Yen Press sent me a couple of books yesterday and I’ve just finished reading them. Here’s what I thought…
‘Alice on Deadlines’ (Part Two) – Shiro Ihara.
I have no longer have any trouble with starting to read Manga at the back, and finishing at the front, but there’s still a lot of stuff that I don’t get. For example, why are at least 95% of all the female characters spectacularly well endowed in one certain area? What’s that really all about? Another thing I haven’t quite got my head round yet is some of the content, I’m sure a lot of people would say different but opening this instalment with our heroes chasing after a ghost that steals women’s underwear left me feeling bemused more than anything else… To be fair though, things do pick up over the rest of the book, with the introduction of a powerful new Shibito and Shinigami (collector of souls that don’t want to leave this plane), but I almost wasn’t around to see it. And is there a love story quietly developing in the background? Maybe…
There’s a lot of action, and ‘Benny Hill like’ naughtiness, going on here and it is a fairly entertaining read. However, I found that there’s almost too much going on for such a slim book and it can be a little confusing if you don’t keep your eye on things. Some of the character illustrations could be a bit better defined as well as it is sometimes difficult to work out who’s who…
Not a bad read but hard going. I reckon I’ll give this one more book to see if things pick up.
Six out of Ten
‘With the Light’ (Part Two) – Keiko Tobe
From the ridiculous to the (almost) sublime… Last year I read Part One of this series, about the trials a mother must face bringing her autistic son, and absolutely loved it. (Have a read of my review over Here)
Time has passed and some battles have been fought and won but there are more problems that Sachiko and her son Hikaru must face. The arrival of a new daughter is a time for celebration but only serves to highlight Hikaru’s problems. Changes at school must also be faced and overcome, I was really gripped not only by what happened (favourite teacher leaving school and Hikaru getting lost amongst other things) but also by Sachiko’s resilience as well as the little things Hikaru said and did which marked his ability and development.
Both books have been amazing reads and this is one series that I will always be keeping an eye open for. If you’re after some Manga that is intelligent and well written then you could do a lot worse than follow this one as well. The only, slight, issue I had with this latest instalment was that it sometimes crossed the line from realism into idealism. Are people really as understanding and tolerant as Tobe made out? It would be nice if they were…
This didn’t stop me thoroughly enjoying ‘With the Light’ and rooting for Sachiko and Hikaru the whole way. Roll on part three, I really want to see where this one goes…
Nine out of Ten
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