Manga Review: Weekly Shonen Jump (2015)

Manga Review: Weekly Shonen Jump (2015) by various creators. It’s the third anniversary of this blog, and as is my custom, I’ll be looking at the current lineup of Weekly Shonen Jump, the online version of Shounen Jump.  For those just joining us, Shounen Jump is the top-selling shounen manga (boys’ comic book) in Japan.  Many of its series… Continue reading Manga Review: Weekly Shonen Jump (2015)

Manga Review: Case Closed Volume 56

Manga Review: Case Closed Volume 56 by Gosho Aoyama Quick recap for newer readers:  Shinichi Kudou (“Jimmy” in the US version) is a teen genius detective.  He runs afoul of a mysterious criminal organization, but their assassination attempt instead causes him to shrink to a childlike appearance.  To conceal his survival from the organization, Shinichi… Continue reading Manga Review: Case Closed Volume 56

Open Thread: RIP Shigeru Mizuki

Open Thread: RIP Shigeru Mizuki Shigeru Mizuki (1922-2015) was a manga artist famous for his horror works, most famously Gegege no Kitarou, and did much work to familiarize younger generations of Japanese children with the traditional stories of yokai. As I’ve written here before, Mr. Mizuki was stationed in New Britain, Papua New Guinea during World War… Continue reading Open Thread: RIP Shigeru Mizuki

Manga Review: Black Blizzard

Manga Review: Black Blizzard by Yoshihiro Tatsumi The year is 1956.  Shinpei Konta, a card shark with five convictions (two for murder) and Susumu Yamaji, a pianist just convicted for murder, are handcuffed together on a train headed for prison.  The weather has turned to a blizzard, and a landslide across the tracks derails the… Continue reading Manga Review: Black Blizzard

Manga Review: My Hero Academia, Vol. 2

Manga Review: My Hero Academia, Vol. 2 by Kohei Horikoshi I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving, or at least a nice Thursday!  In keeping with the holiday spirit, let’s have a second helping. Brief recap:  Izuku Midoriya always wanted to be a superhero, but was born without a “quirk”, unlike 80% of the… Continue reading Manga Review: My Hero Academia, Vol. 2

Book Review: The Art of Empathy: Celebrating Literature in Translation

Book Review: The Art of Empathy: Celebrating Literature in Translation edited by Don Ball This thick pamphlet is a collection of essays by literary translators on the art of translation.  It’s a product of the National Endowment for the Arts, and is available from them as a free download (or in paper form at NEA… Continue reading Book Review: The Art of Empathy: Celebrating Literature in Translation

Manga Review: One-Punch Man 01

Manga Review: One-Punch Man 01 story by ONE, art by Yusuke Murata Saitama wanted to be a hero when he grew up, the sort of good guy who could beat any monster or villain with a single punch.   Like many people, he forgot that dream as he prepared for a more realistic career as… Continue reading Manga Review: One-Punch Man 01

Manga Review: So Cute It Hurts Volume 2

Manga Review: So Cute It Hurts Volume 2 by Go Ikeyamada Recapping from Volume 1:  Megumu and Mitsuru Kobayashi, fraternal twins, have been impersonating each other at their respective schools in an effort to get Mitsuru to not fail history.  As a side effect, each of the twins has fallen in love with someone at… Continue reading Manga Review: So Cute It Hurts Volume 2

Magazine Review: Water~Stone Review Volume 18: All We Cannot Alter

Magazine Review: Water~Stone Review Volume 18: All We Cannot Alter edited by Mary François Rockcastle. This is the latest volume of Hamline University’s annual literary magazine, which I picked up at the Rain Taxi Book Festival.  The subtitle comes from one of the poems in this issue, “Is This What Poets Do?” by Elizabeth Oness.… Continue reading Magazine Review: Water~Stone Review Volume 18: All We Cannot Alter

Manga Review: The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Vol. 14

Manga Review: The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Vol. 14 story by Eiji Ohtsuka, art by Housui Yamazaki It’s finally out!  To recap for newer readers, the Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service is five students at a Buddhist college that each have skills or talents related to the dead.  They form a small firm that fulfills the last… Continue reading Manga Review: The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Vol. 14