What's a light novel and whare should I begin?

If you hang out in manga and anime circles for long enough, chances are you'll eventually encounter a reference to something called a light novel. What's a light novel, you ask? They're short novels published in Japan known for their pulpy style and speedy pace. And when I say short, I mean that their lengths are normally the equivalent of what passes for a novella from the U.S. For the most part, they target a younger audience but not necessarily, and thus don't presume that all light novels are appropriate for many ages. You may find yourself with a surprise or 2, if you do.

You might be wondering why we're speaking about light novels here on Panels. Novels are usually the purview of our sister site, Book Riot, after all. The reality, however, is that target readers of light novels often overlap with manga readers. In fact, English adaptations of light novels are printed by manga companies in North America. They also feature examples, some of which are drawn by famous artists. And for the anime fans out there, many light novels serve as source material for some of your favorite series.

Why am I making a lot about light novels now? Just like sports manga, conventional wisdom claims that light novels typically do not succeed in English. However, with the increase of the manga business again in the last several decades, companies are hoping the market is finally ready for it. Yen Press, in particular, has been licensing some big titles over the past couple years. Of specific note is Baccano! , that has an anime adaptation with a fervent English-speaking fanbase.

So with this new drive to present light novels to an English-speaking audience, I believed now be could be a fantastic time to highlight a few names.