Space brothers vol 1 by Chuya Koyama

Mutta just got fired from his automobile design firm, but this might be the motivation he needs to finally revisit his childhood dream. His younger brother, Hibito, has already achieved the dream and is a NASA astronaut, but Mutta is the older brother and should have paved the way for his younger brother. He applies and makes it past the initial interview, but finds the training and physical tests to be pretty difficult. Mutta becomes part of a competitive group of hopefuls, and has to overcome the label of "Hibito's brother" and the misconception that he's getting special treatment or inside information because of his familial ties. 

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This is an easy-to-read story that is a little on the slower side, and the narrative style feels very much like slice-of-life. There is a main storyline that each chapter contributes to, but each chapter is also presented like the continued adventures of Mutta trying to be an astronaut. There are a lot of flashbacks interwoven within Mutta's present-day journey, and they give a lot of insight into the relationship between the two brothers. Both of them were very driven young people, so it will be interesting to see Mutta have to rediscover that side of himself. This story might connect with students who are interested in engineering and space exploration, but the connection might be tenuous since all the characters are adults and not teens as they're probably more accustomed to reading. 

Kodansha rates this as 13+ and so far, there's nothing in this volume that would make it inappropriate for junior high students.

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

Publisher: Kodansha
Publication Date: November 3, 2015
eBook only

​Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Family, Slice Of Life, Realistic Fiction, ​Kodansha