Graphic Pride! BL, Yuri & LGTBQ+ Manga Celebration with Kodansha
Check out the titles discussed & recommended at the NYPL Graphic Pride! event
Kodansha and the Tompkins Square Library celebrated Pride Month with an exciting exploration of yuri (GL), yaoi (BL), & LGBTQ+ manga. Three editors from Kodansha, one of the largest and most dynamic manga publishers in the world, presented a lively panel talk showcasing some of Kodansha's greatest and most beloved backlist titles and latest releases, as well as the sensational new series readers can look forward to in Fall 2024 and Spring 2025.
Many heartfelt thanks once again to the New York Public Library for hosting the event, and to everyone who braved the rain to join this celebration!
Take a look below at the list of titles discussed at the panel, including links to read the full-chapter previews of those available now!
KODANSHA'S BL, YURI & LGTBQ+ MANGA
Boys Run the Riot
By Keito Gaku
High schooler Ryo knows he’s transgender, but he doesn’t have anyone to confide in about the confusion he feels. He can’t tell his best friend, who he’s secretly got a crush on, and he can’t tell his mom, who’s constantly asking why Ryo “dresses like a boy.” He certainly can’t tell Jin, the new transfer student who looks like just another bully… The only time Ryo feels at ease is when he’s wearing his favorite clothes. Then, and only then, the world melts away, and he can be his true self. One day, while out shopping, Ryo sees someone he didn’t expect: Jin. The kid who looked so tough in class has the same taste in fashion as him! At last, Ryo has someone he can open up to—and the journey ahead might finally give him a way to express himself to the world.
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of Boys Run the Riot
Hitorijime My Hero
By Memeco Arii
Masahiro Setagawa doesn’t believe in heroes, but wishes he could: he’s found himself trapped in a gang of small-time street bullies, and with no prospects for a real future. But when high school teacher (and scourge of the streets) Kousuke Ohshiba comes to his rescue, he finds he may start believing after all…in heroes, and in his budding feelings, too.
Age Rating: Vol 1-5 : 16+/ Vol 6- : 18+
Read a FREE preview of Hitorijime My Hero
I Can’t Say No to the Lonely Girl
By Kashikaze
Quintessential good girl Sakurai finds herself trapped in the middle of a bribery scheme. Her teacher offers to write a recommendation letter in exchange for luring a truant student into attendance. Sakurai pins down the reclusive transfer student Honda, but there are strings attached. Honda demands that Sakurai grant one wish every day. The first wish is a kiss—and Sakurai finds herself feeling very eager to please…
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of I Can't Say No to the Lonely Girl
Is Love the Answer?
By Uta Isaki
When it comes to love, high schooler Chika wonders if she might be an alien. She’s never fallen for or even had a crush on anyone, and she has no desire for physical intimacy. It's only when Chika enters college and meets peers like herself that she realizes there’s a word for what she feels inside—asexual. After years of wondering if love was the answer, Chika realizes that the answer she long sought may not exist at all--and that that's perfectly normal.
Rated: 16+
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Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law
By Yoshie Kaoruhara
Ichiro, an agent with the Tokyo Metropolitan Public Security Bureau, receives orders to make contact with and closely surveil Shiro, a yakuza hotshot whose bed partners include a considerable amount of influential male politicians. The mission takes an unexpected turn when they realize they've both been pursuing the same cold case: the disappearance of Rion Nakaba, Ichiro's senior and Shiro's sister. Determined to uncover the truth, the two secretly team up under the guise of lovers to try and pick up her trail...
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law
Last Gender
By Rei Taki
Welcome to BAR California, a place for you to reveal your true self People of different genders, propensities, and sexual orientations gather at a certain chic bar that’s hidden from the public eye. While some come in search of themselves, others step into the establishment looking for sex and love. There are as many sexualities as there are people, and the patrons’ stories intertwine as they struggle to find happiness. A bisexual trans woman who’s been hurt by the voices of others wishes she had a “normal” relationship; a married, middle-aged salaryman secretly expresses his female side; and a pansexual cis guy is on the lookout for true love.
Rated: 18+
Read a FREE preview of Last Gender
My Summer of You
By Nagisa Furuya
Chiharu Saeki and Wataru Toda are two high school students who share a common hobby: They love to watch movies. After they meet, they become fast friends, until one day, when Chiharu confesses his love for Wataru. Wataru says that Chiharu’s confession doesn’t bother him, and the boys continue throughout their summer, going to pilgrimages to see film spots from their favorite movies. But the more time he spends with Chiharu, Wataru realizes that those feelings may also be mutual…
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of My Summer of You
My Ultramarine Sky
By Nagisa Furuya
From middle school to high school, Kai and Ren have not only always been in the same class—they’ve also always sat next to each other. But in their last year of high school, the boys are assigned to two separate classes. One day, when Kai finds Ren sleeping in a classroom after school, he whispers the feelings that he can’t bring himself to say out loud… and Ren hears him. Will Kai’s confession draw them further apart, or will it be the spark that brings them back to each other once more?
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of My Ultramarine Sky
Number Call
By Nagisa Furuya
High schooler Eito Tachibana has always hated his name, including all of the jokes and puns about the number 8 that have come along with it. One day, he meets a classmate named Tomoya Hatta, aka Hachi—the Japanese word for "8." What begins as quick hellos and small talk in the hallway soon becomes something much deeper, and Eito realizes that it's more than just a similar nickname that draws him to Hachi. Could the number that Eito resented for so long finally bring him something—or someone—to love?
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of Number Call
Run Away With Me, Girl
By Battan
Maki’s first love was her high school sweetheart, a girl named Midori. But Midori broke up with Maki at graduation, saying they were now "too old to be fooling around dating girls." Ten years later, Maki still can’t get Midori off her mind, but Midori has long moved on—in fact, she's engaged. Yet the more Maki hears Midori talk about her soon-to-be-husband, the more red flags she notices. And Midori has another secret, one she hasn’t yet shared with Maki. Will it be the push that sets them on a new path—one they’ll travel together?
Rated: 18+
Read a FREE preview of Run Away With Me, Girl
The Moon on a Rainy Night
By Kuzushiro
One rainy night, Saki is rushing to a piano lesson when she crashes into a beautiful, long-haired girl, dropping her sheet music in the process. Saki stutters an apology, but the girl simply hands back her sheet music and leaves without a word. Saki begins her first day of high school the following morning, only to find the stranger from the night before sitting at the desk next to hers. She learns that the girl’s name is Kanon and that she is not quite completely deaf, but very hard of hearing. Though Kanon needs to be close to people to read their lips, she tends to push people away with her icy demeanor. Through one kind gesture, Saki slowly begins breaking down the walls around Kanon, even as she feels something new blossoming within her.
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of The Moon on a Rainy Night
The White and Blue Between Us
By Kiyuhiko
It’s been seven years since Hozumi left the island town he grew up on, leaving behind not only the seaside, but also Mishima—his close friend and first love from high school. The two haven’t spoken since Hozumi turned Mishima down when he rejected him and lied about his own feelings, so when Hozumi returns for his high school reunion, he wants nothing more than to make amends with Mishima—a task easier said than done. In their years apart, Mishima has distanced himself from not only Hozumi, but everyone in the entire town, choosing to live alone in the lighthouse his grandfather used to tend to. Will Hozumi finally be able to break down Mishima’s walls, clear the air between them, and finally confess his true feelings, or are the two fated to be separated from one another?
Rated: 18+
Read a FREE preview of The White and Blue Between Us
The Yearning Fox Lies in Wait
By Nmura
The year is 1920, the 9th year of the Taisho Period. Lifelong philomath Kiyo Fukasaku is ecstatic when he’s admitted into the Imperial University, and can’t wait to begin his new life in the nation’s capital…that is, until he gets lost and already finds himself on hard times on his first day in the big city. Luckily, he runs into Ozaki, an eccentric, seemingly well-off man who invites Kiyo to stay in his mansion after he learns about his financial troubles. But there’s more to the handsome stranger than meets the eye. It turns out that Ozaki is a fox spirit who had some sort of connection to Kiyo’s grandfather, Seishirou, and he invites Kiyo to live with him as a way to repay Seishirou’s kindness. But just what kind of relationship did Ozaki and Seishirou have, and what does it mean for Ozaki and Kiyo?
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of The Yearning Fox Lies in Wait
Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss!
By Nmura
Hashimoto is a perfectly average salaryman, working a repetitive office job, made all the worse by his stylish, strait-laced boss, Shirase, who insists everything be done by the book. Whatever he does for this perfectionist, it’s just not good enough! Thankfully, Hashimoto can go home to his favorite online video game, where he can unload on the forgiving shoulders of his best friend, whom he knows only by the name “Uma.” The duo make plans to meet in person, but when they do, Hashimoto is horrified by a revelation that will change his entire life…
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss!
Twilight Out of Focus
By jyanome
Film enthusiast Mao Tsuchiya and his lone wolf roommate Hisashi Otomo make three promises:
1. That Mao will never tell anyone that Hisashi is gay and has a boyfriend,
2. That Hisashi will never approach Mao “in that way,” and
3. That they’ll respect each other’s “private time.”
The second-years’ ground rules should ensure a peaceful life together in their dorm, but reality is never as simple as it seems in the movies, and some things are not so easily promised…
Rated: 18+
Read a FREE preview of Twilight Out of Focus
Welcome Back, Alice
By Shuzo Oshimi
Welcome Back, Alice is the latest work by Shuzo Oshimi, the author of Blood on the Tracks, Happiness, and The Flowers of Evil. Childhood friends Yohei, Kei, and Yui are reunited in high school. But what seemed like a straightforward love triangle between the three of them takes an unexpected turn when Kei shows up looking and dressed like a girl. In this story of adolescent awakening, perversion, and love, Oshimi sets out to explore the boundaries of gender, sexuality, and identity.
Rated: 16+
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What Did You Eat Yesterday?
By Fumi Yoshinaga
From award-winning author Fumi Yoshinaga comes a casual romance between two middle-aged men and the many meals they share together. A hard-working middle-aged gay couple in Tokyo come to enjoy the finer moments of life through food. After long days at work, either in the law firm or the hair salon, Shiro and Kenji will always have down time together by the dinner table, where they can discuss their troubles, hash out their feelings and enjoy delicately prepared home cooked meals!
Rated: 16+
Read a FREE preview of What Did You Eat Yesterday?
Whisper Me a Love Song
By Eku Takeshima
Bubbly, energetic first-year high school student Himari falls head over heels for her senpai Yori after hearing her band perform on the first day of school. Himari tells Yori she just loves her, and, to Himari’s surprise, Yori says she loves Himari back! But when Himari realizes that she and her senpai are feeling two different kinds of love, she begins to ask herself what “love” really means…
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of Whisper Me a Love Song
More LGBTQ+ Manga to Look Forward to!
I Cross-Dressed for the IRL Meetup
By Kurano
Debuts: Fall 2024
Cocoa" has made three best friends in her monthly meetup group, where girls get together every month by meeting up at the cutest and trendiest new dessert cafes. Cocoa is in it for the sweets—really!—but she's also harboring a few secrets: Not only does Cocoa have a crush on another one of the girls in the group, Opera, but she's actually a guy named Satoshi who's been cross-dressing! During one meetup, things come to a head when Opera discovers that Cocoa is cross-dressing—and to Cocoa's surprise, Opera confesses that she is too!
Rated: 16+
I Want to Love You Til Your Dying Day
By Nachi Aono
Debuts: Spring 2025
At the mysterious orphanage where Sheena lives, death is nothing new to its residents—girls who are raised as weapons of war, taught to kill and take the lives of others without batting an eye. On the night of her roommate’s death, Sheena meets a strange girl covered in blood. The next day, the girl appears as a new student in Sheena's class and introduces herself as Mimi. Initially thought to be a school myth, rumors begin spreading that Mimi is their secret weapon—an immortal who cannot die.
Rated: 16+
Love on the Horizon
By Machi Yamashita
Debuts: Spring 2025
Art university student Nagi Kitagawa is hopelessly in love with Yuu Yamasaki, his senpai in the folk song club who also happens to be his next door neighbor. One night, after drinking too much at one of their club get-togethers, Nagi helps a drunk Yuu get home safe—but before he can go back to his own apartment, Yuu wraps Nagi in his arms and falls asleep, trapping Nagi in his embrace. Nagi vows to keep the incident a secret, but when Nagi finds himself growing closer and closer to Yuu, his unrequited feelings only grow stronger…
Rated: 16+
Senpai Is an Otokonoko: My Crossdressing Classmate
By Pom
Debuts: Spring 2025
First-year high school student Saki Aoi can’t help but find herself head-over-heels for her senpai, Makoto Hanaoka. After all, Hanaoka-senpai is tall, beautiful, and oh-so-cool—who wouldn’t fall for a girl like her? Saki doesn’t hesitate to confess her feelings. However, Makoto turns her down, saying that they’re not the person Saki thinks they are—because Makoto isn’t a girl, but a cross-dressing boy!
Rated: 16+
The Spellbook Library
By Uta Isaki
Debuts: Fall 2024
When he was a child, troublemaker Yan was attacked by a ferocious spellbeast—until he was rescued by a group of Spellbook librarians. Inspired by the librarians’ heroic efforts, Yan vows to turn over a new leaf and become a Spellbook librarian to repay their kindness. On the day of his employment exam, he meets Tohru, a mysterious young boy who has his own reasons for wanting to work at the library. Together, Yan and Tohru set off and join the ranks of the Spellbook Library, and begin the long journey to learn just what it takes to become a Spellbook librarian!
Rated: 13+
Read a FREE preview of The Spellbook Library
Spoil Me Plzzz, Hinamori-san!
By tsuke
Debuts: Fall 2024
Known throughout the school for her selflessness and perfect grades, there's not a single underclassman who doesn't look up to Yaya Suou—including Ichigo Hinamori. But Ichigo's perfect image of Yaya is shattered when she comes across her wallowing in self-pity in the nurse's office one day. The real Yaya is clumsy, clingy, and selfish--not at all like the perfect act she puts on. What's more, she's desperately starved for attention and now she won't leave Ichigo alone.
Rated: 16+