My Hero Academia Character Encyclopedia by DK

The topic of today's read should be very, very familiar to many middle grade readers...and YAers and older, too, but this one is intended for that middle grade bunch. I was excited to get my hands on a copy and doubt I'll be disappointed. Now, I'm not into My Hero Academia but my kids know all about it (although it wasn't really their favorite by any means). I do, however, know many fans of this anime. I say anime because this book appears to concentrate on that version rather than the manga one, but maybe, I'm wrong. 

Anyway, let's just open it up and see how it brings these characters across.

(Note: Young readers around me were SO excited to see this one in my hands! )

MY HERO ACADEMIA

Character Encyclopedia

by DK

DK Children

Middle Grade Fantasy

160 pages

ages 8 to 12

Meet more than 100 characters from My Hero Academia in this official companion to the hit anime TV series.

How tall is Izuku Midoriya? Who is Katsuki Bakugo’s old rival? What kind of personality does Ochaco Uraraka have?

Find out the answers to these questions and more, including essential facts and stats about characters from their Quirks, hero names, personalities, birthdates, friendships, rivalries, abilities, and much more.

The official My Hero Academia encyclopedia with 100+ detailed character entries:

• Meet more than 100 characters from the anime – each character's page features their Quirks, unique outfit details, fun facts, quotes and dynamic stills of key storyline moments
• Officially licensed by Crunchyroll
• The perfect gift for fans of My Hero Academia, superheroes, shonen manga and anime

Packed with lesser-known details about students, teachers, Pro Heroes, and villains, and brimming with detailed annotations of character illustrations, every fan will learn something new about the best-loved characters in this must-have guide. And don’t miss the final season of the My Hero Academia anime, streaming now on Crunchyroll!

GOODREADS     /    AMAZON

MY TIDBITS

My Hero Academia fans are in for a treat as they flip through the characters and catch tiny details on each one.

This is a collection of 147 characters from the popular series, My Hero Academia. It's broken down into five categories, which are easily flipped through thanks to the Contents pages in the beginning: Class 1-A, Heroes in Training, Pro Heroes, Teachers, and, last but not least, the villains. The Class 1-As are the stars of this show as they each receive a two-page spread with their dynamic pose on the left and their every-day personality on the right. A small box gives a quick run-down of their important facts (birthday, height, etc), while other tidbits surrounding their quirks, personalities, activities, outfits, and more are placed in small and larger paragraphs/sections throughout the two pages. The other categories are only given one page each, also hold the dynamic pose and similar (but not as much) information. It's easy to read, kept concise, and little 'did you know' bubbles hold a couple surprises, too.

Fans will recognize their favorite characters right away and be able to explore the large amount of side-characters, which they may or may not remember. The text is easy-to-read and delivers the information clearly and in an interesting way...never wordy. It brings the characters to life and lets the personality of each one shine. The illustrations are bright, and the chosen poses are very well done. Interestingly, however, the every-day poses tended to carry a slightly lower quality illustrative style...my anime fan daughter noticed it right away. This book does snuggle up to the anime and includes a scene from the show for each character.

I have no doubt that it's a delight for fans of the series and even for those who aren't full-fledged fans, it's fun to pick up and discover each hero, villain, and more.