Manga like Shirahata no Shoujo

COCOON

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama

San and Mayu are two schoolgirls living in Okinawa during the closing months of the Pacific War. Together with their classmates, the two friends are drafted into the war effort as nurses for wounded soldiers. When ordered to die for their country, the remaining members of the group escape only to face the harsh environment of a tropical paradise that has become a hellish battlefield.

Tags: War , Tragedy , Historical , Female Protagonist , Survival , Josei , Gore , Primarily Female Cast , Rural , Primarily Teen Cast , Crossdressing , Medicine

Souin Gyokusai seyo!

Also known as Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological

Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths is his first book to be translated into English and is a semiautobiographical account of the desperate final weeks of a Japanese infantry unit at the end of World War II. The soldiers are told that they must go into battle and die for the honor of their country, with certain execution facing them if they return alive. Mizuki was a soldier himself (he was severely injured and lost an arm) and uses his experiences to convey the devastating consequences and moral depravity of the war.



Note: Won Best U.S. Edition of International Material at the Eisner Awards in 2012.

Tags: Military , Historical , War , Autobiographical , Tragedy , Primarily Adult Cast , Primarily Male Cast , Seinen , Guns , Suicide

Sora Yori Takaku

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life

March 10, 1945. Tokyo is bombed by the United States military. The air raid which marked the defeat of Japan caused between 80 000 and 100 000 deaths. The city is completely destroyed by explosions and fires. The vast blue sky contrasts with the rubble. The survivors wander among the ruins. Immerse yourself in this romantic story that follows the lives of eight orphans in post-war turmoil.



Tags: Seinen , Historical

Hadashi no Gen

Also known as Barefoot Gen.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama

1945, Japan. Gen Nakaoka is a spirited six-year-old boy who lives with his poor yet loving family in wartime Hiroshima. As the second World War rages on, Gen's father Daikichi stands among the few outspoken who are opposed to the emperor and stand for the innocent civilians bearing the brunt of the war. However, in a society with nothing but feverous support for their nation, Gen and his family are ostracized as traitors. Unbeknownst to them, a terrible fate awaits the people of Hiroshima...

One quiet morning, the US forces drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. In an instant, the city is completely destroyed, leaving thousands dead and many more exposed to radiation. Though Gen manages to survive the blast, he finds his life irreversibly changed. Regrouping with what's left of his family, Gen must now grapple with starvation, destitution, and an unsympathetic public who see survivors as little more than disease-ridden beggars.

Based on author Keiji Nakazawa's real-life experiences, Hadashi no Gen follows Gen and his fellow survivors in their struggle to survive in post-war Hiroshima. Gen resolves to soldier on with unwavering determination, while never forgiving those who caused the atrocity, never forgetting the pain of the bomb, and never letting his spirit be broken by the tragedy.

Tags: Tragedy , Historical , Delinquents , Found Family , War , Adoption , Autobiographical , Male Protagonist , Gore , Coming of Age , Body Horror , Shounen , Crime