The American Library Association’s Young Adult Library Services Association has added some nominations to its roster for the next round of Great Graphic Novels for Teens. The inclusion of Yellow Tanabe’s Kekkaishi (Viz) should make someone very happy.
Personally, I’m glad to see Yuji Iwahara’s King of Thorn (Tokyopop) and Yuki Urushibara’s Mushishi (Del Rey) make the short list. It’s an interesting mix of mainstream and indie, manga, manhwa, global and lots of flavors of “other.” (I’ll become tense if the next round doesn’t include Fumi Yoshinaga’s Flower of Life from DMP. Just so you know.)
If I were given to making predictions, I’d say that I suspect that Ai Morinaga’s My Heavenly Hockey Club (Del Rey), Tadashi Kawashima and Adachitoka’s Alive (Del Rey), Hideaki Sorachi’s Gin Tama (Viz), Satoru Akahori and Yukimaru Katsura’s Kashimashi (Seven Seas), and Kazuhiro Okomoto’s Translucent (Dark Horse) will show up before the nominations are over.