Learn Database Management from Tiko the Fairy!

Evidently, some folks think that it takes a fairy to teach DBA topics, but who would have guessed that a fairy DBA book would be so popular? I was shocked to see that one of the bestselling database books on Amazon (ASR < 600) is a cartoon book called “The Manga Guide to Databases”:

Here is part of the synopsis, clearly an alternative to traditional books on database management:

"Want to learn about databases without the tedium? With its unique combination of Japanese-style comics and serious educational content, The Manga Guide to Databases is just the book for you.

Princess Ruruna is stressed out. With the king and queen away, she has to manage the Kingdom of Kod's humongous fruit-selling empire. Overseas departments, scads of inventory, conflicting prices, and so many customers! It's all such a confusing mess. But a mysterious book and a helpful fairy promise to solve her organizational problems—with the practical magic of databases.

Now you might think that this is some "for Dummies" overview of database management. Wrong!

"In The Manga Guide to Databases, Tico the fairy teaches the Princess how to simplify her data management. We follow along as they design a relational database, understand the entity-relationship model, perform basic database operations, and delve into more advanced topics.

As a fairy, Tico is uniquely qualified to teach SQL as well as advanced DBA topics such as concurrency management and replication:

Once the Princess is familiar with transactions and basic SQL statements, she can keep her data timely and accurate for the entire kingdom. Finally, Tico explains ways to make the database more efficient and secure, and they discuss methods for concurrency and replication.

Examples and exercises (with answer keys) help you learn, and an appendix of frequently used SQL statements gives the tools you need to create and maintain full-featured databases."

Yes, I know that there are already fairies who teach database management, but Tico looks like she has real promise as a "Fairy Good DBA" . . .

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