YOTSUBA&!
by Kiyohiko Azuma

The deal: The author of the strangely funny Azumanga Daioh brings us Yotsuba&!. Many of you already know about Yotsuba&!, but I’m doing this review on the off-chance I can hook some of you. It’s published in Japan in Dengeki Daioh on a monthly schedule. There are currently 7 Japanese volumes and 6 English volumes.

The summary: Yotsuba&! is about a strange green-haired little girl who seems to be experiencing everything for the first time. Everything is new and exciting, and her energy and enthusiasm infects everybody around her. Volume 1 begins with Yotsuba and her father moving into a new house together. They soon meet their next-door neighbors, and Yotsuba immediately takes to the three sisters living there, going so far as to invite herself over whenever she pleases. All the Yotsuba stories in each book are relatively short, although they sometimes reference each other.

The review: There’s no giant robots, epic storylines, or brooding heroes here - Yotsuba&! is about everyday life, but don’t let that fool you - there’s something really beautiful going on in these books. When I lend these books out to friends, I hand them over on extended loan with the advice, “Save this book until you have a bad day. Reading this will make you feel better.” I’ve gotten through many a bad day myself by picking up a volume. Somehow the author knows just how to get past the jaded parts of any adult’s personality to really make them grin.

Yotsuba has a big imagination, and in her hands mundane things inevitably become something more. Her adventures are interesting, amusing and occasionally - in a lazy summer Sunday sort of way - poignant. My favorite story is in Volume 2 - the gangster noir story, you’ll know it when you see it.

The other unique thing about this manga is that it’s one of the few I can lend to my friends who aren’t so enamored with anime or manga. They’ll read a few pages out of curiousity, and then they just won’t stop.

The recommendation: I can’t speak highly enough about this series. It is just charming, through and through, and if you haven’t picked it up then I hope you will.

From ADV, Manga, 6 Volumes, $9.99

ACE ATTORNEY: APOLLO JUSTICE
by Capcom

The deal: Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice is a game for the Nintendo DS. This is the fourth installment of the Ace Attorney Series, and the first in which the role of protagonist shifts from Phoenix Wright to Apollo Justice. You take on the role of a defense attorney who will go to whatever lengths necessary for the sake of his client, as long as they are within the realm of the law. The gameplay consists of two major scenarios - investigation and court. The evidence and clues you pick up during your investigation help you prove your case in court, where the objections fly fast and furious.

The summary: Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice follows the title character as he stumbles into his first job as an independent defense attorney. He’s joined by Trucy Wright, and together they investigate and Objection! their way through 4 cases.

The review: I am a sucker for these games - I grew up playing games like Monkey Island, Loom, Indiana Jones, and so on, and the Ace Attorney games are a comfortable spiritual successor to those.

This is a turning point in the Ace Attorney series, taking place at least 7 years after the last game. Most of the old cast are nowhere to be found, although a few of them show up in amusing ways. Phoenix Wright is still around, but not in the capacity you’d expect - and he’s adopted a girl named Trucy, who becomes your partner throughout the cases.

As far as features go, a couple of neat new things have been added to the investigations repertoire - this game really makes use of the touchscreen on the DS in some interesting ways.

I’m going to have to clearly state that the following is my opinion: The tone of this game is a little different from the others, and it’s because (even though he doesn’t get a majority of the screen time) Phoenix Wright is still the main character. The new characters are all great, and Trucy was such a great step up from her predecessor Maya (whom I couldn’t dislike more), but in some ways I felt like I was playing out the role of the supporting cast, and I felt like Capcom was setting these new characters up to be main characters the next time around.

Phoenix becomes something of a badass and a mentor in this one, and the switch is really neat to see. Apollo Justice is also a good successor to Phoenix Wright - he’s similar, but clearly his own character, so the cast switch wasn’t too jarring. He also has some tricks up his sleeve that Phoenix didn’t have, but I think I’ll let you guys find that one out for yourselves.

The recommendation: I don’t think fans of the series will be disappointed. The new cast is likable, and Phoenix Wright gets a good deal of interesting but surprising character development.

From Capcom, for the Nintendo DS, $29.99

Hey guys, I’m going to try to make the review thing a more regular feature - let me know if you like it. Today I’ve got a novel and a fairly new graphic novel up on the table.

PERFUME
by Patrick Suskind

The deal: Perfume is the novel on which the recent 2006 movie was based. I actually haven’t seen the movie, but I’ve heard mixed reviews. This review’s going to be about the book in and of itself.

The summary: Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is about a serial killer named Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. It is a work of fiction, but it’s written as a biography, following Grenouille from birth onwards. There are two things unique about our murderous protagonist: he has a superhuman sense of smell, and he possesses no smell of his own. It’s this second property that sees a nursemaid reject him - she rails on that he’s unnatural, he has no smell, all babies have smell. He eventually apprentices himself to the master of a tannery, and then to a perfumer. This is where the story really begins. Always a little strange, now madness grips him. The rest of the novel is about the unbelievable up and down spiral of his life as his quest leads him on a quiet murderous rampage.

The review: This book is really good. I don’t honestly know if the movie did it justice, but it’s an easy read - I did it in an evening - and it’s gripping. Before I get into the good stuff, I’ll go ahead and say that there is a period of a chapter or two where the story unfortunately drags - the only thing pulling the story along is the knowledge that something HAS to happen next. That aside … Suskind does a good job of immersing us in the period, and even his writing style helps us to feel that we’re in Grenouille’s era. His understanding of industries - earlier, tanning hides, and later on the perfume industry, lends itself to fascinating passages about how one takes the smells from things. His description of smell, a sense often overlooked in writing, is unparalleled as far as I’m concerned. All of these are merely gems fixed in the crown of the story, though - which is, in all honesty, the story of a very disturbed man and the very unusual way in which he kills people. As important as the how of the murders is the why - it is an undercurrent that slowly rises to the surface and eventually builds into a brilliant climax at the end of the book.

The recommendation: Man, read it. That’s all I can say. Definitely worth it. I will say that people who are squeamish about the weird probably shouldn’t bother, although really they should shelve the squeamishness and read it anyway, haha.

From Vintage, novel, $13.95

AMULET
by Kazu Kibuishi

The deal: Amulet is a fantasy story in the spirit of Harry Potter, The Golden Compass, The Chronicles of Narnia and all the other fantasy stories of our youth. This book is actually Volume 1 of an ongoing series, with this installment titled The Stonekeeper - I read Yuko’s copy. Thanks Yuko!

The summary: Amulet is the story of Em and Navin, two kids who have recently moved into a new house with their mother. Em stumbles upon her great grandfather’s study, where she finds a mysterious amulet. Soon after, their mother is kidnapped and taken through a door to another world, where - guided by the amulet - the siblings begin their adventure.

The review: There’s a lot to say about Amulet. It is an all-ages book aimed at children, which is why the dark opening was a little jarring. Em witnesses to the death of her father, and I won’t say much more than that - the scene speaks for itself. I actually do have some gripes about the book, but it’s the hesitant sort - mostly, it’s about the stock use of fantasy mores. Looking at movies coming out now and in the past few years, combined with the types of fantasy books that have enjoyed a resurgence, it’s clear what the demographic for this book is. At the same time, the book is aimed largely at children, and the use of the same fantasy mores I’m complaining about is actually rather deft - it’s just not surprising. The story (after the Prologue, which really did throw me - MAN is it tragic) follows a fairly logical chain of events. (I should say that something interesting regarding the nature of the amulet begins to surface towards the end of the book, but you’ll have to find out for yourself - on that point, I do find myself very curious.)

But enough about what I didn’t like - let’s talk about the rest.

The first thing to know about one of Kazu Kibuishi’s books is that you are going to be reading a very pretty book. It’s just a pleasure to look at, especially the use of color (the book is full-color, beautifully so). The second thing to know about Kibuishi is that his creature and machine designs are always fresh, surprising, and inventive. There’s certain things you learn about over the course of the book that, if you flip backwards, you’ll realize were always there - just very well hidden. That attention to detail goes a long way. Also - my complaints about the content of the story aside - the storytelling itself is really very good. The panels flow nicely.

The other thing to note is that this book is published by Scholastic. Scholastic is a very respected publisher, so to see them going out on a limb and printing graphic novels (I noticed their graphic novel imprint is called Graphix) is really nice to see.

The recommendation: It depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re a big fan of the current trend in fantasy, then you don’t want to miss this. Kids with a destiny, monsters, machines, adventure and more - Amulet is pretty packed.

From Scholastic, graphic novel, $9.95

DENSHA OTOKO (TRAIN MAN)
by Hidenori Hara

The deal: Densha Otoko translates from Japanese to Train Man, and the (true) story has been a runaway media success in Japan. It has spawned a novel, three different manga versions, a movie and a TV miniseries. The manga book version I’m talking about is the Viz Media release, illustrated by Hidenori Hara. It’s three volumes, and is what I’d consider to be light reading. The books themselves are standard manga size, and the book designs are consistent even if they appear a little dated stylistically.

The summary: To preface, Densha Otoko is based on a true story. It’s the story of an otaku who saves a woman from a drunk on the train. They begin to see each other soon thereafter. What makes this story unique is that the young otaku in question is a member of 2channel, a Japanese internet forum, and it is this forum that gives Train Man the confidence to approach the young woman, Hermes. It uses real posts from 2channel users in the text and dialogue.

The review: The first word that comes to mind in talking about Densha Otoko is cute. Adorable works too. It’s a fun, and ultimately simple love story. Generally I find stories like that a little boring, but there are two things about this book that make it fun: First, the fact that it is a true story, and second, the 2channel members rooting Train Man on. Having spent some time on the internet (hahaha), it was easy for me to get swept up in their excitement! They give him tips on things ranging from fashion to hygiene to dinner locales to the art of conversation … and it is easy to identify with Train, because you get the sense that he’s very much “one of us” (otaku are the Japanese nerds and geeks). The treatment of internet posting and how that translated visually was well done, despite the somewhat dated look of the book overall. You really get to see Train Man’s growth as a person as well, and that by itself was a somewhat insightful look at how nerds around the world bloom while still retaining their nerd membership cards. The other thing I liked about this book is how uplifting it was - there’s a lot of dark and gritty stuff on the market, so it’s nice to see something genuinely positive. The other downside of the series is that it can be pretty sappy at times. I’m not generally a fan of sappy stuff, but it worked for me within the context of the books.

The recommendation: It’s a cute, sometimes sappy story with a dash of geek sensibility - if that sounds good to you, then by all means check this series out! It’s only 3 books, so you won’t be buying a million volumes.

(By the way, if you want to read the original 2Channel thread, it’s here.)

From Viz Media, 3 volumes, $9.99 each

BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL
by Hiroaki Samura

The deal: Hiroaki Samura’s Blade of the Immortal is a multi-volume Japanese feudal warrior epic published by Dark Horse. The books themselves are very sexy - there is a good, consistent design ethic going on, and one of my secret pleasures is when the exterior of books from the same series match well - and especially when the book spines retain consistency on my shelf.

The summary: This is one of my favorite series for two reasons: 1. the unbelievable versatility of pencil and ink in each book and 2. the multi-faceted nature of the story. To summarize the plot: Immortal warrior Manji can only regain his mortality by killing one thousand evil men. He attaches himself to a young girl named Rin, whose parents were killed by a radical sword school called the Itto-Ryu. A journey of two becomes a journey of many, and along the way Manji has to do a whole lot of killing to protect his young charge. This series is ultra-violent and definitely not for the faint of heart - most of the time, the violence almost borders on Tarantino-esque, but every time you’re almost desensitized to it, Hiroaki Samura sets the bar on what real violence is by showing us something truly disturbed (the character Shira comes to mind). For those out there who like Shounen fighting, there is a large cast of characters, all with unique fighting styles and weaponry. It seems difficult to pack so many bad-ass characters into one book, but Blade of the Immortal manages it. It’s also important to mention that these are some of the best-rendered fight scenes you’ll ever see on paper. Hiroaki Samura is endlessly inventive in this regard.

Violence and “coolness” aren’t the only thing this series has, though - there’s also a lot of depiction and discussion of philosophy, and a thoughtful dissection of morality (i.e. good, evil and the grey area between) is part of the backbone of the story. Blade of the Immortal is also the recipient of many awards, the foremost being an Eisner award and the Media Arts of Japan award.

Hiroaki Samura is often given credit for making his characters talk in a modern way, and this is part of Dark Horse’s marketing strategy for the book (I think the word that shows up a lot is ’streetwise’). I’ll admit that I have a hard time understanding this, and I can’t help but wonder if a little something of the original text is lost in translation. Blade has also been called modernist, and in that sense I absolutely have to agree. The approach to story-telling is undeniably modernist, and it gives a great tilt to the narrative.

The biggest downside of this series, to me, is how damn long it is (18 volumes and still going). Well, that isn’t quite right - it’s more that in being very long, it sometimes seems to drag. It’s not that the fight scenes are too long (although they can be very long), and it’s not that the downtime scenes don’t propel the story forward - but sometimes there are lengths of time where the story just doesn’t move anywhere, whether it be fighting or downtime.

The recommendation: This series is not for everyone, but it’s for many of us. XD Despite the length of the series and the at-times-awkward-pacing, I do enjoy this book a lot - not for the violence so much as for the gems in between. There’s a good reason this series has won so many awards. It is one of my regular TPB purchases.

From Dark Horse, 18 volumes (and still going), priced at anywhere from $12.95 to $19.95