Manga in the UK

I go to bookstores often in the UK. And I noticed something recently.

There is manga (まんがorマンガor漫画) section in normal UK bookstores!

This is manga corner in Waterstones, the largest bookshop chain in the UK.

and in Blackwell's too! (well it seems Blackwell's is in the umbrella of Waterstones.)

I even found a manga shelf in the oldest bookshop in the UK, the Hatchards - Piccadilly too! (well it seems Hatchards is in the umbrella of Waterstones. wow.)

Also I found manga shelf in the library (I don't believe libraries are in the umbrella of Waterstones.)

First time I landed on the UK was in 2008. Did I see any manga section or even a single manga book at that time? To behonest I don't remember but I don't think so. What I can feel is the presence of manga industry is growing in global market.

As we know, there are many genres in the bookshops. Travel, science fiction, art/design, cooking, history, business, kids and so many others. But I can't think of any genre other than manga which is strongly connected to the culture which derived from one particular country. ...Yes, I'm very much proud of it. 

There is one thing about Manga though. 

As a matter of course, all the manga in UK bookshops are in English. When I take a look at English translation, I can see that it's translated by professional. But something is off. I will write about it more next time.

CJ