Apple Black vol 1 by Odunze Oguguo

Growing up, Sano received private instruction from powerful sorcerers and was trained to become the world's savior, the Trinity. Against their better judgment, Sano's guardians have decided to let him complete his training with other magic users, all who knows of the Trinity and want to test Sano's skills. If his classmates and teachers weren't enough, evil forces that have threatened their world for centuries have also begun to infiltrate the Academy in hopes of disrupting the society and derailing the savior. While not in detention or constantly having to prove himself, Sano must also escape attempts on his life and navigate a tricky political landscape, and keep his grades up to stay at the Academy.

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There is a LOT of world-building in this volume, so it can come on kind of strong and dense. I stopped at about halfway through the book to go back to the beginning and read some of the initial set-up, and it made a lot more sense the second time around. Once I got fully into the world and the really intricate world, I started to enjoy the main characters and antagonists that have decided to make Sano's life harder. There are whiffs of other shōnen manga stories in here, especially My Hero Academia with the antics of school children, but there's definitely a lot of action and comedy that pulls from influences like Naruto and Dragonball. 

Oguguo's illustrations are so cleverly done and take full advantage of a life-long passion for manga. It's obvious that characters were carefully designed, and each one is distinct and easily recognizable. There are tons of little details that happen in the background or in smaller panels that end up becoming volume-long punch-lines, so readers definitely have incentive to pay close attention to every line.  ​

There are a few instances of characters smoking, some implied nudity, and a bit of fantasy violence. Saturday AM rates this book best for readers 13 and older.

Sara's Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Grades 7-12

Publisher: Saturday AM
Publication Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 9780760376843 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Magic, Action Adventure, School Life, Friendship, ​Saturday AM