A young man comes home from his job delivering pizzas, only to find his mother murdered. He runs from the authorities. He’s been framed and needs to gather evidence to prove his innocence. His solution?
Use his special ability to go back in time, and stop his mom’s murder from ever happening. No, this isn’t your typical murder mystery book. It’s Erased, a manga by Kei Sanbe.
Mangas, as well as other mediums, are pushing the boundaries of what is “normal” to read. While it is perfectly all right to read 1984 or Pride and Prejudice, why not step out of your comfort zone? Open your mind to the many different forms of a book.
Graphic Novels
Graphic novels capture our attention by employing more visual techniques- think crisply drawn characters, a unique balance of black and colored images, and unconventional lettering.
These novels are stand-alone stories with sequential plots similar to comic books, but that usually involve more complex plots, Ted Gallop, Galactic Comic and Games employee, said. Some types of graphic novels are superhero novels, personal narratives, and non-fiction.
Recommendations: Stitches by David Small, The Joker: Death of the Family by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo
Cookbooks
Cookbooks are a way to explore new recipes and different methods of cooking. There are cookbooks out there for almost any food you might crave or want to investigate, whether you are looking to read about organic foods, international cuisine, or celebrity recipes.
Recommendations: Audrey At Home: Memories of My Mother’s Kitchen by Luca Dotti, College Cooks: Simple Ingredients, Easy Recipes, Good Tasting Food by T.C. Stephan
Travel Books
Travel books provide potential travelers with information about hotels, food, transportation, and things to do. Tailor travel books to your interests and preferred travel destination, no matter if you plan to travel in state, nationally, or internationally.
Recommendations: Off Track Planet’s Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy, and Broke by Freddie Pikovsky and Anna Starostinetskaya, The Savvy Backpacker’s Guide to Europe on a Budget by James Feess
Comic Books
Popular comic book genres include superhero, science fiction, comedy, and non-fiction. “Comic books are basically soap operas. You get hooked on the characters and you get hooked on the storyline. That’s how the individual issues keep working. You have to see what happens next,” Gallop said.
Recommendations: Star Wars, Vol. 1, No.1 by Roy Thomas, Descender by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen
Manga
“Manga is the Japanese word for comic,” Keith Brown, manager of Galactic Comic and Games, said. Mangas differ from American comics in that they are printed in black and white, read in a right-to-left format, and the characters have very expressive facial features. There are wide ranges of manga genres, such as comedy, mecha, horror, realistic, and mystery, Brown Said.
Recommendations: Ranma ½, Volume 1 by Rumiko Takahashi, Monster, Volume 1 by Naoki Urasawa
Art Books
The Smithsonian Libraries’ webpage “Smithsonian Libraries’ Artists’ Books” describes art books as artistic expression presented as a book. Some art books mix images and literature, while others just present images. Works may include poetry, graphic design, experimental narratives, and various other elements.
Recommendations: Humans of New York: Stories by Brandon Stanton, Beloved Dog by Maira Kalman
This was previously published in the Spring 2016 Reflector. Visit our Issuu page to view the digital copy of the magazine.
Feature photo courtesy of tay.kinja.com.
