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by Urasawa Naoki

5 Stars

This crime, psychological, mystery manga is a very deep and twisted story that allows you to ask yourself philosophical questions you wouldn’t ever before. The Japanese manga Monster, made by Urasawa Naoki, was made for the sole purpose to make you question life and death and the value of a human being, as during the creation of this manga Urasawa was questioning this as well. 

The manga is about a young and brilliant doctor named Tenma who makes a moral decision as a doctor that affects the rest of his life. As said before, through the perspective of Dr. Tenma we see how he tackles certain moral obstacles and philosophical questions like; are all humans equal? What makes someone truly evil? And how one simple decision can change a man’s whole outlook on life. 

This manga does an excellent job of building up characters, and as a reader you feel like you are living their lives because of how invested you truly become. Every character is portrayed as so human and relatable that any one of the characters in the manga could be your favorite, it just depends on your preference. 

What I feel like the manga excels in is how the protagonist and antagonist interact with one another and how they are so similar yet so opposites. Each time Tenma and the antagonist (can’t say the name because of spoilers) interact it is always a big turning point in the story. Also, the way both of their moralities are opposites is brilliant, Tenma believes all lives are equal always while the antagonist believes otherwise. I believe a quote from the book describes it best “but, wouldn’t you say at death is when all human lives are equal?”

Ibrahim S.

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by Nagata Kabi

3.5 Stars

My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness is a manga that follows the life of Kabi/Nagata, yes this is a memoir, and her experience with loneliness and mental health. While the book may seem like it’s about lesbianism, lesbophobia, dealing with compulsory heterosexuality and other lesbian-related issues but lesbianism is barely even mentioned in this book! This book more so focuses on the author’s struggle with her parents and her mental health, and for this, I offer you a list of trigger warnings that I found especially prevalent. Disclaimer beforehand: this may not be a full list so please do your own research if you are aware of your triggers. Without further ado: disordered eating (anorexia and binge eating), depression (extreme low-functioning), self-harm (cutting and hair pulling), verbal abuse and shame (mostly from parents), and mentions of sex. I’m sure there are more, don’t be fooled by the playful cover — this is a heavy book, but those were the ones that stuck out to me. Because of those, I would recommend this book for 16+ year olds, but it really just depends on your maturity and triggers!

Before I end this review, I would like to mention the things I liked: I related to almost everything Nagata/Kabi wrote (ED, depression, being a lesbian, self-harm, wanting to please parents, etc.), the writing, though short, was wonderful. The drawings were cute, and it was a fast-paced book.

In conclusion, read this if you can handle all the triggers and if you can’t, that’s completely fine- read what you’re comfortable with.

Jazleen H.

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by Naoshi Arakawa

5 Stars

Your Lie in April 1: Amazon.ca: Arakawa, Naoshi: Books

Your Lie in April, otherwise known as Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, is a heart-touching, Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoshi Arakawa. The series was published in 2011 and continued until 2015.  

The tale begins with Kousei Arima, once an astounding pianist until his cruel instructor, who is also his mother, passes away. This causes him to have a mental breakdown during his recital, with flashbacks of his mother’s abuse and death. He claims that he can no longer “hear the piano” as the overwhelming emotions drown him. Driven by his pain to refrain from playing, he presumes to living in his own monotonous colourless world. Living this bland life, he is astonished when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a free-spirited violinist. Now the question remains whether she can bring Arima back to music and, more importantly, back to life. 

This manga truly is worth reading as it is not just the practical, beautiful, yet tragic, love story. The graphics perfectly harmonize with the text as it depicts a number of themes such as love, friendship, growth, courage, and fulfillment. The dynamic artistry is well-suited for those who admire visuals and desire for their text to really come alive. “I swing between hope and despair at your slightest gesture, and my heart starts to play a melody. What do they call this feeling- I’m sure this is what they call love.”, (Arakawa, pg. 108) quoted from the protagonist, Kousei Arima. While reading this book, I was mesmerized by the wording the author used and felt as if I were the main character himself. For example, in that last quote, the language the author used to describe the feeling of the protagonist’s first love does its job in enticingly warming the hearts of many readers. Secondly, there are a number of hidden messages that emphasize the true meaning of the entire narrative, from true love and learning to let go to finding self-identity. Ultimately, it encourages people, especially teens reaching adulthood, to find their passion and be able to appreciate it, no matter what lies ahead. “We are all afraid you know.. to get up on stage. Maybe you will mess up. Maybe they will reject you. Even so, you grit your teeth and get up on stage anyway.”, (Arakawa, pg. 170) wise words from the female protagonist, Kaori Miyazono.  

Jaelyn M.

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By Yusei Matsui 

5 Stars

Image result for assassination classroom manga cover

When I finished the Anime, I was low-spirited. So, I looked for a way to bring myself up again and reading the manga was my best option. It was quite boring at first, but only because I already knew the introduction. I noticed that it would only take me a minute at most to get lost in the book and that could mean, reading the manga is more preferable because you get to control the pace of the story or maybe I just love reading. I admired the pacing of the story, the story took it slow when it needed it to be, and rush the irrelevant moments.

I disliked the beginning of both the manga and anime because it’s almost like the first fifty pages were missing and you started reading in the middle of the book. Also, if this is your first time reading the manga or watching anime, be prepared for some bizarre concepts and characters because that’s what they’re filled with. A highlight of this book was the break pages. To visualize it for you, a character who played an important role in that chapter or was mysterious would be drawn on the top half of the page, and the bottom half would have point form notes about the character in question. I also liked the teaser paragraph at the end of the book so you could see what the next chapter of the book would be like. I dislike the length of the book though. It only takes me twenty minutes at most to finish one book, but that can’t be helped.  

Christian E.

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By Yūsei Matsui

Assassination Classroom is a slice of life/action manga. The story follows the idea that on modern day earth, 70% of the moon is mysteriously blown up by an unknown force or entity. Hours later the government would come to see the arrival of a mysterious, octopus-like creature. He would tell the world government that the moon event was his doing and in exactly one year from now, the earth will suffer the same fate. However, the creature, mysteriously enough, decides to provide a compromise to the government. In exchange for getting rid of the creature, he would be allowed to become a teacher at a school. Specifically, a teacher at Class 3-E, a class comprised of supposed “failures” of Kunugigaoka Junior High School. The government complies with his request, as they see it as the only way to be rid of the creature, and the rest of the year, this strange octopus-like creature will teach a class full of “failures.” But the class is also tasked with another job, kill the creature by the end of the year and if successful they will be rewarded a sum of 100 million USD. So the race is on to kill this creature by the end of the year, while it teaches them, and before it destroys the world.  

Despite the odd and dark premise of assassination classroom, it manages to be a fun and enjoyable read with many gags added in. A lot of the characters in the manga do feel somewhat real. As well, Koro Sensei, the creature in the manga, has a great balance of mentor, antagonist, and gag character.  My one critique for this manga is that its side cast is less than developed. But considering it is only the first volume, that is forgivable.  

-Tashkin A. 

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