The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime

by Toshio Ban, Tezuka Productions, Frederik L. Schodt (Translator)

This graphic-format biography of Osamu Tezuka-Japan's "God of Manga"-looks at one of the twentieth century's great creative artists (Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion, Black Jack). It is also an anecdotal study of the evolution of Japan's early manga and anime business and its heroes. A never-before-seen popular culture history of postwar Japan, it is sure to fascinate fans and anyone interested in manga, anime, and the potential of the graphic storytelling medium.

Toshio Ban joined Tezuka Productions in 1974 as one of Tezuka's assistants. After working for a period as a free-lancer, he later re-joined Tezuka Productions in 1978 as the sub-chief of manga production for magazines, supporting Tezuka's creative work until the end.

Tezuka Productions Co., Ltd., is the now-legendary company founded by Osamu Tezuka in 1968 to produce his own manga and anime. In the wake of Tezuka's death in 1989, it has continued as a family enterprise, responsible for the development, production, merchandising, licensing, and distribution of his many manga and anime creations, including books, films, and characters.

Frederik L. Schodt is a translator, conference interpreter, and award-winning author of books on Japanese history and pop culture. He often served as Osamu Tezuka’s English interpreter and was a consultant on one of his animated features and a TV series.

Genres: Manga, Biography, Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, Comics, Art, Japan

928 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 12, 2016

Reviews

[JohnnyBear · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong 7 out of 10

The Osamu Tezuka Story is a manga/biography about the famous and influential manga/anime artist named Osamu Tezuka. If you haven't heard of Osamu Tezuka then you've might have heard of his works. He is the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion, The Budda Books, and many other works. This book took me around two months to finish because of the length. 930 pages!



My mother got me this book from the library. I ended up finishing it while in the midst of going camping. I thought that this was a great memoir, and they did a superb job translating it. There are definitely some spots I would cut out and I caught maybe one or two spelling mistakes, but still, I learned a whole gob about this guy, and how much of a workaholic he was.

I loved seeing his success, and how much he was dedicated to his craft. Even throughout his childhood, he was always trying to do many things, such as bug collecting. This was a very inspiring book, and now I want to read some of this guy's manga. Great read, maybe a tad too long, though.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had always been somewhat of a a fan of Tezuka's work and grew to respect him quite a bit, as I learned more about him, but I had only scratched the surface before... this book really showed what an amazing life he had, and the depths of his creativity. I've watched a few of Tezuka's experimental anime after reading this, and will have to delve back into his books with renewed vigor.

[Derek Royal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book, although I'm not entirely certain that its breadth and length worked to its advantage. This is a brick of a text, and there Tashio Ban and the others behind this biography went to great lengths to map out almost every facet of Tezuka's life. At times to the narrative's detriment. There are times when situations and attitudes feel repeated and/or too decompressed. What's more, the book emphasizes the admirable and impressive side of Tezuka, making him appear to be more god-like than human. That tended to grate after awhile.

On a logistics level, this big book was also a small discomfort to read. Had it been hardcopy, it would have been a tad heavier, but definitely easier to hold over a sustained period.

[Kenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a rollicking breathtaking ride through the life and times of manga no kami Tezuuka sensei.
Not to be missed. Walt Disney has nothing on him. A qualified doctor, musician, actor. Truly a renaissance man.
Yes he does manga and sort of rocketted anime into the stratosphere.

[Anurag · Rating 5 out of 5]

A deep bow to the God of Manga!

This book is much more than a mere biography. It is a pilgrimage that starts with a little boy living in a militaristic era who finds joy in nature and art. In the postwar period, when the society starts chasing industrial growth, the now-grown-up boy goes on to redefine and attain greatness in the art of storytelling and entertainment through the mediums of manga and anime.

More than anything, it is a message of dedication, determination and perseverance for all of us!

[Clay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite the ambitious project undertaken just after Tezuka's death in 1989. Starting with his youth and school years, we are given a glimpse into wartime Japan and how that impacted elementary and middle school students. After the war, Tezuka began attending medical school and kept up his drawing, getting into manga through publishers first in Osaka and then in Tokyo. His passion had always been animation, so we see him working to get into that field and all the success he had in both manga and anime throughout his life.

As interesting as the first part (early and wartime years) is, the second part offers a history of manga and anime. Many luminaries from manga are introduced when their involvement with Tezuka is shown. Not having access or the historical background in Japanese publishing, I can only assume that notable authors/artists are mentioned those mentioned by name.

Tezuka was a hard-working man in both manga and anime, and also tended to overextend himself with his many concurrent projects. This is a constantly recurring theme and tended to get dull and boring. Whole blocks of pages were dedicated to Tezuka ducking out on the manga editors waiting outside his door for the pages he's promised them, finding a hotel in which to work undisturbed, and the hunt by the editors to find him in order to get their pages by their deadlines. Or, as a variation, editors taking out a hotel room for Tezuka to work on their material and leaving the other editors to hunt for them. And so on and so on and over and over.

Teuzuka's passion for manga, anime, the telling of good stories, and his dedication to exploring the themes of life and the human condition comes through clearly.

[Goatllama · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars from me. Basically, if you're into manga and want to make it, this is going to resonate much more. So for others it might be like a 2.5-3 star read. Even for me it got a little repetitious at times but... that's accurate to the process, and emphasized how much this man crammed into his 60 years. He died pretty young, but dang did he not waste a second. An inspiration, bar none. Thank you, Dr. Tezuka.

Spoiler: the last 25 pages are a list of his works. 25 PAGES, SMALL PRINT. In my opinion, this was a perfect way to end the book.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 4 out of 5]

At over 900 pages, this is unquestionably the thickest manga volume I own. For the moment. Knowing manga, it wouldn't surprise me if a thicker volume of something comes along someday.

As you'd surmise from the title, this is a biography of manga legend, Osamu Tezuka, in manga form. I was aware of his legendary status, and have read what I assumed was a fair amount of his work over the years. Little did I know ... I knew he was prolific, but wow! Kodansha issued a complete collection of his work in Japan that ran to 400 volumes. He was also deeply involved in animation, producing a number of shorts and feature length films, only a few of which I'd heard of, but all of which I now want to see. He was an incredibly fast artist, capable of cranking out up to 32 pages per day! He was almost single-handedly responsible for the post-WWII rise in popularity of manga, and certainly left an indelible stamp upon the industry.

I cannot recall the author, but many years ago I read an article in The Comics Journal that stated that all of the world's major comics industries possess a single visionary creator to whom much of their current form can be traced. In the USA, it was Jack Kirby. In Europe, it was Hergé. And in Japan, it was Osamu Tezuka. As a Tezuka fan, I found this book fascinating. Hopefully you will as well.

[dejah_thoris · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you've never read any Tezuka, go read some and then read this book. It's wonderfully thick and written by a close friend with many excerpts from Tezuka's personal writings. Tezuka was an absolute genius and an extreme workaholic. Ban explains that was partly due to production schedules and working for many, many publications at the same time, but it's still impressive to watch someone create for 16-20 hours a day. Tezuka also earned a medical degree and worked as a doctor until his manga and anime work forced him to focus on that career. All the art is in Tezuka's signature style and exact quotations have citations within the text. Mustachio is your guide through this amazing journey, which concludes with an astounding bibliography of manga and anime works compiled by Tezuka's archivist, Haruji Mori. (I printed the lists for experimental animation and theatrical feature animation in hopes of working through them.) In addition to being an inspiring creator, Tezuka also shines through Ban's manga biography as the compassionate and caring man he was to his family, his friends, his employees, and even his competitors. Much love, Tezuka, and thank you for sharing your stories.

[P.H. Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Real rating: 7.3/10
Not for everyone, this distinct biography pays homage to the great Tezuka with care (though at times it feels a little too positive and dances by his negative qualities,) creating a biography that is drawn in a manga style for a man who could never stop drawing. It is quite slow paced and could have been cut down by roughly a 100 pages, but if you are a fan of manga and the notion of an artist who is dedicated to their works (i.e. Picasso, Asimov or others of that ilk.)
I would not recommend for anyone not already interested in the world of manga or those who are expecting any action as you will be reading a book that shows a man working for 800 pages.

[Celepom · Rating 4 out of 5]

No wonder they called him a God

[Shaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an impressive work in that it ties together Tezuka’s many manga and animation works and his writing about manga/animation to tell a story of his entire life in manga form. However, reading it is exhausting.
I suppose its to be expected because Tezuka Productions published this book, but one of the reasons it took me so long to get through is because it starts to feel like Tezuka propaganda. No attempt is made to show Tezuka as a character or a person, simply as a “god of manga.” The book falls into a repetitive pattern of “Tezuka won this award, then he came up with more ideas and kept working on anime and manga simultaneously, sleeping very little.” Repeat ad nauseum. Yes, this is the true story of Tezuka’s life and work, but sometimes the truth doesn’t make for a very interesting story. There’s little to no discussion of how this affected his staff or editors, they’re all “tired” but excited for the genius’ next work and repeatedly tell the reader how happy they are just to work with Tezuka.
The translator/publisher also uses some unusual writing conventions I find distracting, especially using an apostrophe when the first word of a sentence is left off in dialogue, for example: “ ‘Guess hard workers have to eat a lot!” The dialogue is completely understandable without the apostrophe so it looks strange and unprofessional to have it included.
The text also has distracting bolding of seemingly random words, which is in keeping with the style of American superhero comics but which I find distracting and irritating, making every line of text appear sensationalized. I’m curious how much of this is the publisher/translator and how much of this could be coming from the writing style of the Japanese.

If you want an exhaustive slog through Tezuka’s entire catalog of writing, this may be an enjoyable work for you, but if you’re interested in learning about the history of manga, I would read the first half, compare with Shigeru Mizuki’s experiences in Showa, and then stop.

[sohta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since I was small, my mom told me the famous osamu tezuka. I didn't show intrest to his art till 12. but When I did I was supprised, and I searched what kind of guy osamu tezuka was. And I was able to find a very interesting story behind him, such as using blook as a red paint which I find it crazy but shows dedication to the art. When I read this book I figured more about him, and uderstood more about life in that time era as an manga writer. And I never thought he would have a weird obsticals that a lots of people wouldn't go through which I found it very interesting. after I read this book I read one of his manga and my perspective toward the art he drew changed, and I will like to read this book again to refresh the memory of osamu tezuka as the best japanses manga artist again.

[Rachelle Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, an excellent insight into Tezuka's life's work. He had incredible passion and imagination, and the amount of work he produced is staggering; this book largely focuses on that. The artwork is consistently fantastic, and very true to Tezuka's style.

However, there are a few flaws. There's a lot of name dropping, which is confusing at times, especially with no context other than "oh hey these people were involved." I understand that this is a translation, so perhaps these names mean more to a Japanese audience. There's also a lot of repetition. Given the length of the volume, perhaps this would be helpful to the average reader, but having read it over several days, it was a bit monotonous. There is so much focus on the work he produced, but very little insight into these works. Yes, the amount he produced is astronomical, but it would have been helpful to include a few more details on his most well known series', such as Astro Boy and Jungle Emperor. The editing on the English edition is poor; I found many typos throughout the book. The book is overly sentimental; negative things are mentioned but quickly shoved aside.

That being said, it was an enjoyable, engaging read. Recommended for fans who are already familiar with some of Tezuka's work.

[Dana Kraft · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this knowing little or nothing about manga, anime or Tezuka. He was an amazing talent and he lived during an interesting time in Japan's history. I most enjoyed reading about his early life and events that shed light on Japanese culture and opinion at the time. Once he started his career, things got less interesting for me. I'm sure part of this is because his innovations didn't mean much to me but also because the references to all nighters and constant working got a little repetitive. It's pretty amazing how much work he actually did, and how he could work on multiple stories simultaneously.

I was intimidated at the book's size when I first picked it up, but it was a quick read. The harder part was physically holding this giant book in my hands while I read it. I also appreciate that they kept the right to left orientation of the book even though it broke my brain a little.

[Emilia P · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was immense, encylopedic, Tezuka-style illustrations. Immensity and repetiveness owe themselves to its first incarnation as a serialized story which commenced publication almost immediately after Tezuka's death. It is a window into his world, at times almost too much so (I don't particularly care how many times he moved his studios!), but also a nice overview of 1) his young life, 2) his manga heyday, and 3) his innovations in anime creation and production! Unfortunately it doesn't dig too deeply into the often kooky and generally deeply fascinating themes of his works (robots! space! phoenix! unparalleled pillow shots! monsters! crossdressing!) but....can someone write that book? I'd read that too. As a Tezuka fan, this was totally worth it, as a regular Joe on the street this would mean pretty much absolutely nothing.

[Brian Lu · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I grow up, my dad would show me some of Tezuka's work, either movies or anime or the most original ones, manga. My dad even bought the whole collection for one of his famous works, blackjack. Even until now, it is my favorite title for the artist. This book is in my opinion, only for those who read Tezuka's manga and are actually passionate about it. With the book being quite long, I feel like it really takes a lot of time and energy to really completely enjoy the beauty of it. It talks not only about the work that he has done but also his career as a whole. I really enjoyed this book as this book gave me an insight into how one of my favorite manga is made.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follows not only Tezuka's career but offers a history of manga and anime in Japan as well. Holy workaholic, Batman. Stories poured out of this man so relentlessly that he worked almost 24 hours a day his whole life. His creativity was so impressive but this seems such a dangerously unbalanced way of living. One of the things I've always loved about Tezuka's works is his politics - such a huge focus on human rights and equality, and ecology. I wish this work had explored the roots of this a little more. A fascinating man and a great manga biography.

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

It will build up your arm muscles just holding this book. It was interesting but the repetitive nature of the book got exhausting after a while. Also with just a focus on his manga and anime work meant that there was little understanding of him as a person bar him being obsessive and having an incredible work ethic.

[Seul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read if you ever want to learn about the man who made anime what it is today and a pioneer of manga. He was an icon similar to Disney. This book gives us a lot of details about what made this man the best there was from his time as a child to the old man traveling the world.

[Eswar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up with Tezuka Osamu's manga and anime. Safe to say that I learned my Japanese through manga and Osamu's mangas were by far the most influential in my early youth. Listening to the Tetsuwan Atom theme song as a child gave me a Sense of Purpose as a Purveyor of Social Justice. Grandiose thoughts for a five-year old foreigner in Japan. The stories always felt real. The endings were tragic, invoking complicated emotions for a child, yet still enough for us to understand the moral of the story. What I didn't realize until reading the book was how much he had accomplished way before the 80s.

Osamu grew up in the affluent neighborhood of Takarazuka in West Japan, near Osaka. He was curious and into bugs, but wartime Japan shaped his childhood. Even during the war, he had teachers who were supportive of his mangas, which bolstered his confidence. I didn't know that he was a medical doctor and a Ph.D. holder - he would create manga for publishers during his medical school.

The book shines a light into the crazy work ethic of manga writers. Meeting multiple deadlines required all-nighters that stretched Osamu's 40+ year career; this may be one of the reasons for his passing at the early age of 60. The intense level of competition in the manga creation amongst him and his contemporaries led to the premature passing of one of his rivals.

Osamu was always nurturing and encouraging younger talent. It took him a while before he started hiring assistants, but that would never reduce his work hours. He slept rarely; three hour days were the norm. His assistant and teams followed suit. Around an eighth of the book was dedicated to showing how editors chased after him. Editors would chase him and his peers for copies of the script ahead of the deadline. They would even book rooms in hotels, trap the manga creators there until the story was complete. Editors following Osamu would have to kiss their family lives goodbye.

He seems to have been a good leader. Hardest on himself, but expecting the highest quality of his entire team. He worked hard printing out manga after manga to create cash to fund his anime aspirations. He was indeed a visionary and influenced the creation of new technology to convert his ideas into art.

Gone too soon, but modern Japan is blessed to be influenced by him.

[Darren Cormier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Warning: I really probably mistakenly insert westernized views and terms into this review.

Very long and encyclopedic graphic novel biography about Osamu Tezuka, the godfather of manga and anime. The first part of the book was the most interesting, covering his formative years and adolescence, his early interest in entomology, his seemingly preternatural gifts at storytelling. Even in grade school (westernized word), his ability to make up stories on the spot and entertain his friends was acknowledged by students and instructors alike.
As the book moved on into his second part and his development of manga, his inveterate workaholic nature was prevalent. He was producing serialized manga for no fewer than five magazines, and developing ideas for stories, and attending medical school, completing all with honors. He was also compulsively going to the movies (a goal of 365 per year).
However, the third part becomes repetitive. And after he meets his wife and starts a family, his round the clock working and focus on his manga and his films and his research to the neglect of his family caught up with me. The book becomes a cycle of Dr Tezuka producing an astounding volume and quality of work, always working, never sleeping, and his work being developed and revered for the genius that it was. However, it becomes tedious. I'd rather read his work (especially Buddha, one of my favorite graphic novel series), than read about him creating his work.

Some interesting facts of his life, however: he was one of the first people Kubrick reached out to in developing storyboard concepts for life in space for 2001. (Tezuka was too busy to accept.) He was compulsive and obsessive about Disney and all animation techniques, reportedly seeing Bambi 80 times in the theater. And he only met his idol Walt Disney once, at the 1964 World's Fair, for about five minutes.

Perhaps it's my westernized viewpoint creeping in, but I just wanted him to spend some time with his family, to take his family with him on his trips. But that's probably a cultural projection.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime is a biographical graphic novel written and illustrated by Toshio Ban and translated by Frederik L. Schodt, it traces the life of Osamu Tezuka in a form that he is known for – a manga in a graphic novel format.

Osamu Tezuka was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist, animator, and film producer. Born in Osaka Prefecture, his prolific output, pioneering techniques, and innovative redefinitions of genres earned him such titles as "the father of manga", "the godfather of manga" and "the god of manga".

Osamu Tezuka, creator of such characters as Astro Boy, looms like a colossus over Japanese comics and animation. His manga biography is fittingly massive, dramatizing the artist's life. As a boy in the city of Takarazuka, Tezuka draws comics, devours science fiction, and becomes a lifelong fan of his town's famous all-female theater. He enrolls in medical school, but a cartooning career beckons. From there, much of the narrative consists of Tezuka drawing feverishly while editors prowl outside his studio waiting on deadlines.

The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime is written and constructed rather well. The narrative is a tad repetitive, but the graphic novel captures its subject's tireless genius throughout World War II, the lean postwar years, and the emergence of Japan as a superpower. The artist, Tezuka's longtime assistant Ban, draws in an accurate recreation of Tezuka's style, although not quite able to match the easy fluidity of the master.

All in all, The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime is a wonderful biographical graphic novel about Osamu Tezuka – the God of Manga.

[Indian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Name = The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime
Pages = 900
Author = Toshio Ban
Genre = Biography
Source = Library Book

Was very happy to get this (in brand new condition) from the library here in USA.

As an Indian born & brought up in central India childhood of the 80s & 90s, then working during the 2000s, Japan loomed large on the subconscious of my generation.
Partly as the automobiles manufacturers (scooter & car) (Honda, Suzuki & Kawasaki) partly as the animation creators (Jungle Book aired on national TV) & partly as the cute tourists of the Buddhist shrines of Sanchi, Sarnath & Gaya.
But it was Children of Heaven (the Japanese war movie) Narutu (anime) & then Doraemon (anime) & Shin-Chan (anime) which brough my first exposure to Manga.
Simultaneously stumbled upon the Buddha-Vol1 to 8 by Osamu Tezuka blew my mind.

And to be able to read his life-story and that too in his beloved manga format was just the best year-end gift.

This is a amazingly well-drawn, written account & made me realize many important things about the great Osamu Sensei:-
1) A gifted child, born in 1928 in Osaka Japan to educated, loving nurturing parents amidst music, books, poetry, camera
2) Very progressive & encouraging parents who let him pursue Medicine, Music (he knew to play piano & accordion) and do manga stories from being a toddler
3) Was a GIANT force in terms of producing MANGA (workoholic, all-nighters) producing 8 pages @ day
4) Carried his work everywhere - in the car, in the flight, in seminars
5) Watched 1940's Disney's BAMBI a 100 times, packing lunches to be able to watch is non-stop
6) Great team-work & voluminous output himself.
7) Produced one of the first animation as well for ASTRO BOY
8) Did Manga non-stop till the end, in between Anime, mascots of games, govt. duties, foreign trips
9) Used to read a lot & watch movies often to get cracking with stories & new ideas all the time
10) Made Japan a Manga Super Base
11) Drawn all of these on paper using pencil & pen.
Wish he had lived another 20 years at least, to have seen the advent of PC, internet & Phone & the transformation of manga drawings now using Tablet, PC & digital-art
Phew! What a phenomenal person.

[Hv2go · Rating 3 out of 5]

You are a Tezuka fan? Read it !
You're a manga fan and want more historic background? Read it.
Some 870 pages on the life and works of Tezuka and the history of manga and anime in Japan. Add to that some 40 pages listing the works of Tezuka. A hefty volume.
Why only 3 stars, eventhough I really enjoyed it? Probably because my attention dropped at several places in the book. Tezuka was a workaholic, it didn't matter what he did (writing, drawing, leading a company, playing music etc.) he was good at everything (he was also a doctor!). So getting to read that he worked all night for several days at a time for the umptieth time does not much add to the story. I would have liked to see more about his personal life (maybe non existant as he was always working? So how did he managed to have children :^) AND ! I would like to have more information on the background of his ideas/series. Why the Buddah, why Black Jack, where did the idea for Ode to Kirohito come from? In the book Astro boy, Black Jack, Buddah, Phoenix etc. are mentioned, leaving out several other works which are as good as these.
So.... good book, worth reading, here and there unbalanced (fortunately as a reader you can skip pages if you want, read your rights), informative.
p.s. Did Tezuka have an eye problem? During the book he is so often depicted winking, that I concluded that something was not right with him :^)

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a biography of Osamu Tezuka written in manga format, and covers his entire life, from being a schoolboy before WWII to becoming the acknowledged 'god of manga.' To say this biography is exhaustive would be an understatement. Unfortunately, it is also exhausting. I enjoyed this book a great deal, but the level of minute detail makes it feel as if we are following every single minute of Tezuka's life. There is a huge amount of repetition about how incredibly hard-working Tezuka was, always taking on many projects at once, hiding from editors, working nonstop to create promised pages, and pushing the limits of himself and his employees. I would suggest that this book could have been halved and it still would have included plenty of depth to make its points. However, it is clear that Tezuka was a creative powerhouse who had endless original ideas and who paved his own way while acknowledging his influences, particularly Walt Disney and some of the earliest manga artists.

If you are obsessed with Tezuka and the history of manga, this might be the book for you. For the more casual reader, though, I would suggest simply getting your hands on any of Tezuka's own renowned works (Astro Boy; Black Jack; Buddha; Dororo; Princess Knight; to name a few) and discovering his pioneering talent and vision for yourself.

[Adrián · Rating 5 out of 5]

Al terminar las casi 900 páginas que relatan toda una vida, este manga me ha hecho sentir una satisfacción y un gozo que no tenía desde que terminé por primera vez la trilogía de películas de El Señor de los Anillos. Ahora bien. No he leído nada de Tezuka. Tocará ponerse. Y dentro de...quien sabe? 20 años? volver a leer esta maravilla después de haber conocido más sus historias.

Lo que consiguió este señor a lo largo de toda su vida no tiene nombre: todas las historias que contó, los lugares que visitó alrededor del mundo, la gente que conoció y el legado que su obra dejó a nivel internacional no es ni medio normal. Mangas, películas de animación, series de televisión, participación en festivales etc.

Puede que esté siendo algo grandilocuente con todo esto, pero en fin, que me ha encantado.

[Justin Decloux · Rating 4 out of 5]

A 900-page manga biography of Osamu Tezuka created by someone that worked for him can't help but be a hagiography, but it's still a fascinating read about a man who could not stop creating until he was dead. Serialized weekly at the time of its publication, it's principally an educational narrative about what Tezuka did and the people he met, with very little analysis.

I think Tezuka should have done a little less work, slept more than 3 hours a night and not forced his staff to do 24-hour shifts (It's mentioned in passing one of them died while working), but hey, that's just me!

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a massive fan of Tezuka's work, this was nothing short of fascinating. He's led such an interesting life and made such a massive difference in manga... I find him very inspiring. Getting through such a long book with so much info was a bit of a challenge for me, but infinitely worth it.

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an incredible thing to say, but this book is a full five hundred papes too long.