I'm looking for books for an animae reading rack. Can you help?

Question

I'm a teacher in a Freshman English class and I have a reading rack for students. I don't know much about animae but my students love it. What series is good? I need series for both boys and girls. Also if there is a lot of sex, violence, or coarse language I would like to have a heads up (yes I will read them all before putting them on the shelf) Instead of sifting through tons of lame material I would like to know what rocks. If you could include a brief description of the series that would be cool too. Thanks for the help.

Answer 1

Here are some various ones that I enjoy:

Azumanga Daioh - a comedy based on the lives of a group of high-school girls and their three years together as classmates. (No sex, no violence, no coarse language)

Ah My Goddess - Originally a typical magical girlfriend romantic comedy, over time it has grown to feature more action and the latest variant has had a greater focus on developing the mystical aspects of the world in which it is set. (No sex, no violence, no coarse language)

Boys Over Flowers - Tsukushi Makino, a working-class girl, attends an elite elevator school called Eitoku Academy, populated by children from rich, high-society families. She is the "weed" of the school surrounded by all the rich kids. (No sex, no violence, no coarse language)

Case Closed - The series depicts the cases of a young private detective who was inadvertently turned into a prepubescent boy by a certain criminal organization. Although his body has been shrunk, he continues to solve many cases and is struggling to solve the mysteries of the criminal organization responsible in order to return to his normal body. (No sex, no significant coarse language, solves murder mysteries so there is some violence.)

Great Teacher Onizuka - the story of Eikichi Onizuka, a 22-year-old former motorcycle gang member, and his quest to be the greatest teacher in Japan. (A couple panty flashes but nothing more serious that I can recall, no significant violence, some language though not too bad in translation.)

Ranma 1/2 - The story revolves around a 16-year old boy named Ranma Saotome who was trained from early childhood in martial arts. As a result of an accident during a training journey, he is cursed to become a girl when splashed with cold water, but hot water will change him back into a boy. Mostly comedy, some action, and a little romance. (Occasional bare breasts but not prurient, mild language, "cartoon violence.") Ranma 1/2 is a classic, and other series by the same author are also very good: Maison Ikkoku is similar but more romance-centric, Inu-Yasha is similar but more action-centric.

Naruto - is a loud, hyperactive, adolescent ninja who constantly searches for approval and recognition, as well as to become Hokage, acknowledged as the leader and strongest of all ninja in the village. (No sex, no significant language, some violence -- some blood, a few deaths -- but not terribly gory.)

Negima - Negi Springfield is a nine year old wizard (He starts out at 9 and is 10 years old as the story goes on) from Wales who dreams of becoming a Magister Magi (Latin translation: "Teacher of Magic"), special wizards who use their powers to help normal people using covers such as working for NGOs. (No language, little violence, no sex but some fanservice.)

Answer 2

You're getting a lot of good suggestions. I like your question though, so I'm going to throw out a few more. A Canticle for Leibowitz ~ Walter M. Miller The Handmaid's Tale (and others) ~ Margaret Atwood The Stars My Destination ~ Alfred Bester All the Kings Men ~ Robert Penn Warren The U.S.A. Trilogy ~ John Dos Passos Babbitt ~ Sinclair Lewis One Day In the Life of Ivan Denisovich ~ Alexander Solzhenitzyn Atlas Shrugged ~ Ayn Rand A Bonfire of the Vanities ~ Tom Wolfe Alas Babylon ~ Pat Frank Triumph ~ John Kenneth Galbraith The Mouse That Roared ~ Leonard Wibberley Another Roadside Attraction ~ Tom Robbins For Whom the Bell Tolls ~ Ernest Hemingway In Cold Blood ~ Truman Capote Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee ~ Dee Brown This may look like a really random list but it actually isn't. I think you'd find a lot here to interest you. Good luck with your search.

Answer 3

There are plenty of great Mangas out there. But one I think freshmens could really appreciate is a manga called Beck. Its pretty much a story about this kid growing up who wants to follow his dreams of creating his own band. There really no naughty stuff in the anime and its a great storyline.

Answer 4

Try a library website. They will gear collections of anime for both boys and girls and also would consider their owning of the series to be a recommendation. Try my employer. Use the library catalog and search "anime juvenile." It should give you some ideas.