Yet Another Apology

So, here I am issuing yet another apology for lack of updates.  :(  However I have a very good excuse - two things happened at once: 

1)  My library decided to do some serious shuffling.  I was transferred to a new location, which means a much longer commute for me and less blog time.  I'm also still trying to adjust to the new environment...with mixed success.  ^_^;

2)  I was asked by the Director of Library Services in our school district to put together a presentation on the Maverick Graphic Novel list, which has 54 titles...all of which I have to read before June 7th.  ^_^;  I can do it...(I'd planned to do it on my own anyway) but it's going to mean some serious prioritizing and not as much happening here until it's over.  

So, please stay with me until all this happens.  I've got Cirque Du Freak Volumes 4 & 5 ready to review when I find a few spare minutes and I'm working on reading through Black Sun, Silver Moon so I can start reviewing on it soon, too.

As always, if you have any questions or requests, please feel free to contact me.  And remember, requests for specific titles will always take precedence over any other series I happen to be working on at the time.

New vs.Old?

So, I've been doing some contemplating...this may be a silly question to ask, since I know that at the moment very few people (if any) are coming to this blog to get help with their manga purchases.  However, I realize that I've come across a dilemma.  I tend to focus on older series, ones which I feel haven't gotten enough attention or at the very least deserve to have some readers, but I'm beginning to wonder if I should be focusing on newer titles instead.  Titles that are more likely to draw in new readers who are looking into the "hottest new series" that their teens have been requesting.  So far, I've tried not to choose any that are completely out of print, but I enjoy covering series that are completed, especially since, with the economy going up and down that way that it has been, it's possible that incomplete series may STAY incomplete. (This is one of my largest frustrations.)

Anyway, for those (very few) of you who have read, are reading, or happen to be passing by this blog, what's your opinion?  Would you prefer older, completed series to be covered here, or is it the newer stuff that you're wanting to see?  Should I just try to balance it out a bit more with some of each?  I'm already working to even out the shojo vs. shonen titles...somewhat sucessfully, but now I'm thinking I might be needing to do that with the newer and older stuff, too.

Please feel free to comment here or message me privately.  Thanks!  :)

A Quick Note...

Hello everyone!  This is just a quick note to let you know I've added a new link to the blog's side bar.  It will send you to a section of my LibraryThing account which lists the first volume of all the different series I currently have access to.  I've added this to give you a quick reference guide when making requests regarding which series you'd like me to review.

That doesn't mean I WON'T review something not on my list, just that it will take more time for me to complete, since I'll have to track the title down from somewhere else.  It's also possible that I missed adding something to the list, so requesting the title you need might help me with updates, too.  :)

In addition to the side bar, I'm going to include the link here for redundancy's sake.
  
Readily Available Titles

Decision about Reviews

Okay, so I decided back when I started this blog that I wasn't going to be doing full-fledged reviews of anything, just the basics to help librarians (and maybe parents) make educated purchasing choices regarding manga.  However, I'm realizing now that some of these series may not have any reviews out there, so I figure it can't hurt to give a simple mini-review of some sort.  

From now on, once a series is completed on the blog, I'll also be posting a quick little summary based on what I thought of the books as a whole.  Because let's face it, when you've got a whole series, the story is really only as good as the last volume - the ending can make or break everything.  I'm not going to be giving away endings, and I'll try to avoid spoilers, too, but I want to give y'all my general impressions, so that when reviews are hard to come by, you've got at least one source to fall back on.

If you need/want my impressions of a series before it's been completed on the blog, then please leave a comment or PM me, and I'll be more than happy to talk with you.  :)

Over the next few days I'll also being going back to cover all of my previously completed series, so keep an eye out for those, too.

Apologies

Okay, so I've already started to get behind and I've barely even started my project.  *sighs*  My deepest apologies - I got sidetracked with the flu and have spent that past couple of weeks trying to catch up with myself.  Anyway, I'm hoping to get back on track very, very soon.  I'll probably post the last volume of + Anima tonight; after that I haven't decided what to do next...but it will probably be one of the following: Ghost Hunt, Beck, Cirque du Freak, or X-men Misfits.  As always, if you've got a series you're interested in knowing more about as far as content (or anything else), please let me know and I'll do my best to get some info posted for you ASAP.  :)

The Beginning

Okay, I haven't worked out all the mechanics of how I'm going to go about this yet, but here's a basic break down of the information you can eventually expect from this blog:

1)  Publisher ratings for manga & what they mean

2)  My opinion on the optimum location for the manga in your library (whether you're a school or public librarian)

3)  My opinion on what's going on in the manga that might cause a parent to (at the VERY least) raise their eyebrows

4)  Online review resources for each volume (when I can find them)

5)  Links to the specific volume on the publisher's web site

Also, just for clarification purposes, I'll be covering not only manga, but also manhwa, manhua and OELs.

And finally, since I AM just getting started on this project, I'm perfectly willing to take requests.  Which titles are you most interested in seeing here?  And what kinds of information would you most like to see offered?