Manga Monday: Clinging to the dreams of childhood while faced with adult problems

A group of 20-somethings come together to find themselves in Inio Asano's Solanin.

Solanin is a book that will resonate with a lot of people. This group of friends who met at their university's 'Pop Music Club' has graduated college and are now, supposedly, adults. Time for jobs, families, and perhaps putting aside the childhood dreams.

Meiko and Tandea aren't satisfied with this. Meiko looks around the office in which she works, and contemplates the other adults around her. Deciding that a 'who cares?' life isn't what she's destined for, and since this job has let her squirrel away enough funds to get them by for a few months, she walks out of the job that pays the bills but isn't what she loves. Taneda, having worked part-time as an illustrator but never offered a full-time position, decides to devote his time to the music that brought them all together in college.

But following one's dreams is harder than it looks, and it takes a tragedy to give them the final push to get their music out there.

There's a narrow window in which Solanin will really resonate with the reader. If the reader is too young, and still too idealistic, they won't really understand how hard it is to hold onto one's dreams when things like a mortgage and medical bills need to be paid. Too old, and the reader becomes jaded and simply wants to shake the characters by the shoulders and tell them to stop complaining. But if the reader is in the same place in their lives as Meiko and the rest, this story might be the kick in the pants he needs to follow his dreams, wherever they may lead.

Highs: The art takes a bit of getting used to, but Asano does a wonderful job, especially with the backgrounds

Lows: There's a bit of the 'First World Problems' issue that pervades the story

Verdict: For the target audience of this book, it's a punch-in-the-gut look at the realities of adulthood

Further Reading: Bunny Drop

Manga Monday: Can first love be anything but bittersweet?

Year 2 at Tokyo Space School begins, and Mr. Lion reflects on his first love, in Twin Spica Volume 5.

Note:  Twin Spica Volume 5 is, of course, the sequel to Twin Spica Volume 4. The review for Twin Spica Volume 1 is here, and the review of Twin Spica Volume 4 is here. Otherwise, read on!

Manga Monday: They call it the Vomit Comet for a reason

Marika begins to break away from her family, and Asumi works to overcome her physical limitations in Twin Spica Volume 4.

Note:  Twin Spica Volume 4 is, of course, the sequel to Twin Spica Volume 3. The review for Twin Spica Volume 1 is here, and the review of Twin Spica Volume 3 is here. Otherwise, read on!

Manga Monday: Sometimes a day trip doesn't work out quite as planned

Asumi has a crisis of confidence, but her friends rally to pull her through in Twin Spica Volume 3.

Note:  Twin Spica Volume 3 is, of course, the sequel to Twin Spica Volume 2.  The review for Twin Spica Volume 1 is here, and the review of Twin Spica Volume 2 is here.  Otherwise, read on!

Manga Monday: Our future astronauts settle in at school

Asumi learns that the entrance exams to space school are just the beginning of the trials that she will face in Twin Spica Volume 2.

Note:  Twin Spica Volume 2 is, of course, the sequel to Twin Spica Volume 1.  The review for Twin Spica Volume 1 is here.  Otherwise, read on!

Manga Monday: A young lady's dreams of touching the stars begins to come true

In the 1950s and 1960s, the world watched as the USA and USSR raced to reach the moon.  The USSR had some early accomplishments, launching Sputnik 1 in 1957 and Vostok 1 with Yuri Gagarin in 1961.  In 1969, Apollo 11 launched and Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first men to walk on the moon.


Since then, space exploration has taken a much more cooperative approach.  The ISS is a joint project between five space agencies, and astronauts from 15 different countries have inhabited it in its 14 years.

In Twin Spica Volume 1, the history of space exploration has played out a little differently.  Here, in 2010, Japan's JAXA space agency launched its first all-Japanese shuttle into space.  But 72 seconds after takeoff, critical systems failed and the shuttle crashed back to Earth.  Beyond dealing a near-fatal blow to Japan's nascent space program, debris from the shuttle landed in a small tow, killing or injuring many civilians.


14 years later, Asumi Kamogawa is taking her first steps towards space herself. The astronaut program at Tokyo's space school is finally accepting new applicants, and Asumi has secretly applied.  It's only herself and her father at home, and she doesn't want to worry him with tuition or boarding fees, since he works double shifts as a construction worker to make ends meet as it is.  But in the tradition of good fathers everywhere, he might have an idea or tow as to how to help his little girl achieve her dreams.


Upon arrival at the space school, entrance testing continues.  Her first day at school, she's locked into a room with two other girls and assigned a seemingly impossible task to accomplish over the next three days.  While one roommate, Kei Oumi, is outgoing and nice enough, the other, Marika Ukita, is a quiet, sullen girl who doesn't seem to speak but to criticize.  But learning to work together in a closed environment is just another lesson to be learned in the course of becoming an astronaut, and Asumi will do her best at this, too. 



Asumi has another person in her corner on her way to the stars.  At age 6, her mother died after being in a coma since The Lion's failed launch.  While dealing with the death of the mother she never really knew, she meets a spirit who calls himself Mr. Lion.  With astronaut pants and the head of the Lion mission's mascot, he keeps Asumi company through her rather lonely childhood.


Like many Vertical titles, Twin Spica is a slower paced, contemplative story.  Current-day chapters are followed by chapters that give us a look into our characters' backstories.  Covering topics ranging from lost loves to a parent's devotion to his child, to following one's dream no matter where it takes one, Twin Spica is a touching story that nearly anyone can relate to.



Highs:  Fathers often aren't portrayed well in the media, but Asumi's dad shows what it means to work every day for your children.



Lows:  Hopefully we'll find out more of how Asumi grew up and got to this point.



Verdict:  Perhaps not to the typical shonen manga reader's taste, Twin Spica shows a lot of heart and more real emotion than many manga.



Further Reading:  The Color of Water, Planetes

An Indian orphan is haunted by his past in a most unusual way

The wait for books to be translated and released in a market other than the one in which it originated can be extremely frustrating.  Beyond the time it takes the translator to actually do the work of translating and regionalizing the material, there's extra layers of copyright and quality control that has to be attended to as well.  Anyone who has waited for a beloved anime or manga to make it to their own country, even after the rights have been picked up, knows this pain all too well,  But occasionally, the anticipation makes the results all the more enjoyable.  Such is the case with Carlos Ruiz Zafon's books, including his newest American release, The Midnight Palace.

This is more of a Stephen King style horror novel than the previously released The Prince of Mists. While there is still some introspection, as well as a supernatural villain, the majority of the book feels like a traditional supernatural thriller instead of the 'magical realism' that his adult books are so well known for.  

Our main character Ben is separated from his twin sister at birth and left at an orphanage in Calcutta.  His parents were killed by a man filled with almost unspeakable evil, and he wants to finish the job by killing the children as well.  This man's name is Jawahal, and after a brief meeting with the head of the orphanage, he promises to be back.

Ben must have been left at the best orphanage in Calcutta, because when we meet him again 16 years later, he's a fairly well-educated young man about to venture into adulthood.  He's made a group of friends and comrades-in-arms that go by The Chowbar Society, in the fashion of children's secret societies everywhere.  The members are fairly typical, from a bookish boy who wants to become a doctor (our narrator) to the spunky girl who wants to become a famous actress.  Ben is the adventurous type, but still prone to quiet spells, and everyone turns to him automatically as the leader of the group.

The story picks up as the members of the Chowbar Society are starting to age out of the orphanage.  Ian leaves first, on a ticket to medical school purchased by his friends.  That night, an old woman with a 16 year old girl come to talk to the headmaster, and history catches up with everyone.  We quickly learn the tale of Ben's origins, Seere's life growing up as something of a gypsy, and the origin of the man known as Jawahal.  But nothing in the ancient city of Calcutta is ever exactly how it seems

There is much to discover about Ben's father, his unfinished dream house, his distinguished career as a modern architect, and the mysterious Jawahal who brought it all down in a sea of flames.

To say anything more about the plot would ruin the joy of discovering it, so let's leave it there.

The actual prose of thee book is quite lovely.  This is one of Ruiz Zafon's earlier works, long before the amazing The Shadow of the Wind or The Angel's Game, so it's not quite as polished as those.  But even this early on, Ruiz Zafon knows how to pace a story properly and how to hide bits of information from the reader to reveal later without the reader feeling cheated.  While classified as Young Adult, The Midnight Palace will certainly please readers of all ages with its lovely characters and supernatural horror plot.

Highs:  Ruiz Zafon captures perfectly the magical, sad night at the end of youth when you realize you'll never see some of your best childhood friends again

Lows:  Several members of The Chowbar Society are very generic and not fleshed out well at all, probably due to length constraints

Verdict:  A great, scary read perfect for either the beach or a cozy chair

Further Reading:  The Prince of Mists, The Painted Boy

Manga Monday: An honest look at how girls grow up

Boy coming-of-age stories are a dime a dozen. Half the shonen series out there are about 8-14 year old boys striking out on their own and finding their way, often with a pet dog (or dragon, or Pikachu) as their companion. Girl coming-of-age stories, however are a little harder to find. This is especially true in the manga world. They're usually less action-packed than the boys', and more slow-paced and reflective. When one does come out, however, it's a treat to read, and that's what is found in The Color of Earth by Kim Dong Hwa.

The setting is rural Korea, but the era is a little harder to pin down. A steam engine train is seen near the end of the story, and it isn't seen as a novel technology. There doesn't seem to be electricity or running water, but I'm not sure when that level of infrastructure reached all areas of Korea.

We meet Ehwa at 7 years old. She lives with her mother, a widow who runs a tavern near a small town. Life is hard for a single woman trying to raise a girl, but she is proud of taking care of things by herself. We never really learn much about Ehwa's father, but we assume he died when Ehwa was very young.

Though Ehwa often stays close to her mother during the say, she also does go off either by herself or with other girls from town. It seems like the town kids aren't raised quite as well as Ehwa though, and she gets into a bit of mischeif above her age with them. It also might be because she's an only child, but she is a lot more innocent than the other children we meet. As she grows up, of course, she starts to notice boys, though in a fairly age-appropriate way.

Mirroring this blossoming of Ehwa, a traveling salesman stops by the tavern and seeks a place to stay for the night. As the years pass, the salesman and artist comes by on his travels, and he and Ehwa's mother become closer.

This first book of “The Story of Life on the Golden Fields” trilogy spans several years, from the time Ehwa is a young girl, to when she is becoming a young woman. Girls in more rural settings do tend to seek out marriage earlier, but of course she is still very close to her mother and is in no rush to leave her.

This book is certainly a slow, contemplative journey. Ehwa grows up, goes through the awkward first interactions with boys, and learns that it's hard to control who you love. It's nice to see growing up handled in such an honest way, and it would do girls everywhere a service if there were more authors like Kim Dong Hwa writing today.

Highs: Gorgeous backgrounds with honest storytelling

Lows: Pacing is at times perhaps too slow for the usual manga reader

Verdict: Not to be missed

Further Reading: Moribito, The House of Many Ways