No one would be surprised to learn that chainsaw man is a manga bestseller, or that Junji Ito remains a perennial favorite with horror fans. Shonen fans know how difficult it is to collect intermediate series One piece and naruto volumes, and it is not news that Murderer of demons and jujutsu kaisen best sales charts.
Within American bookstores, other trends are a bit more surprising. While currently airing anime always sees a surge in manga sales, other manga become surprisingly reliable sellers through sheer force of will and the help of Booktok. New and existing fans alike keep publishers busy, buying reprints of these comeback hits and ensuring these cult classics fly off bookstore shelves.
10 Some of the Banana Fish issues are not available (Banana Fish)
banana fish It’s not new, but it’s certainly loved. The BL-leaning action series first debuted as a manga in the late ’80s, but an anime adaptation in 2019 helped introduce the series to a new legion of fans.
The problem is that, for the most part, publishers have dropped the ball in the face of renewed interest in banana fish. Volumes like 16 and 14 are not for sale anywhere and resell for several hundred dollars when they appear. Until demand mysteriously drops or publishers catch up with the fervent demand, banana fish fans are in for a real-life heartache on top of the heartache that makes the story so resonant.
9 Manwha sales are on the rise (single leveling)
While most people think of Japan when they hear manga, more and more Korean manwha are conquering the public and are marketed in the same way as their Japanese counterparts. Notably, solo leveling is a frequent bestseller in both its manwha and light novel forms. Fueled in part by full-color illustrations and online advertising, solo leveling needs almost constant replenishment.
Other Korean series have also begun to proliferate in bookstores. Infernal has a tie-in with Netflix that is sure to boost sales, and the abandoned empress it is steadily selling out to shojo fans who are branching out into larger series.
8 Chinese light novels are selling well (Mo Dao Zu Shi)
it is not surprising that Mo Dao Zu Shi is popular. The series has been a huge success around the world and its live-action counterpart, the untamed, broke viewing records in China. The author’s follow-up series.heaven official blessing, is streaming on Netflix. Seemingly almost single-handedly, danmei (BL) author Mo Xiang Tong Xiu has helped Chinese light novels gain a foothold in the West.
In December 2021, the first English novelizations of Heaven Official’s Blessing (The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation) and Scum-Villain’s self-saving system) usurped three top ten slots on the NYT Best Sellers list in one fell swoop. It was a particularly successful entry into the market.
7 Inspirational Bad Behavior (Yarichin B**tch Club)
In many bookstores, manga has started to be separated according to content. Plastic-wrapped series needing censorship have their own shelf and are marked with parental advisory stickers. These series often contain explicit sexual content that is more offensive to the average American buyer than the violence the manga is known for.
Booksellers who put up shelving in the censored book section will notice a fun and annoying trend. Yarichin B**ch Cluban explicit BL series, it is often ripped from its wrapper and abandoned by readers who cannot take the books home where their family can see them. Yarichin B**ch Club is undoubtedly a popular manga, outselling the best BL series and popular mainstream series as well.
6 A Heartbreaking Coming of Age Story (Nana)
lullaby impossible to collect in English these days, more or less out of print apart from volumes 1 and 21. Anytime lullaby it’s back in the warehouses, it doesn’t stay there for long. A whole new generation is embracing of lullaby heartbreaking coming of age story.
Hopefully publishers will step up to ensure this seminal classic continues to reach the audience it’s always had.
5 A story that is always in demand (blue flag)
Blue flag It doesn’t have an anime adaptation yet, which surprises booksellers. The slice-of-life drama series is written with such grace and nuance that it deserves all the sincere critical acclaim it receives. Unfortunately, many volumes are published and go out of print even when they are trending online, and Blue flagThe 8 volumes of ‘s are not easy to buy all at once.
It’s good to see a series like Blue flag in demand. Blue flag depicts characters of all sexual orientations who are all stuck together in friendship and love. Blue flag it feels real in a way that few other manga do.
4 A popular title among tweens (Hanako Kun in the bathroom)
Style over substance is often a criticism anime receives. However, in the case of hanako-kun, that hasn’t deterred fans in the slightest. Hanako-kun it currently has 12 volumes published in English, and the series continues to sell steadily even two years after the anime aired. Hanako-kun it is especially popular with younger teens who admire its cartoonish art style and reimagining of urban legends.
There’s no denying that the art is fantastic and the characters are beautifully crafted, and high school ghost stories will always be a hit with younger audiences.
3 Nostalgia keeps Zelda on the charts (The Legend Of Zelda)
Link is a fantastic video game protagonist, but not particularly known for his characterization. A character that represents the player, Link’s defining traits include his affection for Zelda, his borderline muteness, and his habit of breaking things that don’t belong to him.
Despite this, Zelda manga adaptations sell with constant persistence. People just can’t get enough of Hyrule, no matter the format.
two This manga is still selling like new (I Hear The Sunspot)
I hear the sunspot is a BL series with a lot going for it, including depiction of deafness, realistic storytelling and characterization, and a slow and steady romance that’s as rewarding as it is moving. It deserves the accolades it has received, and it has received a lot of it.
Few BL series are actually a series, often compiled into just 1 or two volumes. I hear the sunspot it is among a new generation that overcame this limitation and reached five excellent volumes before its conclusion.
1 Readers never tire of Inio Asano (Goodnight Punpun, Girl On The Shore)
Oyasumi PunPun is a series that obsesses everyone who reads it, and solanine is sometimes read in college courses alongside graphic novel classics like mouse and Watchers. Mangaka Inio Asano has essentially managed to build a reputation as a mainstream artist, someone who isn’t afraid to delve into the darkest aspects of humanity.
One would think that such a bleak outlook on the world would put readers off, but that’s far from the case. girl on the shore, Holography of Nijiharaand good night punpun sell regularly. By word of mouth or by reputation, Asano’s works captivate readers seeking the bracing comfort of realism.
About the Author
