love if major songs or albums of the year were included with the film/tv release section, but otherwise I thought this was a fun and breezy overview of the history of modern manga.

[David Popovich · Rating 2 out of 5]

At best it’s a cliff notes of manga. At worst it’s a cliff notes about how manga is so special and is just weird. Like why did you use the same quote on two authors? (The English translation is very bad at times) I love manga, but she’s not special it’s just comics. Which makes it ironic is it’s made by two French people. You know, the one with the proud comics history. But I guess manga is just that special. I expected more and came away with less.

[DavSchi · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a lot of information packed into this book. The two page spreads were easily navigated. 1 page on history for that year and the 2nd page was a very brief mangaka bio. The book was beautifully illustrated in full color. Maybe not a complete history of Manga, but it does give the reader a lot of places to start diving deeper.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent overview, they cover one mangaka for each year of 1952-2022, along with political events and pop culture. At the end there's a handful of pages that outline common themes. Nothing earth shattering here, but then I've read or watched much of the material covered.

[Othy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good coffee-table history book that, at times, seems to bite off more than it can chew. There is some great information here, and the book does exactly what I hoped it would: give a quick look at various eras and movements in manga and a surface-level discussion of notable authors. The book does not link each year to the next as much as I had hoped, especially in describing artists. I think the authors used too much of each page on cultural notes and not enough on manga. Many entries contain mere lists of manga that was coming out without much note on what was popular and why. And when the authors do comment on the manga, it is often overly opinionated.