Long ago, I can remember going to an anime film festival in Dublin. I saw many great films such as Redline and Summer Wars but one of the standouts was a film called “The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya”. Watching it, I could tell it was a sequel but I still remember how much I enjoyed the film. I bought the TV series from a now defunct company called Beez Entertainment and soon discovered that the franchise had started out from something called a “Light Novel”.
Light novels are targeted at a young adult audience and are generally 200 to 300 pages long. The most distinguishing characteristic of these novels is the anime/manga style artwork that are scattered throughout the novel, often depicting a scene from the previous page. While many light novels are first published as volumes, some are serialized in anthology magazines before being compiled into volumes.
I later discovered other series such as Spice & Wolf, Vampire Hunter D and Slayers all originated as light novels. Soon after I began collecting the Haruhi Suzumiya novels that had been published by Yen Press as well as picking up a two volume series called “My Girlfriend’s a Geek”. It was this series that I have used as an example of why people should read light novels.
The Japanese title for this series “Fujoshi Kanojo” indicates that the girlfriend in this series is not simply a geek but a “Fujoshi” which literally means “rotten girl”. This refers to girls who are obsessed with yaoi content. The series follows a male college student who discovers that his girlfriend is both a fujoshi and an otaku. The series is told comedically from the point of view of the boyfriend and makes references to various franchises such as Gundam and Neon Genesis Evangelion. It is a funny yet endearing read and allowed me to appreciate the light novel medium in a new light.
A couple of years later, Yen Press announced the creation of a new imprint for publishing light novels called “Yen On” and saw the release of many popular light novels such as Sword Art Online, Accel World, Baccano! and more. Since then, we have also seen Seven Seas Entertainment begin to release light novels such as Toradora! and Strawberry Panic.
However, it is important to note that light novels quite often rely on the same tropes as anime and manga series. While this might make it easier for otaku to adjust to the new format, it also means that many stories feel eerily similar to anime and manga. It is important to note that, when exploring light novels, a new medium does not equal originality.
The light novel industry is rapidly growing and that means that it’s an excellent time to begin reading and collecting light novels. Let me know what your favourite light novels are and your thoughts on their growing popularity.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use bookdepository.com for all of your needs!
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya is a great game and so it is the first season. When it comes to Light Novels, I haven’t read any so far even though I know they serve as a basis for many adaptations.