I'm not a manga expert by any means. In fact, I've only read a handful of graphic novels and manga since I started as a librarian, mainly because people who liked it knew way more than me and didn't need any suggestions. But while I was shelving yesterday I came across the first in a series by Koji Kumeta called Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei: The power of negative thinking volume I. Quite a mouthful.
The book follows Nozomu Itoshiki, a depressed schoolteacher who is the head of a class of very eccentric students. Kafuka, one of his students, finds him trying to kill himself (he is constantly looking for the perfect place to die) and saves him, she also happens to be the world's most optimistic person. There is also a stalker, an obsessive-compulsive, and a girl who comes to class with mysterious bruises.
Itoshiki seems like the worst possible teacher to be but in charge of the class, but it works, with hilarious results.
This series is definitely for older readers because of its sophistication, its also a great start for manga novices.
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