Matt Thorn Archives - BookDragon

13 Terrifying Tales of Diverse Hauntings [in The Booklist Reader]

25 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, African, Black/African American, British, Chinese, Chinese American, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Indian, Indian American, Japanese, Japanese American, Lists, Malaysian, Repost, Short Stories, Singaporean, Southeast Asian, Southeast Asian American, Translation, Vietnamese, Vietnamese American, Young Adult Readers

It’s the time of the year to be scared witless – and by choice, egads! Gluttons for fear, unite. And brace yourselves for the following 13 diverse hauntings. The Black Isle by Sandi Tan The protagonist begins her life as Ling, the first-born twin in a well-to-do Shanghai clan. Half...

Favorite Manga Series, Part 2: Bakuman through What Did You Eat Yesterday? [in The Booklist Reader]

01 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Lists, Repost, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Ready to get graphic? If you’re new to the genre, might I suggest you go directly to the godfather of manga, the late Osamu Tezuka (1928–1989). Astro Boy ring a bell? Speed Racer? Kimba the White Lion? “There’s a reason why the Japanese call [him] the God of Comics,”...

14 Japanese Thrillers in Translation [in The Booklist Reader]

31 May, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Lists, Repost, Translation

Mysteries and thrillers make up a sizable portion of the Japanese literary market. Thanks to the international success of Keigo Higashino, Natsuo Kirino, and Miyuki Miyabe – and, just as importantly, their translators – contemporary Japanese crime fiction proliferates on Western shelves. Below is a list...

A Trans* and Gender Nonconforming Reading List for All Ages [in The Booklist Reader]

28 Mar, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Lists, Memoir, Middle Grade Readers, Nonfiction, Repost, Young Adult Readers

News about the transgender community – including banned books, bathroom laws, hockey, wrestlers, models, parades, Jackie and Juliet Evancho, and, most tragically, a horrifying murder caught on cellphone video – have all made recent headlines. Books can be helpful, entertaining, illuminating portals into the trans*/gender nonconforming (GNC)...

Discover WeNeedDiverseBooks with Shimura Takako’s Wandering Son series

29 Jun, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, WeNeedDiverseBooks, WNDB.SummerReadingSeries2016, Young Adult Readers

Wandering Son (vol. 8) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

28 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Adolescence is difficult enough to navigate, but throw in a few gender-bender issues and you've got multiple challenges earlier generations probably didn't (wouldn't? couldn't?) openly face. With all manner of identity awareness growing worldwide, Shimura Takako’s award-winning, internationally lauded manga series gently and insightfully reflects the gender spectrum on...

Wandering Son (vol. 7) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

28 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Here's lucky number seven of this internationally lauded, gender-bender series starring two sensitive, searching middle schoolers navigating through the challenges of gender-fluid adolescence. To catch up, click here – this is most definitely a multi-volume narrative that requires careful sequential attention. Shuichi, the boy who wants...

Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano, translated by Matt Thorn

07 Feb, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation

Long before the latest translated-into-English title from award-winning transgender manga creator Inio Asano is due to hit shelves (fabulous Seattle-based publisher Fantagraphics lists an unspecified February pub date; Amazon lists March 19, 2014 and B&N March 5 for available shipping), the internet has been abuzz...

Wandering Son (vol. 6) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

17 Jan, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Our daughter, now a senior at one of the most progressive of progressive schools where she's been a 'lifer,' was recently trying to explain the specifics of what 'gender-fluid' means using a classmate's evolving, changing behavior as descriptive examples. We old folks were still a...

Wandering Son (vol. 5) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

01 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

If you don't like spoilers, might I suggest you click here to catch up. This series is so uniquely delightful, you really shouldn't miss a volume; trust me, they do need to be read in order. This latest installment officially hits shelves tomorrow. Welcome to junior high school...

Wandering Son (vol. 4) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

07 Jun, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

First things first: click here to catch up. You'll be well-rewarded for sure! This latest volume opens with an intriguing graphic of characters captured in a two-page spread of bubbles and dots, labelled "The Wandering Son Board Game": "Don't be so fresh. 1 space back," a...

The Heart of Thomas by Moto Hagio, translated with an introduction by Matt Thorn

22 Mar, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation, Young Adult Readers

"They say a person dies twice. / First comes the death of the self. / Then, later, comes the death of being forgotten by friends. / If that is so, / I shall never know that second death. / ...

Wandering Son (vol. 3) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

01 Feb, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Shimura Takako, a well-established manga artist recognized for her LGBT focus, continues her gender-bender series with sensitive honesty. That said, don't let the sweet, fuzzy cover fool you: Shimura knows well that protecting her two wide-eyed protagonists from their less-than-understanding peers will become less and...

Wandering Son (vol. 2) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

10 Jan, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

The ongoing gender-bender adventures of Nitori Shuichi – a boy who wants to be a girl – and his best friend Takatsuki Yoshino – a girl who wants to be a boy – open with the beginning of the 6th-grade school year. What commenced as mostly cross-dressing fun in volume...

Wandering Son (vol. 1) by Shimura Takako, translated by Matt Thorn

06 Jun, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Nitori Shuichi and his older sister Maho are starting at a new school. Before he's even entered his fifth-grade classroom, Nitori has already been mistaken for a girl. He is indeed a beautiful boy ...

Saturn Apartments (vol. 1) by Hisae Iwaoka, translated by Matt Thorn

25 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

Since all of earth has been declared a nature preserve, mankind now inhabits a "giant apartment complex," which orbits 35,000 meters above the deserted planet. Society is literally stratified, with the upper level residents afforded greater privileges while the basement dwellers live with limited resources. Five...

A Drunken Dream and Other Stories by Moto Hagio, translated by Matt Thorn

20 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation

As I discovered manga in so-called mid-life, I'm especially illiterate in the shōjo genre – manga marketed specifically to young girls ages 10 to 18-ish with pages that seem to show a plethora of starry eyes, fluffy costumes, talking animals and such. The Japanese characters for 'shō-jo'...

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