Recommendations

[squarezebra]

Everyone is going to have wildly different opinions of this question, depending on your own personal experiences and what you think is basic; this is fine. I'm not looking for a definitive answer

I'd like to get into some manga, but don't have a clue where to begin. Going off the TJP materials i'd say i'm possibly upper beginner/lower intermediate level - but really i'm just estimating (truth is I don't really know).

I'd welcome any recommendations for what people might think "could" be a good starting point for reading manga. As this is more of a learning exercise rather than entertainment, any genre is fine for me.

Thanks

[astaroth]

I'd say shounen manga will be fine. They usually have furigana for all the kanji so it's pretty easy to look for words you don't know. What one should be careful with is the level of speech which tends to be very casual in shounen manga, that is use of ore, kisama, omae and the like.
I got the first volume of Death Note; though I haven't had the time yet to read it.

[squarezebra]

Thats brilliant.
Thank you Astaroth

[becki_kanou]

Doraemon is another good one. It has short episodes so you can get a sense of fulfillment from finishing a whole story, and since it's aimed at kids it also has furigana. I happen to think the stories are rather charming too.

[astaroth]

Speaking of Doraemon. You might also look for the bilingual version, though the comic is in English with "translation" in Japanese ... I personally would have preferred the other way around. (What I mean can be seen here, that's from Nodame Cantabile but it's the same for Doraemon.)

[Infidel]

honestly? If you want to read manga better, read the readers. Read Real Japanese, Japanese Graded Readers, Breaking into Japanese Literature, Exploring Japanese Literature. Etc.

It's a slight detour but useful.

[squarezebra]

>>Infidel
I actually have those readers ... and for the most part they are just a little to difficult.
The breaking into Japanese Literature is frankly just too hard at the moment. The graded reader that I have gets too complicated too fast I think. I also have "reading japanese with a smile", and again this is just a little out of my reach. If I really work hard on them then I can get there eventually, and I learn a lot from those texts. However, I'd like something a little easier to do every now and then, whilst still learning and expanding my vocabulary.
I find the idea of manag appealing because it may bring a bit more colour and fun into the reading, and the idea that as Becki kindly mentioned, they tend to be short and sweet

I ordered some Shounen after Astaroth's recommendation ... bought 2 of the V-Jump magazines, and i'll see how they go. Next time I will try the Doreamon you mention.

Does anyone know of good internet stores to buy them from?
I use Playasia.com, but the shipping fees are extortionate ><

[Infidel]

I've sometimes shipped from kinokuniya books or yesasia and the shipping wasn't that bad. kinokuniya even ships from the us sometimes.