Who is Mama?

Mama is the online representation of a working mother's dream to own a bookstore. Combining her love for graphic arts (although she can't draw beyond a stick figure), manga and anime, video games, sci-fi/fantasy, and just books in general, she baby-stepped her way to creating an online experience that will allow others who share her diverse interests to find a comfortable jumping point for information. As a mom who enjoys manga, the name "MamaManga" fit perfectly.

In real life, Mama is Jae Holt. From grade school, her dream jobs have meandered between being a horse trainer, an astronomer, an archaeologist, and a veterinarian. Ultimately, three professions (and the fact she can't handle math) chose her college path: teaching, writing, and entertainment. Jae graduated from the University of Washington with a bachelor's degree in both English and Communications.

Jae has been active in the anime community by volunteering for a Seattle anime convention. She uses the knowledge gained from this yearly event and the people who attend to discover what makes Japanese pop culture so exciting to people in the United States. As an early education instructor and tutor, Jae also has the opportunity to converse with parents who are interested - both positively and negatively - to what cartoons and comics their children watch and read. Being an avid reader, she also tries to keep up with popular titles and is always interested when a comic-based movie hits the theatres!

As a parent, Jae has also encountered the difficulties of raising a child in a media-rich society. This was the impetus for creating not just an online bookstore, but an online experience. This site combines shopping with information. A forum provides users an opportunity to sound off or seek feedback on manga and comic titles. This is a place to find news and events related to the graphic novel industry and have online discussions on related topics. But the keyword to this experience is SAFE. The goal of MamaManga is to be a trusted source of entertainment and information about Japanese pop culture and graphic novels. This is the place where you can talk - parent-to-parent, fan-to-fan, newbie-to-expert, and any combination in between. So sit back, relax, and enjoy...Mama knows Manga!