Annie on My Mind (Book Review)

    I'm not sure how I came across a recommendation to read this book, but "Annie on My Mind" by Nancy Garden was a beautiful and minorly startling read. Startling only because it was written so openly about gay teen girls back in 1982! It both felt of it's time and equally prescient 40 years later. But the short take: do you like lesbian teen stories that are beautiful (you probably do and that's why you read my blog)? If so, this is just a really sweet and well written teen novel from the 80s about being gay and in love.

    The story focuses on Liza, who attends an ailing private school in a nice part of New York City and her chance encounter at a museum with Annie, who attends a public school in a not-so-nice part of 1980s New York City. They click instantly, and then, they really click and they keep clicking, and they keep getting closer, and...

My Cute Little Kitten volume 1 (manga Review)

    Have you read Milk Morinaga's other works? Do you like Milk Morinaga's other works? I think those are probably pretty crucial questions to answer before deciding to read "My Cute Little Kitten" volume 1.

    For those uninitiated, Milk Morinaga writes yuri manga that features explicit dating and romance between high-school or adult female characters. The fact that Morinaga-san makes these relationships explicit and clear is a huge plus compared to a lot of the wishy-washy yuri out there. And some of Morinaga-san's work is generally quite good ("Girl Friends," some of the stories in "Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink," and my favorite: "Secret of the Princess"). But some of her series are a bit lack-luster compared to others and frankly, "My Cute Little Kitten" doesn't start super strong.

A Condition Called Love - Volumes 1 and 2 (Manga Review)

    A few more volumes are going to be needed to really assess "A Condition Called Love." So far, I've read the first two volumes. Basically, it's a high-school romance between a guy who loves hard and a girl who isn't sure she's interested in love. They decide to have a trial relationship, and by volume 2, she's interested in continuing to see where it goes. The art is decent. Just a straightforward Shoujo series on the surface.

    However, I am either intrigued or concerned about how they depict the boy and his actions. In some ways he could be seen as a very loving boyfriend who dotes on her. But it comes off as obsessive and a bit creepy to me. That could be good if it decides to really explore his past, maybe there's trauma there, maybe he's overcompensating, or maybe this series becomes dark like "Kare Kano." That would be really cool to see it dig in.

Doughnuts under a Crescent Moon volume 4 (Manga Review)

10/9/23 - There was a comment below that had me really thinking, and I responded to it. But I haven't been able to let it go, because while I think the commenter raises some good and very true issues with my perspective, I also think that the quality of my own writing didn't express what I was trying to get across. So with that, I've edited and added to this review to better represent what I meant. So that the edits don't undermine the original commenter, I have left anything I'm removing in the post but with strikethroughs. Anything I'm adding from the original are now colored blue so you can all see what was changed. I appreciate whenever a comment has me doing so much introspection. In this case, it was a mix of unpacking my own bias mixed with realizing that a fast-take no-edit post probably didn't do my underlying issue with the series/volume any help. On to the edited review:

    Whelp, "Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon" volume 4 (the final volume) manages to take a very mediocre manga and absolutely destroy it with a major "fuck you" conclude it with an unexpected and poorly set-up character-based explanation at the very end. 

    Basically, I spent all but last page or so of this 4 volume series thinking/hoping/expecting that it was about two adult women's burgeoning understanding of themselves and desire to be in a relationship with each other. I'm always hoping for that because there either isn't much romance Josei being written or just isn't that much being translated (or a combination). So I'm pretty desperate for adult lesbian representation that isn't too trashy (written by men?) or too emotionally dark. Sometimes I just want that nice "cup of evening hot chocolate" type lesbian romance (I don't even know if that metaphor makes sense, lol). And while Doughnuts (my American brain cannot adjust to it being spelled that way - come on, it's DONUTS! amiright!?!?! lol) does deliver on the LGBTQ representation in its own way, it didn't deliver on its final reveal in a literarily-solid way (now I'm just making up words, so sue me!). If you don't want spoilers, don't read the rest of this post. 

The Girl that Can't Get a Girlfriend (Manga Review)

    "The Girl that Can't Get a Girlfriend" by Mieri Hiranishi is an auto-biographical LGBTQ manga. In keeping with my general philosophy towards auto-biographical works, I will not be commenting on the story or characters themselves because those are real people and real events, so it's not for me to dissect them. Also, out of respect for the author, this is their work and their life, and they should be proud to have it out there for the world to see. That's a very brave thing.

    All that being said, I wanted to love "The Girl that Can't Get a Girlfriend" but I didn't. It was okay, just okay. I think it suffers in comparison to some extraordinary works, particularly "My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness" which is extraordinary on so many levels, that most things will pale in comparison. But I also think about graphic novels like "Fun Home" or "It's Lonely at the Centre of the Earth" or even "Hyperbole and a Half" and unfortunately "The Girl..." just doesn't compete.

Adachi and Shimamura Volume 4 (Manga Review)

    I know I'm going to take flak for this, but I just continue to not really like "Adachi and Shimamura" and even after re-reading Volume 4 several times, it's just not doing anything for me. Of course, your tastes might be different, what connects with you will be different than what connects with me, and I recognize that the light novels are much beloved. So take my thoughts with a grain of salt if you're a fan of the light novels.

    Volume 4 centers around Adachi becoming jealous/insecure that Shimamura is talking to other students in their new class, Shimamura reconnecting with a slightly strange old friend, and Adachi begging her way into a sleepover at Shimamura's house. 

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey (Book Review)

    I'm not a huge fan of contemporary fiction. That's not exactly true. I just don't read much of it because I'm not interested in much of it. But there is a lot of wonderful contemporary fiction out there and I'm very pleased to say that "The Echo Wife" by Sarah Gailey is one of those.

    I was in a bookstore, just randomly browsing, not intending to buy anything, but a clerk had written a brief description of this book and it was enough to make me want to buy it. This won't be a review exactly, but perhaps my attempt to do for you what that clerk's write-up did for me.

    "The Echo Wife" could be summed up as a modern gothic near-future (futurist?) feminist novel. It centers around a woman, her ex-husband, the other woman, and human cloning. Neither woman is exactly likeable, but both are easy to root for despite their flaws. This is feminism in the best sense in that we have empowered women, struggling against a variety of patriarchal forces, but they aren't perfect people. They are flawed and unique and messy (very!) and the fact that we empathize so deeply with both of them while also recognizing their flaws is an evidence of the author's mastery of craft. 

    The narrative and prose are tightly constructed and well executed. If I had any qualms, it's that I'm still digesting the very very very ending. After a first reading, it feels just slightly less thought through than the rest of the book which is so perfectly built that I'm not sure the ending works. However, it may also be an ending that grows on me over time. Or, perhaps, it is intentionally not as tight as the rest for one of two possible reasons: 1) it's showing the main character's increasing release from her past trauma in that she is less studious and purposeful, and/or 2) that we are meant to question how things might unravel after the novel. It's that last part that has me unsettled. I guess time and re-readings will tell.

    Basically, if you like gothic and victorian proto-feminist works but want a modern (slightly futurist) setting with less angelic characters who are flawed but engaging that is well written, "The Echo Wife" is sure to please. I highly recommend it.

    

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Please legitimately purchase or borrow manga and anime. Never read scanlations or watch fansubs. Those rob the creators of the income they need to survive and reduce the chance of manga and anime being legitimately released in English.

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