http://www.physorg.com/news176648788.html

"Although comics have been published in newspapers since the 1890s, they still get no respect from some teachers and librarians, despite their current popularity among adults. But according to a University of Illinois expert in children's literature, critics should stop tugging on Superman's cape and start giving him and his superhero friends their due."

...

""If you look at the comics that are being mass-marketed to kids," Tilley said, "it's mild, tame stuff with a strong commercial tie-in to another media format. There aren't many stand-alone titles unless you go to comic book store."

The one exception is Manga, the Japanese version of comic books that has its own unique artistic and narrative style whose influence can be seen in the "Astro Boy" and "Sailor Moon" franchises.

"You are going to find a wide selection of Manga at most bookstores," Tilley said. "That's another part of comics that has taken off - one that kids have claimed as the format of choice for themselves.""

Actually, I'm midway through this book: Reading Japan Cool: Patterns of Manga Literacy and Discourse. It's pretty interesting, performs some refreshing matter of fact research on contemporary reading habits, with an eye for hermeneutic interpretations and suchlike on sequential art and multiliteracies.

Last edited by nest0r (2009 November 05, 10:22 pm)