 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | NO STARCH PRESS | | | ▪ | AUTHOR / ART: | | KAZUHIRO FUJITAKI | | | ▪ | FORMAT: | | WESTERN / B&W | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 232 | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 03/11/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 08/09/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SCOTT CAMPBELL |
The Manga Guide to Electricity is a charming cartoon guide to (you guessed it!) electricity, and part of a whole series of books that deal with different school subjects, and then deliver them in a fun, manga oriented kind of way. What a neat idea! If they’d had these available about 10 years ago, school might have been much more interesting for the likes of many of us (if you’re now 25 like me) – and if you’re still in school, these books might be just the ticket. It’s not always fun to learn, but when you’re learning with the help of a media like manga, how can you really go wrong? This book is NOT just learning by any stretch – it actually has a fun story with good characters and a real setting. Rereko is just your average high-school girl from Electopia, the land of electricity, but she's totally failed her final electricity exam! Now she has to go to summer school on Earth. And this time, she has to pass or she’ll never amount to anything! Luckily, her ever-patient tutor Hikaru is there to help. Join them in the pages of The Manga Guide to Electricity as Rereko examines everyday electrical devices like flashlights, heaters, and circuit breakers, and learns the meaning of abstract concepts like voltage, potential, current, resistance, conductivity, and electrostatic force.
The real-world examples that you'll find in The Manga Guide to Electricity will teach you:
• What electricity is, how it works, how it's created, and how it can be used
• The relationship between voltage, current, and resistance (Ohm's law)
• Key electrical concepts like inductance and capacitance
• How complicated components like transformers, semiconductors, diodes, and transistors work
• How electricity produces heat and the relationship between current and magnetic fields If thinking about how electricity works really fries your brain, let The Manga Guide to Electricity teach you all things electrical in a shockingly fun way. Oh the puns! Honestly, this book is amazingly setup with all the “aces in their places” – the art is fantastic, and the teaching method is both fun and educational. I’m not always easy to impress when it comes to something like this, but I think these books are awesome and have a lot of potential to teach kids (and adults!) a lot about whatever subject they are dealing with. I now know more about electricity than I knew electricity had to offer!
So what about a bit about the author to finish up? Kazuhiro Fujitaki is a lecturer at the Tokyo Metropolitan Vocational Skills Development Center. He has written a number of books on electrical engineering and runs a website offering useful information about Japan's qualifying examinations for electrical technicians.
IN SUMMARY:
What seems like a very odd idea at first glance is actually a genius book/product that will teach you about complicated subjects, but still allow for plenty of fun and entertainment at the same time. Who would have ever thought manga could make you smart? This series of books does just that! |
