Review: "Princess Jellyfish vol 1"

Princess Jellyfish vol 1 by Akiko Higashimura
4 out of 5 stars

I'm fairly new to manga and I don't know that I will ever read that much of it, but I am so so glad I gave this one a chance. I can't remember where I first heard about it, but when I did, I knew it would be perfect for my youngest sister's birthday this past May. She is a sparkly princess who loves all things Japanese and she's one of the nonreaders, so I always try to get her something she will really like and want to read more of. When I received this book in the mail, I decided to read it first. It just looked so fun and happy. Well, I ended up loving it so much, I bought my own copy and just this week pre-ordered volume 2. :)

The story starts off with Tsukimi, who is 18 years old and lives in Tokyo in an all-female apartment building. Each of the women considers herself an otaku/fujoshi or "an obsessive fan who hoards information and merchandise of their favorite things". So I'd be a book otaku. :) They also live as amars, which is basically a nun-like life and a "life with no use for men".

Tsukimi is obsessed with jellyfish, thanks to her mother, who died when she was little. She tries to go to a special jellyfish photography exhibit in the opening chapter but is overwhelmed by all the princesses or "stylish" people. These people can cause an amar to go catatonic, especially if they are of the male persuasion.

Tsukimi battles against her anxiety to save a jellyfish she has named Clara (I would totally buy Clara merchandise) and is unexpectedly helped by the most stylish of princesses. But this princess has a big secret, one that could ruin Tsukimi's life if it got out to her fellow housemates. Despite that, Tsukimi and Kuranosuke become unlikely friends. Many hijinks follow. There is a secondary story about developers wanting to buy Tsukimi's apartment building, which is owned by Chieko's (the nesting doll) mother. And there is a bit of a love triangle situation but I'm guessing it will be explored more in the next volume.

Overall, this is a really lovely, lighthearted story about friendship and growing into something/one new. It has the potential to be something deeper though and I'm excited to read the next volume. The artwork is wonderful, there is so much detail that you really have to read each page first and then go back again to look at what's going on in the background. There are also some great little side stories about Clara, the jellyfish mascot, and a bit of autobiographical panels about the author's life which are really great. I know this is a sort of short review, but I don't want to give too many of the surprises away. You'll just have to take my word for it. :)

TILT: Book Posters #14

Time for more bookish artwork on Things I Love Thursday, so let's just get started shall we?

(if you do not want your art featured, please contact me!)

It's better to have your nose in a book, than in someone else's business...found on Indulgy and so so true! It is a lot easier to stay out of trouble when you are involved in a wonderful book and have no idea what is going on in the real world lol.

Why can't people just sit and read books and be nice to each other? quote by David Balducci, print by EvieSeo. Yes! Maybe we just need to read a nice picture book to some of these politicians and that will make them calm down. ;)

Mathilde-Bookworms United by C A-F--I love the simple colors and shapes used in this.

Pro eReader by Paper Pie--you don't see many (any?) eReader bookish art prints. This one is lovely. You can almost feel the breeze coming through that open window.

Let's Talk Books: Manga Edition!

(do you like my new meme?)

I'm fairly new to manga and I don't know that I will ever read that much of it, but I do find it interesting and I've recently become obsessed with Princess Jellyfish (review will be up this week), so I thought it'd be fun to talk about it a little here. My two younger sisters (15 & 16) are big manga and anime fans. I am in no way an expert, so I'm going to pick their brains a bit on why they like it so much and maybe get some recommendations for newbies like me and possibly you. And share your thoughts, comments, recs below!

First, let's start with some basics. Manga, pronounced "mahn-guh" if you want to be like the cool kids, is the book version. Anime, apparently pronounced "ah-nee-may" huh, is the tv/digital version. Don't be like me and call it the wrong thing and then say "whatever" when someone corrects you. ;)

Panels has a great post about beginners guide to reading manga, so you should definitely check that out. (Actually, they have lots of interesting articles to get you started on your manga journey.) Basically, manga are read backwards, right to left, including the panels on the page. It's super hard to wrap your head around at first, especially if you're a mega-reader like me. But it gets easier as you go.

(From Princess Jellyfish)

Manga and anime are almost always interchangeable. That's how B, my middle sister, started: she watched anime first and when they cut short or didn't finish the story, she started reading the manga version. Her first manga was Ao Haru Ride (Blue Spring Ride in English), which I just started reading on the Manga Rock app. M, who just turned 15, picked up Naruto from our brother and then got into the anime more from there. She has watched a whopping 4500 episodes between Kissanime, Gogoanime, Netflix, & Hulu!

And now let's get some recommendations. Remember, these will go for either anime or manga. And if you have your own recs to add, comment below. I want to hear about them!

In general: Ouran High School Host Club
Brief Description (pulled from Goodreads): One day, Haruhi, a scholarship student at exclusive Ouran High School, breaks an $80,000 vase that belongs to the 'Host Club', a mysterious campus group consisting of six super-rich (and gorgeous) guys. To pay back the damages, she is forced to work for the club, and it's there that she discovers just how wealthy the boys are and how different they are from everybody else.

Sports: Haikyu!!
Brief Description: After losing his first and last volleyball match against Tobio Kageyama, "the King of the Court," Shoyo Hinata swears to become his rival after graduating middle school. But what happens when the guy he wants to defeat ends up being his teammate?!

Tearjerker: Your Lie in April
Brief Description: Kosei Arima was a piano prodigy until his cruel taskmaster of a mother died suddenly, changing his life forever. Driven by his pain to abandon piano, Kosei now lives in a monotonous, colorless world. Having resigned himself to a bland life, he is surprised when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a violinist with an unorthodox style. Can she bring Kosei back to music, and back to life?

Action: Attack on Titan
Brief Description: In this post-apocalyptic sci-fi story, humanity has been devastated by the bizarre, giant humanoids known as the Titans. Little is known about where they came from or why they are bent on consuming mankind. Seemingly unintelligent, they have roamed the world for years, killing everyone they see. For the past century, what's left of man has hidden in a giant, three-walled city. People believe their 100-meter-high walls will protect them from the Titans, but the sudden appearance of an immense Titan is about to change everything.

Comedy: Monthly Girls Nozaki-Kun
(Somewhat) Brief Description: To the eyes of classmate Chiyo Sakura, high school student Umetarou Nozaki--brawny of build and brusque of tongue--is a dreamboat! When Chiyo finally works up the courage to tell Nozaki how she feels about him, she knows rejection is on the table...but getting recruited as a mangaka's assistant?! Never in a million years! As Chiyo quickly discovers, Nozaki-kun, the boy of Chiyo's dreams, is a manga artist...a hugely popular shoujo manga artist, that is! But for someone who makes a living drawing sweet girly romances, Nozaki-kun is a little slow on the uptake when it comes to matters of the heart in reality. And so Chiyo's daily life of manga making and heartache begins!

Horror: Ghost Hunt
Brief Description: The decrepit building was condemned long ago, but every time the owners try to tear it down, “accidents” start to happen–people get hurt, sometimes even killed. Mai Taniyama and her classmates have heard the rumors that the creepy old high school is haunted–possibly by ghosts from the Second World War. So one rainy day they gather at the told school to tell ghost stories, hoping to attract one of the suspected spirits.

Romance: Kimi Ni Todoke
Brief Description: Sawako Kuronuma is the perfect heroine...for a horror movie. With striking similarities to a haunting movie character--jet-black hair, sinister smile and silent demeanor--she's mistakenly called Sadako by those around her. But behind her scary façade is a very misunderstood teenager. Too shy to fit in, all she wants to do is make some friends. But when the most popular boy in class befriends her, she's sure to make more than just that--she's about to make some enemies too!

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Facts About Me

I am so bad at these kinds of lists, but I'm going to try my hardest for The Broke & The Bookish's Top Ten Tuesday. :) So in no particular order, 10 facts about me. And if you want to know something specific, please ask! I'm an open book. (Get it? Book? heh.)

1. I'm left-handed. I didn't learn how to use right-handed scissors until 9th grade, when a science teacher took pity on me and showed me how to hold them differently so I could use them. I'm still not very good at it. Along with those 2 facts, I am horrible at cutting straight lines or circles. My kindergarten teacher failed me lol.

2. I have been rereading the entire Baby-Sitters Club series since I started this blog (one of the main reasons I started it) way back in 2011. I make all of Claudia's outfits in Polyvore, which is my favorite part. You can see my master list here of all my reviews and other posts concerning the BSC. I haven't gotten very far, just finished #53. I'm going to try to get better at that these next few months though.

3. I recently changed my blog name from Give a Hoot, Read a Book to See Jenn Read (to match all my social media). I didn't realize that this would break all my links, everywhere. :/ (It also broke my search feature and I can't figure out how to fix it!) I am very slowly fixing those. Very slowly. I need to spend a quiet afternoon at the library and work on that.

4. I have 3 sisters (1 bio, 2 step), 1 stepbrother (technically 2, but I don't ever see 1), 1 stepsister-in-law (again, technically 2 lol). I love them all, lots and lots, and would do anything for them. And I'm super proud of all of them. *gushing*

5. I haven't had a Dr Pepper (or any fully caffeinated drink besides tea) in 2 years exactly this week. I hate it. Dr Pepper was my coffee in the morning and I was seriously addicted to it. Yeah, I feel better blah blah blah...but I miss it!! These Timehops pop up routinely lol.

 

6. I am a born and raised Texan. I live between Dallas & Fort Worth. I do not own any of the following: a cowboy hat or boots, a horse, a pickup truck, a gun, a confederate flag. I do not want any of the previous except maybe cowboy boots. :) My mom did own a truck though. I've never seen a Cowboys game, although I did have a Girl Scouts sleepover in the old stadium once. I do listen to country music, along with rock, rap, pop, classical, and lots more. I will NOT be voting for Trump. I love bbq and Tex-Mex. I do not drink sweet tea, gross. I say y'all. A lot.

7. I'm one of those weirdos who really loves Taco Bell. I could eat it 3 times a week and not care. And this is the part that drives my sister crazy: I get the exact same thing every time lol. Chicken quesadilla meal with a bean burrito (no sauce, no onions).

8. Even though my sister and I are 4 years apart (I'm the 2nd one back in this pic with all 3 of my sisters), people think we're twins all the time. And we don't even think we look that much alike lol. (I think it's more how we act.) We can always tell when people are going to ask, because they'll start looking back and forth between us with this confused look. We always say we're going to say "yes, we are twins" but we never do. Facebook also constantly tries to tag me as her, but not the other way around!

9. If you forced me to name a favorite book right this minute, I would probably say Harry Potter. But then I would want to add Anne of Green Gables or Amy & Roger's Epic Detour or Strangers in Paradise or Cannery Row or or or....don't make me choose!

10.Since I can't come up with a last fact, I'll point you to my bio page to read more, semi-interesting, things about me. :D

Review: "The Truth About Stacey: The Baby-Sitters Club Graphic Novel #2"

The Truth About Stacey: The Baby-Sitters Club Graphic Novel #2 by Raina Telgemeier
3.5 out of 5 stars

I went to pull up my original review of this book and just now realized that they didn't do the actual first 4 books as graphic novels. I can't believe I didn't see that before now. They skip over Claudia & The Phantom Phone Calls, Dawn & The Impossible Three, and Kristy's Big Day. I wonder why? I mean, yeah, those weren't the best books but it's still kind of weird. And now I really wish they would do the first Super Special!

Okay, back to the graphic novel. I'm sure you know the story already, but here's a quick recap: Stacey has a secret that's not really a secret because we learnt about it in the first book and so did her new Stoneybrook friends. She's diabetic. Also, some older girls try to start their own baby-sitting service but they suck so the BSCers win again. This goes into a lot more detail than the book about what diabetes is and how it affects Stacey, which was pretty interesting. (And why I bumped it up half a star.) Especially for a kid just getting diagnosed. I would definitely give this to them as a resource.

(click to make bigger)

The artwork is great, like the first, with one exception. There's a flashback part with Laine and Stacey and they're supposed to be in 4th grade for some reason but they look exactly the same as their 7th grade selves. Not a huge deal, but when you're a BSC fanatic you notice this stuff lol.

The girls' outfits on the cover are pretty on-point, except for that darn purple streak in Claudia's hair. I guess the artist decided to make that a "thing" for her but it still bugs me lol. Also, we get to see more back characters like Janine, Stacey's parents, the Johanssens, Jamie Newton (who gets his little sister, Lucy), Laine (who looks like a total dweeb to me), Pete Black, and a few others. Overall, a great companion to the series and I can't wait to read the next two! I was waiting until I actually reviewed this one. ;)

Triple Review: YA Contemporary

I started writing these mini reviews last summer fall, when I actually read the books. Arg...just trying to get back into the groove of blogging again though so I thought I'd finish these up.

Dumplin' by Julie Murphy
3 out of 5 stars

It's hard to say whether I liked this book or not. I feel like you have to be a fat girl to read it, first of all, or you won't get it. But then it kind of made me ashamed of being a fat girl. This was such a hyped book and unfortunately, it kind of let me down.

Willowdean (Dumplin' to her mama) is a chubby girl in a small beauty pageant town in Texas. Her best friend is skinny girl Ellen, she doesn't care who sees her in a swimsuit, and she laughs at all the pageant girls working out in the morning. And yet, she argues with Ellen over her new "twiggy bitch" friend, gets embarrassed when she's actually seen in her swimsuit out of the water, and doesn't take the pageant seriously at all when she decides to enter. When she meets a cute guy at work who wants to kiss her, she freaks out over him touching her hideous body. It's these hypocritical moments that really made me dislike the book. "But that's me. I'm fat. It's not a cuss word. It's not an insult. At least it's not when I say it." *Spoilers: highlight to read* And then there's the love triangle. Yuck. /*Spoilers* So yeah, this book just really got me down. :( It did have a redeeming Baby-Sitters Club reference though. :)

Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between by Jennifer E Smith
3 out of 5 stars

This was a good read, not great. I enjoyed the premise at first: Clare & Aidan are leaving for college, thousands of miles apart, and have one more night together to make lasting memories. But then we find out they are making these memories to decide whether to break up or not and it all just feels kind of tainted. We follow them thru 24 hours as they go to all the places that made up their relationship but I still don't feel like we actually saw their relationship. Clare is clinical and cold at times, kind of hard to like even. Aidan is more laid back and willing to try to make their relationship work but she doesn't seem to want to try. However, she doesn't want Aidan seeing other girls either so it can't really work both ways.

"We keep thinking there are only these two choices: 

We either grow apart or grow together.

But maybe we can just kind of each grow on our own, and see how it goes.

And then later, if it's right, we'll come back to each other and start again."

I actually really enjoyed best friends Scotty & Stella a lot more than the main characters. They seemed more real and fleshed-out than Aidan & Clare. I would love to see a follow-up book dedicated just to them.

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid
3.5 out of 5 stars

Dave & Julia are best friends who set out to make their senior year the best ever. How do they plan to do this? By going back to a list of "nevers" they wrote in middle school and doing every one of them. Such things as "never dye your hair a color of the rainbow", "never hook up with a teacher", "never date your best friend". I'm sure you can see where this book is going already. (Don't worry, the teacher doesn't get fired.)

“As long as we don't get turned into something that looks more like high school, more like everybody else and less like us, I'll be okay.”

For a book about breaking cliches, it is full of them. I'm not sure if that was intentional or not. Julia is a manic pixie dream girl straight out of a John Green novel and Dave is in love with her. Until he suddenly isn't, which is just about the time that Julia realizes she loves Dave. Yeah.

TILT: Summer Bookish Fun!

Summer is in full swing here in Texas, with record high temperatures and freak pop-up thunderstorms. Perfect time to...stay inside, in the air conditioning, with a good book. Or possibly lounge in the pool. But make sure to slather on that sunscreen and only bring a book you don't care gets wet by annoying splashing children. (I know they're not being annoying on purpose, usually, but it seems that way.) So I've gathered up a few things to make your summer perfect on today's Things I Love! (click to make bigger)

(If you do not want your picture here, let me know & I will remove!)

I am so into the crazy pool floats this year! I may have to actually go buy one now after seeing this mega list on AshleyBrooke. Also, if you have a Five Below in your area, you should definitely go there, they're only $5! (It's my new favorite store after Daiso lol.)

In need of a fun, lighthearted book? Check out my Summer Romance Formula tag and find a new favorite read.

A library in Canada came up with a great way to stay inside where it's cool and still have fun. Check out their Facebook page for the full-sized bingo card.

Once you pick up your bingo books, why not make yourself a little cave in the coldest room in the house? (If you know the source of this pic, let me know!) I suggest comfiest pjs, lots of cool cotton sheets and blankets, possibly a fort situation with fans blowing in. Warning: may attract wayward pets and children, possibly significant others. Perhaps a sign: "this is a one person cave, get your own!" ;)

I love this list of 33 Ways to Have a More Bookish Summer on BookRiot so much that I am considering doing some of them myself. Perhaps for August, when everything seems stale and summer has lost its appeal. Who's in with me? I wonder if they have a hashtag for it already on Instagram or Twitter.

Finally, here is a great list of places to read this summer by Scholastic. I like "in a fort on a rainy day" and "at a secret place" the best.

What's your favorite way to have a bookish summer? Give your best tips below!