Anime: A History

In his new book Anime: A History, Jonathan Clements explores a century of Japanese animation. The masters of the genre, such as Osamu Tezuka (Astro Boy), Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira), and Hiyao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, Spirited Away), are included, though Clements also highlights many overlooked and obscure anime productions.

The first half of the book covers the rarely-seen animation made in the early 20th century. The subsequent explosion of anime on television (Astro Boy) and video (Dallos), and the global successes of Pokemon and Ghibli, dominate the book's second half. Clements notes that "There is... no full-length history of Japanese animation available in English - an omission this book seeks to remedy". He previously co-wrote The Anime Encyclopedia, the most comprehensive English-language guide to anime. The World Encyclopedia Of Cartoons (Maurice Horn) and Cartoons (Giannalberto Bendazzi) also discuss Japanese animation.