Americans Are Consuming More International Content Than Ever

Worldly readers sound off in our newest survey

Experts and readers alike were surprised to see the number of international titles included on the recent list put out by The New York Times Book Review of the 100 best books of the 21st century. Indeed, even the top book on the list was My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, originally published in Italy. Others included:

• The Days of Abandonment and The Story of the Lost Child by Elena Ferrante (Italian)
• Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (Mexican)
• Septology by Jon Fosse (Norwegian)
• 2666 and The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño (Chilean)
• Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich (Russian)
• The Vegetarian by Han Kang (Korean)
• Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (French-Iranian)
• On Beauty and White Teeth by Zadie Smith (British)
• The Years by Annie Ernaux (French)
• Austerlitz by G. Sebald (German)
• Runaway and Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage by Alice Munro (Canadian)

A recent survey, conducted by Talker Research and commissioned by Thriftbooks, found that Americans are consuming over 50 percent more internationally produced TV shows and books than they were five years ago. This finding resonated across generational and gender lines. Here are some of our more enlightening discoveries.

We may be ignorant to the diversity of our tastes.

Although the poll revealed that 48 percent of TV shows and 46 percent of the books consumed are internationally sourced, it also indicated that we are frequently unaware of this fact. A majority of Americans were surprised to learn that some of their favorite shows, movies and books originated in other countries. This list included:

• The Office (Originally a British show)
• The Parent Trap (Based on a German children's novel)
• Jane the Virgin (Adapted from a Venezuelan telenovela, Juana la Virgen)
• House of Cards (Based on a UK series)
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (Adapted from a Japanese TV series, Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger)
• All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (Translated from German )
• Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel (Translated from Spanish)

And we're open to more international reading.

Even if we don't always know when we see it, Americans are generally appreciative of international content. A third of respondents even reported that their favorite book of all time is a non-American title. On this point, younger generations proved to be the most enthusiastic with Gen Z (42%) and millennials (40%) being more likely to favorite international content compared to Gen X (28%) and baby boomers (21%).

On the other hand, when it came to looking for new content to consume, older generations like baby boomers (73%) and Gen X (61%) indicated more interest than Gen Z (49%) and millennials (48%).

Age aside, more than four in ten (41%) of those responding believe that international content is higher in quality than American-made content. They reported that they found international titles to be more interesting (48%), creative (43%), and original (38%). One quarter of Americans even said that they found international content to be more representative of real life.

"It's exciting to see how consumers are embracing international content," said Barbara Hagen, vice president of marketing at ThriftBooks. "According to the research, people who read international books said doing so has given them more perspective and awareness about other cultures (50%) and the desire to travel more (29%)."

The manga genre has shown particular growth in recent years.

Manga is a style of Japanese comic books and graphic novels that has skyrocketed in popularity here in the U.S. during the last several years. Of the 2,000 readers polled, our survey asked 500 manga readers about their reading habits and reasons for enjoying the genre. On average, responding readers picked up their first manga at age 17, with the youngest generation, Gen Z, as the earliest adopters, discovering the genre at the average age of 13. More than half of the manga readers polled (54%) said that their favorite book is a manga with men at 56 percent and women at 53 percent. Some of those favorites included:

• Attack on Titan by Hajime Isayama—A dark fantasy set in a world where humanity lives inside cities surrounded by enormous walls that protect them from gigantic man-eating humanoids called Titans.
• Berserk by Kentaro Miura—Set in a medieval Europe-inspired world, this story centers on the characters of Guts, a rogue swordsman, and Griffith, the leader of a band of mercenaries.
• Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba—The story follows a genius high school student who discovers a mysterious notebook, which grants the user the supernatural ability to kill anyone whose name is written in its pages.
• Demon Slayer by Koyoharu Gotouge—Tanjiro Kamado is a teenager who strives to become a Demon Slayer after his family was slaughtered and his younger sister, Nezuko, was turned into a demon.
• Dragon Ball Z by Akira Toriyama—The adventures of a young boy as he trains in martial arts and embarks on a quest in search of seven magical orbs which summon a wish-granting dragon when gathered.
• Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto—Naruto Uzumaki is a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village.
• One Piece by Eiichiro Oda—Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, explore the Grand Line in search of the mythical treasure known as the "One Piece" in order to become the next King of the Pirates.
• Jujutsu Kaisen by Gege Akutami—High school student Yuji Itadori joins a secret organization of Jujutsu Sorcerers to eliminate a powerful Curse named Ryomen Sukuna, of whom Yuji becomes the host.
• Orange by Ichigo Takano—On the day that Naho begins 11th grade, she receives a letter from herself ten years in the future. At first, she writes it off as a prank, but then the letter's predictions come true one by one.
• The Ghost in the Shell by Masamune Shirow—Deep into the twenty-first century, the line between man and machine has been inexorably blurred as humans rely.
• My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi —Set in a world where superpowers (Quirks) have become commonplace, the story follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy born without a Quirk who still dreams of becoming a superhero.

And there's room for even more growth.

Amongst respondents who don't already read manga, 53 percent reported that they're open to reading it in the future because it looks interesting (27%), its rising popularity (23%), and a growing interest in Eastern culture (22%).

Here are some of the hot, new manga titles we have in stock:

• Stitches by Hirokatsu Kihara and Junji Ito—A collection of fright-filled ghost stories
• Gachiakuta by Kei Urana—This new action manga series centers on a young boy who's been framed for murder and cast into an abyss.
• Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You by Jinushi—A burned-out office worker and a mischievous cashier with a dual personality form an unexpected bond in this sweet-and-sour comedy.
• My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 by Mashiro—After college student Akane Kinoshita gets dumped by her boyfriend, she drowns her sorrows in an MMO game.
• Fool Night by Kasumi Yasuda—In a distant future where the sun no longer shines, Toshiro Kamiya gives up his body to a sinister floral metamorphosis for a payday.
• Gokurakugai by Yuto Sano—For the right price, these professional troubleshooters can solve any problem, whether they're taking out the scum of the earth or destroying human-eating monsters
• The Fable Omnibus by Katsuhisa Minami—One hitman is feared above all in Japan: the killing machine known as "The Fable." But is he really a tough guy or more of a...weirdo?
• Medalist by Tsurumaikada—An award-winning manga about one girl's journey to the Olympic figure skating spotlight.
• I See Your Face Turned Away by Rumi Ichinohe—An award-winning new manga series about four teenagers and their four stories of unrequited love.
• Steel of the Celestial Shadows by Daruma Matsuura—A down-and-out samurai struggles through his hardscrabble life in early 19th-century Japan.
• Learn Japanese with Manga Volume One—Learn to read, write, and speak everyday Japanese with manga stories!

"The rise of manga is a great example of how international content and books have positively impacted consumers. And it's also great to see how open non-manga readers are to exploring the genre," said Hagen. "If you haven't recently, we encourage readers to explore different perspectives by picking up a book from a foreign author. Manga in particular could open your eyes to a whole new world and level of enjoyment when reading."

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Survey methodology:
Talker Research surveyed 1,500 Americans who read on a regular basis, and 500 who read Manga regularly; the survey was commissioned by ThriftBooks and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between July 1 and July 8, 2024.

Read more by Ashly Moore Sheldon