Haikyu!

 This is one of my favorite series I've read this year. 

Haikyu! is about these boys on a volleyball team in Japan. Hinata is short and had little volleyball experience, but can move really quickly and jump very high and is beyond willing to take whatever he can get. Kageyama is a brilliant setter who needs to work on his people skills. In middle school the faced each other and became rivals for life, but then suddenly they find themselves at the same school trying for the same volleyball team. They have to learn to work together and make the Kurosono team fly to nationals. But it isn't just them on the team. All of the boys have things to work on with skills and personality to bring to the court. With dedication, determination, and a willingness to never give up, they become a sensation amongst the other volleyball teams as they work their way to nationals. 

I've always loved volleyball and since I started reading manga, I've love that too. So this was amazing. It was well drawn, and well written. Each of the boys have great personalities (whether it is part of Kurosono or the many other teams). I think Haruichi Furudate did a great job in keeping everyone boy an individual with a separate personality (HEY HEY HEY!!!) and back story from the others which is no easy feat when there are so many characters going on and off the page. So good job. 

I also loved the character development of all the characters. AND EACH OF THEM DEVELOPED AS THE STORY WENT ALONG! Taking the title "King of the Court" and making it his own was pretty  much my favorite. It was refreshing to be so engaged in the story. 

The ending was a little weird with it being a few years in the future some times it got a little confusing trying to remember all of the individuals (there were a lot of them). However, it was fun to see everyone either having moved on to different careers or progressing in volleyball. And the fact that it never actually ends and that the volleyball games will keep going and that Hinata and Kageyama will always be rivals (on the same team or on different teams) was icing on the cake with plenty of cherries on top. 

It was fabulous. I can't wait for the anime to finally be completed in English (though obviously subs are good too). 

Please Take My Brother Away

Please Take My Brother Away was a hilarious manga that was turned into an anime as well as a life action K-Drama. 

A brother and sister live together after their parents sticky divorce and must survive each other. It is a short, fast, slice of life that is just too funny. 

I don't know much more to say other than it's hysterical and I finished it in a day. I really want to find the anime for it, but the K-Drama is on Netflix. 

If you're looking for a pickmeup story, this one is great. 

The Quintessential Quintuplets

The Quintessential Quintuplets is a manga about a guy who is insanely smart and is asked to tutor five sisters who are awful at anything academically. They are quintuplets and look so much alike that no one can tell them apart. They are all dramatically different from one another so if someone were to take the time to get to know them individually, they could figure out their quirks enough to tell them apart. Tutoring them, figuring them out, and trying to help them all graduate is a high task for anyone Uesugi has his work cut out for him.

Throughout the series there was a good bit of character development and I, as a curious reader, was able to figure out who was who and remember names by about volume 2 with their different hairstyles and personalities, but when they dressed alike, I was at a loss. "If you love them, you'll be able to tell them apart" was something repeated over and over again which seemed directed at the reader who was still probably having trouble alongside Uesugi, our main character. It was rather fun to pick out who was who and wanting to be right.

The plot was fun and the drama between the girls' father and Uesugi was driven. I even liked the side characters brought in, though there could have been more of them for the girls to like and be friends with other than our main character male. It was good. There was drive to finish it. I ended up finishing 3-4 volumes in one day (under gov mandated quarantine). I wanted to read more.

For the fact that it was a rom-com written by a guy, it was fairly cleanly drawn. No pantie shots or things like that. But there was a lot suggested. It defiantly was written by a guy because of the excessive amount of (covered) boob and "coming out of the shower wrapped in a towel" moments, but they weren't hung onto and grossly emphasized. It could have been far worse and comparatively to other manga, I was able to skim over them without much attention.

If you were to take out the last book, I'd have given this a 5 star rating, but I didn't like how it ended. I read it originally because my husband found it and said it was really good. I started, but then he finished it and really wanted to complain. So I finished it faster and found that I had the same problem. *SPOILERS-ish* I was not content with "who he picked" do to lack of deep character development and her lack of thorough drive to do anything after high school. She wanted to "be a bride." What kind of life goal is that? How is she honestly going to survive mentally if he were to be away on a business trip or some other nonsense when the kids are grown out of the house? She will "be his support" and that's it. She had no arch other than the "sporty girl who helps out everyone because she feels bad." She didn't grow. She didn't change. The other sisters changed, at least in part. There was some "eureka" moment for them all though for one of them it happened more before the story actually started. They all moved. They all progressed even a little except for the one he chose. Bad writing author. Bad writing. *End of Spoiler*

I did give it a 4 because the rest of the story and writing was pretty well done. There were some parts that were drawn out (like a thirteen chapter segment of the end of school festival, seen through the eyes of everyone; over and over and over again), but there was a good story there. It was just the ending that killed it for me. Way to ruin it, dude.

Saint Anything

Saint Anything is a good book and this audiobook has a good reader.

Sydney has always lived in her brother's shadow. When he started doing drugs and getting drunk, her parents had eyes only on Payton and the drama he was dragging their family through. When he ended up hitting a kid with his car after being out drinking, everything changed. And nothing changed. Payton went to jail and everything stayed Payton oriented. Sydney was, as she had been for years, invisible. The good kid. The kid with good grades and always kept her nose clean. Nothing to worry about, so easy to forget.

She then makes the decision to change high schools. She was known as "Payton's sister" never actually Sydney and desperately wanted to not have that stigma. There she finds friends that dissipate the monotony and feels seen for once. Sydney finds that she likes it.

I really liked Sydney and the individuality of all the other characters. It's actually pretty hard to find a good young adult novel with parents being prominent characters that aren't just "my parents" or "the evil bad guys who never want me to have fun" let alone parents who have personalities are individuals with their problems and equal strengths. It's even rarer to find parents in YA novels who actually get along and have each others back. This was nice to see that change where everyone, not just the teens, are real people who have wants and ambitions that go beyond the scope of the plot line of the novel.

The setting that they are in are the same for Sarah Dessen's other novels and characters make appearances from other stories. Seaside Pizzeria makes its appearance in Sarah Dessen novels as well. They are fun little easter eggs that she lays around.

I think one of my favorite things is when the cover and title finally make sense. Those little light bulbs that go one were very pleasing even if one of them took to the end for me to finally get. That was probably my fault. I also very much like it how her books, like this one, come full circle. Practically every loose end is tied and the metaphors she uses work well for the story she is creating. Finding the carousel and the sinkhole and even the thrift stores and valuable things that some people have either lost, given away, or forgotten runs powerfully through the story.

The predictability of the book was kind of sad. I knew what was going to happen long before it did, but it was still satisfying nonetheless.

I love Sarah Dessen's books for the characters and metaphors she uses. They are both always strong. The hopeless romantic in me loves the romance that takes place too. It makes it a fun, enjoyable read, that are often different and give voice to someone who is searching for their own.

Please enjoy.

School Rumble

School Rumble is a part slice of life, part romantic comedy with an engaging story. At the beginning of the series, there are lots of small incidents that happen and as the story goes long the plots of the different characters interweave more and more. It isn't some high flying adventure or much of a gut wrenching romance, but it is a story that is light hearted and funny. I feel it very much resembles what high school romances end up being: twitterpated hearts, communication problems, secret crushes, group get togethers, and more.

Harima, the glasses-guy on this cover, was a deliquitent, the big, scary man on campus. But then upon seeing/helping Tenma, our pig-tails girl here, he found himself in love with her and got himself back to school. But the big, aloof manly-man can't be seen in love with a ditz like Tenma. But he must confess and let his choice be heard! Right? Only everything always seems to go wrong. And Tenma is in love with another, more somber boy in class named Karasima. Yes, it's a love triangle, but not an annoying one.

I think the thing that I like most about this series is that it's light and charming. Harima is such a fun character who is very determined and willing to push through anything "for the woman I love." He gets himself into entertaining situations which often made me laugh. And although Tenma can be obnoxious at times you can shake your head at her misunderstandings and move forward. Hanai, Yakamo, Makoto, Akira, Lara (Lala), Karin, and most of the other characters that are Harima/Tenma/Karasima's classmates and friends are all funny. They each get ample amount of time "on screen" and are developed fully as characters. School is not just a "whirling romantic comedy" about our main two characters, but it's about the entire class. Everyone is important. Everyone has their own backgrounds. I was able to find something I like about (most) everyone. There were one or two characters that I didn't care for in that they were overly perverted, which I do dislike, but they were only a small part and I could quickly skim/skip over them. Everyone else was fantastic.

My favorite set of chapters was a war that they had over deciding what they would do for their school festival. They sneak into the school at night, armed with bebe guns and fight it out. I get with the school shootings and things, that some people night not care for it such situations, but it was very comical. Not in funny, "haha" way, but in the intense atmosphere that they all created. I found it entertaining both in the manga and anime. But that's my own opinion. Most of the rest of the series wasn't nearly as intense, again it was light.

The only thing that I disliked really was the ending. I wanted firm confessions of love and solid relationships, and while we got some there were some relationships that I felt didn't get the ending that I wanted to have. There was a build up to it, but then the characters let themselves fall a bit flat in proving that relationship and solidifying it. At parts it was kind of a let down.

Still, read it. Enjoy it. And down get bogged down by the shortness of the chapters.

Dengeki Daisy

A great series of amazing characters. 

Dengeki Daisy is about a high school girl named Teru who lives on her own since her brother passed away from cancer. However she is not alone. She has Daisy. Her brother gave her a phone before he died and said that when she needed someone to talk to, talk to Daisy. At first she didn't want to, but as the mental need arose she began emailing him. Daisy has been her biggest support through her hardest times and she's never seen him in person. 

Enter Kurosaki. The janitor and groundskeeper at Teru's high school. Through some forced persuasion, he gets Teru to help take care of the school grounds. They start becoming friends and their punky relationship is one of the funniest things. The way they act around each other is hysterical. 

This series has computer hackers, gun fights, kidnappings, cute and amazingly funny romances, and secrets from the dead. Each of the characters is unique and has their own stories, which is sometimes hard to get. Teru's brother is such a good guy and I wish he was around for all of them. 

I think my favorite part in the series was when Kurosaki was trying to leave and Teru, in her own mischievous way, gets him to come back. Teru is a much different character than most of the other typical "shoujo mangas" heroines. Instead of being clingy and having little stars or flowers every time something cute happens, she often does something to change the subject or bops him on the head or something obnoxious. And what's awesome is that Kurosaki does the same thing back to her. Their relationships if funny and different. And they still have very cute moments to make your inner-chick-flick watcher squee. 

The premous of the stories and their adventures are different too. They are more high stake and the fact that computer hacking is even a thing makes it engaging and, again, different. Throughout most of the series there was always something that kept me going. If life hadn't gotten crazy, I would have finished it a month ago. I will warn that, for me, volume 14 and bits of 15 were slow in my opinion. There was lots of meetings that didn't seem to really do anything. But if you push through you'll very much enjoy the end. 

I very much enjoyed the series. 

Chibi Vampire AKA: Karin

Chibi Vampire other wise known as Karin is the story of an un-vampire.

Karin is a strange young girl not only in the human world where she has the occasional nosebleed and is considered sickly at times; but also in the vampire world where she doesn't bite people to suck their blood, instead she bites people and gives blood. She can also walk around in sunlight, doesn't have the heightened senses a normal vampire does, and can't wipe people's memories as needed after biting someone. All in all, she is strange.

Things seem to run smoothly in the Marker household with Karin going to school and the rest of her family staying up all night, until a transfer student enters the class. Karin finds that her blood level increases quickly and nosebleeds happen more often when ever she is around Kenta Usui. In him she's found her bloods affinity, the type of emotion her body yearns to bite. When they bite a person normal vampires suck that emotion out. So if a person is super stressed and a vampire bit that person they would become stress free for a short period of time. This could be considered helpful and kind of a cool take on vampires. It is a 14 volume series so after she finds out how to cope with Usui, her grandma wakes up, and a new girl comes into town looking for the Markers and a specific vampire in their family.

I think it is a very well thought out and well done story. The overarching plot was interesting and cute, engaging and hysterical at times. I love the family dynamic throughout the series and the ending kind of had me angry. I really liked the epilogue episodes. They satisfied me enough to accept the decision that the writers made. The Marker family was full of fun, intersting characters with their own personality that rounded the family.

If you have enjoyed the anime before you read the manga, that's great. But know that the manga and anime are vastly different. The anime derails from the manga after only a few episodes. Sadly Winner St. Clair makes no appearance in the manga. This fact made me very sad. But the manga is really good and I do recommend it. An oldie but a goodie.

Orange

This manga was a sweet book that I constantly wanted to go back to. One that I would curl up with in bed.

This is a story of a group of friends who suddenly receive letters from themselves ten years in the future. They are told to save their new friend, Kakeru. These letters are accurate about the day to day things and tell Naho, our main character,  to do things that the older self has regrets of not doing. 

From stepping up to the plate in a softball game to confessing to Kakeru. She isn't the only one to receive letters,  so together with her friends they work to save Kakeru.

It is well drawn with lovable characters. Although there are six of them,  each character has his/her own temperament and quirks. I really like Sawa.

This book, though, is about coming together as friends to support and lift one another. Suicide is very prevalent throughout the story. The grief and depression associated with it is real. I think Ichigo Takano did a good job conveying that emotion, as well as the need to help but feel like you're not doing enough.

The day when all of the letters were revealed, I cried. That is one of the biggest recommendations I can give. Tears were shed. Read it!

Ouran High School Host Club

Ouran High School Host Club has been a favorite of mine for such a long time. This series is what got me into anime then to manga and actually led me to a bunch of my favorite music selections with Ouran as the AMV that I found on youtube-- with the help of my best friend, of course.

I loved the anime though it was far to short. Ouran is one of the most favored shoujo mangas out there and for good reason. It's fantastic. For those who love the anime or are in need of a cute romantic comedy, this is for you.

Haruhi Fujioka is a scholarship student at the renowned Ouran Academy. Ouran is a place where rich kids from rich families come to learn and socialize. The Host Club is where some of the richest and smartest kids come to entertain themselves because they "have too much time on their hands." The boys fawn over the girls and the girls love it. Haruhi stumbles into Music Room 3 where the Host Club meets and accidentally breaks a very expensive vase. In order to pay it back, Haruhi becomes the Hosts' "dog," running errands and whatnot, and quickly becomes a Host as well. What most don't know is that Haruhi is actually a girl. "How do you miss that?" Because she couldn't afford to buy the school uniform and got gum in her hair the night before--therefore cutting her hair herself and doing a horrendous job of it--she looked like a boy and everyone thought she was one. She didn't see the need to correct it, because a person is a person no matter their gender, and she rolled with it. The Host Club, of course, found out but let the girls who visit believe she was a boy so then Haruhi could pay back her debt.

The story goes on and, as any romantic comedy goes, some of the boys start falling in love with Haruhi. However because some of them are socially inept and others are idiots they don't realize it. Haruhi herself doesn't realize that she is falling in love with one of the boys. But they go on many adventures where they all grow, except for possibly two of them (maybe), and develop past themselves. I love the way they develop. They all grow in many ways, they all have their weaknesses, they all have their own personalities. It was a great feat, or so I think anyway, when I finally figured out which twin was which. I felt very happy with myself. They are so much fun.

I enjoyed the development with Tamaki's dad, as well as Kyoya's dad, and how they are portrayed here in the manga differently than in the anime. In the anime, Tamaki's dad is a doting father, who loves his son so much, whereas in the anime he seemed colder. Kyoya's dad isn't as lovey dovey as Tamaki's but he is very proud of Kyoya and all the work that Kyoya does do. He wouldn't actually slap Kyoya, because he's proud of him.

The artwork is really good and full of fun things. Beautiful artwork of places and cute moments. If you get iffy on the first few chapters, keep going. The artwork gets better and less rigid. It progresses  just like any writers, well, writing. They get better and by the second or third book, you won't be disappointed.

Ah, this story is amazing. Such fun and so lighthearted.

Part of the ending did remind me of Maid-Sama. Super rich boy who falls for a girl who is struggling to make ends meet. Parts of the stories were similar, maybe slightly cliched, but we're okay with it because the story is so much fun. I recommend both books, because they are great.

The anime is only about a forth of the manga series where you get the brief glimpse of the awesomeness that is Ouran High School Host Club. If you enjoy the anime, please read this one. If you cannot find a physical copy of the book there are manga reader apps, such as "My Shelf," to read it.

Read it. Enjoy it.

Hadi Girl

Hadi Girl is really cute. If you are looking for a short, cute story to maybe get you out of a funk, this is a good suggestion.

Hadi Girl is about a super shy girl who is easily embarrassed. She can't even watch two characters kiss on a movie without having to hide her face. One night a love angel and an egg pop into her room and she is given tasks to do and complete otherwise she will never find love. These tasks start out simple (hugging someone or looking at someone for 10 seconds), but then escalate from there (stepping into a boys bedroom, confessing her love). For most people it wouldn't be too difficult though some might be challenging, but for Kagura Sae, it is torture. However as she completes the challenges with one boy who ends up being her helper (though he is unaware of it) she actually starts falling for him and she starts doing the tasks because she wants to instead of being forced to.

Ahhh, cute! I really enjoy these little romantic comedies. This is a shorter manga (about 30 chapters/5 volumes) and so it was a quick pick me up from the heavier book I'm trying to read.

Kagura-san is a different character than is normally depicted. Most of the time anime girls are seen as ditzy or super brazen or simply kind or plain simple, but they are hardly seen as just shy, let alone brutally shy. This was different and goes to show that you can push through your weaknesses to get what you want. She was willing to face her fears and work through it.

I did find that it was harder to get my hands on. There was no physical copy anywhere here in the US that I could see (through my library anyway). But if you are interested you can find it on the app called "MyShelf." They have a great selection there.

P.S. A shout out to David for the suggestion.

A Certain Scientific Railgun

A Certain Scientific Railgun is a manga based in "Academy City," what once was Tokyo but has become the base for all espers--or those who have psychic abilities. The story follows Misaka, a middle school girl who is already one of the top seven espers in the city and is super powerful. She has friends who are in Judgement, an esper focused police force, but somehow she ends up being in the middle of everything.

Over the course of the first ten volumes (70 chapters) *there are actually twelve volumes but two of them aren't in english yet, and I can't read Japanese :/  ), there are three story arcs that for a while seem like they don't correlate, but then somehow kind of do. The first (in volumes 1-3) we get to know the characters and find out that there is something called a "Level Upper" which can make the abilities the espers have go up a "level" and become more powerful. However what the public doesn't know is that after a few days you fall into a coma that is really hard to come out of. When they find the culprit, a major battle ensues, and Misaka finds that there is more to Academy City than she thought.

Arc two (4-the first half of 7) turns dark. Like rather gory dark. So much so that if it didn't lighten up I was going to put it down. Volume 4 is probably the darkest and most gory, but then once the reader understands what is going on, they step back from the gory and  become more investigative and they find that scientists in Academy City are making clones of Misaka. The plan is for 20,000 of them. However, already about 10,000 of them have been killed already. What is going on!? Stay tuned to find out.

Arc three (7.5-10) corresponds with a citywide festival, every good anime/manga needs at least one right? But now that Misaka has the clone thing under control, they are disappearing and people are after her. So many people with unknown agendas and suddenly none of her friends remembers her. It's as if the whole city is out to get her.

It's because they pretty much are. Of course.

Overall, it was okay. There were moments of "yuri" and moments were girls had no clothes on (though nothing drawn that would be porographic, but might make some uncomfortable) and the battle scenes seemed to last novels. Volume 5 consisted of mostly two fights. They happened in different stages, but it was long. She fought. "Yay!" Can we move on now? Some of the fights were pretty cool, but others seemed to drag on. Easy in a manga to skip, I guess.

At the beginning it teased a romance between the only boy mentioned in the series and Misaka, but almost nothing happened. It almost seemed out of character for her to even be talking with the guy at all. But he is needed at the end so I guess he has to stay around because of what he does.

At the last climax, which I was really into and was really cool, we jumped between characters because Misaka is incapacitated... kind of... and the only reason they were able to get out of the mess was odd. While I got how things started to collapse for the bad guy, I felt like it was too easy. I mean the girl who finally took out the bad guy had a heck of a time doing it, but I saw how it was going to be done a volume before it actually happened. But then the bad guy died (is he actually dead?) and things calmed down real quick and it was weird. Maybe the next two volumes, that I can't read, work things out, but this just felt weird. It summed up, but it felt unfulfilling.

This one I probably wouldn't read again, but for those people who really like blowy-uppy books, you'd probably like it. I have a feeling this series was meant for boys. Fight/action scenes, obnoxiously big boobs, sometimes naked girls, a little girl loving girl thing... Yeah. Misaka was a very powerful main character who could take on the world... But there were a bunch of questions I feel were left unanswered or were given a quick <insert answer to major problem here> moment. Eh, yeah. Probably won't read it again or the remaining volumes.

Maid-Sama Part 2

I was able to find the last half of Kaicou Wa Maid-Sama! (The Class President is a Maid) and I loved it. Not only now is Misaki wanting to keep her working life and school life separate, but now there are deeper feelings between Usui and herself that she has to face as well. He also isn't all that he appears, beside the charming, annoying, good at everything, guy that he is.

Misaki is introduced to Usui's half-brother and glimpses of his background. Now there is trouble with social standing not only with Usui's past but the Student Counsel President of the other (very much annoying), rich school (I'm not even going to try to spell it, sorry).

I believe I read somewhere that Usui got an award for being the best love interest or something along those lines. I'd completely agree. He is charming, funny, again annoying, cheeky, and does his best to show Misaki that he loves all sides of her: maid, president, and simply herself.

This is a great, lighthearted read that I was fun to enjoy. It made me laugh a lot. I wouldn't mind buying the whole series.

Maid-Sama Part 1

Maid-Sama was a series of books I really enjoyed. However, I was upset to realize that my local library only had the first 12 volumes when there are actually 18 in print. I'm missing the last fourth of the story!! I would try and finish reading the series online, but my brain starts freaking out when I try to read online for too long. Paper is better than screens in my opinion, and it always will be.

Anyway, Maid-Sama is about Misaki Ayuzawa, the first female Student Body President of Seika High. The high school used to be an all boy's school, but has since changed to a co-ed campus. But with the populous still being 80% male, the girls are way outnumbered. Misaki has completely changed the campus with her "demonic personality" --so the boys think, though she does yell a lot-- and has straightened out the school to more of a conventional standard.

However, the demon president (not really a demon) of Seika high has a secret. Misaki works at a maid cafe to help her family out. She does not want anyone at the school to figure out that she works there. Her reputation would be ruined. But of course, Takumi Usui, an annoying  boy that won't go away during class hours, sees her taking out the trash and now won't leave her alone at work either. Constantly following her around to work, student council meetings, and around campus, Usui won't leave her alone and is constantly teasing her. But he has kept her secret that she has told no one.

This is a fantastic comedy with that ever present "I like you, but I can't bring myself to say it so I'm going to punch you instead" kind of feel. It's hysterical.

Oh, the drama of high school. I'm so glad I'm out of it, but it's fun to read about. Right? Don't tell me I'm the only one who feels this way! So  long as it's not my footsteps echoing down the halls, it's all fun and games.

I have really enjoyed the writing and artistic style portrayed here throughout the story. The teasing and competitive nature of the characters is funny and can bring a good laugh. There are a bunch of times when I laughed out loud and had my hubby look at me and asked me to explain. But there are so many moments that tie into one another that you would just have to read it, or watch the anime, to understand.

Such a good, lighthearted read that if you are down would be good to read.

The second half of the series can be seen here.