 School Library Journal review
Sara's Rating: 8/10 Suitability Level: Grades 7-12 Publisher: Square Enix Publication Date: October 1, 2024 ISBN: 9781646092932 (Paperback) Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Adaptations, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Square Enix
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 School Library Journal review
Sara's Rating: 8/10 Suitability Level: Grades 7-12 Publisher: Square Enix Publication Date: April 2, 2024 ISBN: 9781646092925 (Paperback) Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Adaptations, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Square Enix  School Library Journal review
Sara's Rating: 8/10 Suitability Level: Grades 7-12 Publisher: Square Enix Publication Date: April 2, 2024 ISBN: 9781646092918 (Paperback) Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Adaptations, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Square Enix 
Sasaki is a stressed out office worker who finds comfort in the smile and work-ethic of Miss Yamada, a cashier at his local supermarket. He often buys snacks and other items even if he doesn’t need them just so he can catch a glimpse of her radiant smile. One day, he exits the store and looks for a place to light up his other stress relief and finds there are no smoking sections. A store employee beckons him to join her behind the store in a smoking area reserved for employees. Here, he strikes up a friendship with Miss Tayama, who seems to know a lot about him and his shopping preferences. Sasaki is clueless to the fact that he may already know Tayama and she’s teasing him by leading a double life.
Akira is mostly an average high school student who, on an outing looking for an out of stock manga, gets caught up in a skirmish that changes his life. He boards a subway and finds himself in a confrontation between an actual extra-terrestrial and the Alien Management Organization, the group tasked with making sure aliens follow the rule of law while they’re on Planet Earth. One of those officers is none other than Akita’s handsome and physically fit classmate, Sho Tenkubashi! Instead of wiping his memory and sending him on his way, The AMO decides to enlist Akira despite having no training and no physical prowess to match Sho. What could he possibly bring to the table?
Mr. Villain, also sometimes called The General, is a leader in the Evil League, and normally, his job is to eradicate humans on Earth in order to conquer the planet for his people. But, Mr. Villain is very wise and particular about his mission. Earth isn’t going to be conquered quickly, so balancing his work life and his days off is extremely important. On one mission, he investigates several animals at the zoo and grows particularly fond of the fluffy, cuddly looking pandas. He then becomes a frequent visitor to the zoo and begins investigating other fuzzy creatures. While on his excursions, he comes into contact with the Rangers, the human protectors of Planet Earth, but as he’s maintaining his work-life balance, he calls a truce with all of them and refuses to do battle on his days off.
Illustrated by Nekokurage
Maomao discovers that the hair pins she collected at the banquet in the last volume can be used to gain passage out of the little palace, so she calls upon one of the men to take her back home to the Pleasure District in exchange for notes of introduction to well known courtesans. Maomao isn’t aware, though, that these hair pins and exchanging favors is also akin to entering into social contract and talks of marriage with the young men, so rumors begin to spread while she is visiting home. Her trip isn’t restful as she is immediately put to work saving two young folk in an apparent attempted lover’s suicide, but her father, an even more observant apothecary, challenges her to look beyond the obvious and see what hidden clues the poisoned victims have left behind to tell their tale. 
Fukumaru continues to explore his new domain and gets himself into a little bit of trouble, like when he finds himself on top of a high shelf of a family altar and can’t get down. He wages war on “the black thing” (Kanda's piano) but brings a shelf of Kanda’s CDs down on himself instead. While slightly mad about his broken possessions, Kanda is surprised to find himself more concerned for Fukumaru’s safety than his belongings. We also learn about Kanda’s upbringing and how strict his mother was with him, and why his relationship with Fukumaru is so special. Kanda continues to heal and grieve with the help of Fukumaru’s restorative kitty-cuddles as he fondly remembers his wife’s affinity for cats, especially now that Fukumaru is helping him understand her feelings.
Takada is a 5th grade transfer student, and Nishimura is a bit of a gloomy girl that everyone else calls "The Grim Reaper." Takada is determined to figure how what makes her so special to get such a cool nickname, and what he finds is an awesome friend and someone who makes him happy to be around. Other classmates try to make fun of Takada for being around Nishimura, but Takada's carefree attitude turns all their jabs around and makes everything backfire. Nishimura finds herself with a friend at last, but can't help feeling like her first friend is a little clueless to all the bullying going around. Takada likens several bully tactics to video game or RPG storylines, and the two also find out that they could have been childhood neighbors had things gone differently.
Illustrated by Rito Kohsaka
As Miyo received no formal training with he Saimori family, she begins etiquette training in order to feel more worthy of her husband-to-be. And her trainer is none other than Lord Kudo's sister, Hazuki! She's also plagued by nightmares, which Kudo tries to keep away, but he's not always successful. With the increased activity of grotesqueries, he's kept busy at the office, and the strain takes a tole on Miyo's physical health. As Kudo continues to look into Miyo's family history, he also meets a strange young man -- Arata Tsuruki -- who, officially, is dispatched to help the Anti-Grotesquerie Unit, but he also seems to be connected somehow to Miyo's Usuba clan. |
About MeI've been reading manga and comicbooks for years. Now, I write reviews and other helpful things for School Librarians, teachers, parents, and students. Search this site
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