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i_llumi's reviews
215 reviews
チェンソーマン 1 by Tatsuki Fujimoto
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
[picked this one up because the anime is coming soon and my friends told me to read the manga before that]
hmm ok. denji is an interesting shonen protagonist because he feels more like a broody edgy op side character than a mc, so that’s interesting. the theme overall reminds me a lot of jujutsu kaisen and dorohedoro, so i’m hoping they add an interesting twist to this concept
my friends also told me to not get emotionally attached to any character whatsoever bc apparently everyone dies so . no strings attached so far,, I hope
also the art is actually amazing wow thank god mappa is the studio animating this bc it’s going to look amazing (also!!! eve and ztmy are behind two of the endings!! and kenshi yonezu is doing the op!! so that’s awesome !!)
hope i enjoy the rest of the series :D excited for the anime
hmm ok. denji is an interesting shonen protagonist because he feels more like a broody edgy op side character than a mc, so that’s interesting. the theme overall reminds me a lot of jujutsu kaisen and dorohedoro, so i’m hoping they add an interesting twist to this concept
my friends also told me to not get emotionally attached to any character whatsoever bc apparently everyone dies so . no strings attached so far,, I hope
also the art is actually amazing wow thank god mappa is the studio animating this bc it’s going to look amazing (also!!! eve and ztmy are behind two of the endings!! and kenshi yonezu is doing the op!! so that’s awesome !!)
hope i enjoy the rest of the series :D excited for the anime
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Animal death
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
yup mr and mrs fitzgerald’s writing is my favourite so far
I found this book at The Strand in NY and since the entire thing is mostly set in New York City I decided to read it all while I was here and boy, what a trip was that
(I’ve never had to read this book for any of my classes and since I never watched the movie either, I had basically no idea what the plot was except that it was about parties in the 20’s)
long story short, I enjoyed my time with this book. I still need to think about some things, but I can say that the portrayal of the US in the 1920’s stands true to this day and that yeah, the American Dream^TM is fake - a non-american born in brazil
reading this truly emphasized that humans never change and that we’ll probably never truly learn lessons from the past. the grind/hustle culture we have today is basically just a rebranding of the american dream and welp, we can see what that does to people (it’s about drive it’s about power we stay hungry we devour)
with all that said though, a more personal note: I actually liked This Side of Paradise more than this one. idk, there’s something about the former just speaks to me more. anyways, im running on 3h of sleep writing this on a [now crowded but once desolated] train station at 5 am so. im tired lol
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
[rating will probably change]
I wanted to get out and walk eastward toward the Park. . . . Yet high over the city our line of yellow windows must have contributed their share of human secrecy to the casual watcher in the darkening streets, and I was him too, looking up and wondering. I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.
yup mr and mrs fitzgerald’s writing is my favourite so far
I found this book at The Strand in NY and since the entire thing is mostly set in New York City I decided to read it all while I was here and boy, what a trip was that
(I’ve never had to read this book for any of my classes and since I never watched the movie either, I had basically no idea what the plot was except that it was about parties in the 20’s)
long story short, I enjoyed my time with this book. I still need to think about some things, but I can say that the portrayal of the US in the 1920’s stands true to this day and that yeah, the American Dream^TM is fake - a non-american born in brazil
reading this truly emphasized that humans never change and that we’ll probably never truly learn lessons from the past. the grind/hustle culture we have today is basically just a rebranding of the american dream and welp, we can see what that does to people (it’s about drive it’s about power we stay hungry we devour)
with all that said though, a more personal note: I actually liked This Side of Paradise more than this one. idk, there’s something about the former just speaks to me more. anyways, im running on 3h of sleep writing this on a [now crowded but once desolated] train station at 5 am so. im tired lol
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Death, Car accident, Murder, and War
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
considering that I read most of this during two 6h long flights, with one of them having the fantastic background noise of: baby crying a lot, I think this book was…. confusing, but very big brain. it felt like one big metaphor that if I thought about too much it wouldn’t make sense anymore
i quite enjoyed the scattered stories and books, but sometimes they felt a bit too random or irrelevant to the main plotline imo.
im writing this block of text at 4am after said two long flights + excessively long airport lines so needless to say my brain is fried atm
in sum tho
this books is pog + dorian best boy dorian ily
i quite enjoyed the scattered stories and books, but sometimes they felt a bit too random or irrelevant to the main plotline imo.
im writing this block of text at 4am after said two long flights + excessively long airport lines so needless to say my brain is fried atm
in sum tho
this books is pog + dorian best boy dorian ily
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
文豪どうかしてる逸話集 by 進士 素丸
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.25
wellll, I technically did not finish finish this but I read all the sections that I wanted to so I suppose I’ll leave this with the ‘read’ status for now.
I got immediately interested in this book after Futaba-san, a pog booktuber I follow, posted a video talking about it (https://youtu.be/X1ES4vsnsRE).
this is basically an anthology of classic (mostly Meiji-era) Japanese authors’ biographies, except they highlight some funnier and stranger aspects of the so called “literary masters”. i thought the language was super accessible + the information was really well blended with the funnier bits so it was a very easy and relaxing read!!
(for example, I learned that Kunikida Doppo was at one point in his life so so happy living w his bestie Katai that he simply. did not write for a Long Amount of Time; Nakahara Chuuya was absolutely hilarious when we was drunk; Miyazawa Kenji was into p*rn magazines but tried to hide that like a child….)
plus, the chapters come with a bunch of cute and funny caricatures of the authors - that was a pleasure surprise for sure!
I’d 100% recommend this book if you’re into Japanese lit and author lore/gossip hehe
i’m glad i picked this up as learning about authors makes reading their stuff + stuff from their time period much more meaningful :D!
I got immediately interested in this book after Futaba-san, a pog booktuber I follow, posted a video talking about it (https://youtu.be/X1ES4vsnsRE).
this is basically an anthology of classic (mostly Meiji-era) Japanese authors’ biographies, except they highlight some funnier and stranger aspects of the so called “literary masters”. i thought the language was super accessible + the information was really well blended with the funnier bits so it was a very easy and relaxing read!!
(for example, I learned that Kunikida Doppo was at one point in his life so so happy living w his bestie Katai that he simply. did not write for a Long Amount of Time; Nakahara Chuuya was absolutely hilarious when we was drunk; Miyazawa Kenji was into p*rn magazines but tried to hide that like a child….)
plus, the chapters come with a bunch of cute and funny caricatures of the authors - that was a pleasure surprise for sure!
I’d 100% recommend this book if you’re into Japanese lit and author lore/gossip hehe
i’m glad i picked this up as learning about authors makes reading their stuff + stuff from their time period much more meaningful :D!
東京卍リベンジャーズ 16 by 和久井健
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
what in the world just happened this in insane
東京卍リベンジャーズ 15 by 和久井健
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
koko inu brainrot
that last scene with naoto and takemitchy was so good…….. madoka and homura second timeline vibes….. naoto pls come back
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death and Gun violence
ふたりの距離の概算 by 米澤 穂信
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
i swear oreki’s brain grows bigger and bigger with each book
oh man, what a joyful read to start off this year!! Kotenbu might be my new favorite book series <3
this instalment/arc was…. a curious one. oreki tries to solve the “why-did-our-new-and-only-kouhai-decide-to-leave-our-club and also why does she dislike chitanda” mystery all during a school marathon. it was super interesting to run (actually walk lol) alongside him while he pretty much made a psychological analysis of all of his 4 friends in order to solve the mystery. it was basically a back and forth of flashbacks (the surprise birthday part shall now live inside my head rent free ) and him complaining + asking his friends random questions that would all make sense in the end. quem nunca ne
this narrative format (?), introspective nature and the trademark mix of fluffy slice of life X mystery X heavier topics that make Kotenbu/Hyouka so unique all truly shine here!
now that I’ve read 5/6 of this series…. maybe the 6th book will have to wait for a while…. because i’m too emotionally attached to these characters…. ooops
oh man, what a joyful read to start off this year!! Kotenbu might be my new favorite book series <3
this instalment/arc was…. a curious one. oreki tries to solve the “why-did-our-new-and-only-kouhai-decide-to-leave-our-club and also why does she dislike chitanda” mystery all during a school marathon. it was super interesting to run (actually walk lol) alongside him while he pretty much made a psychological analysis of all of his 4 friends in order to solve the mystery. it was basically a back and forth of flashbacks (
this narrative format (?), introspective nature and the trademark mix of fluffy slice of life X mystery X heavier topics that make Kotenbu/Hyouka so unique all truly shine here!
now that I’ve read 5/6 of this series…. maybe the 6th book will have to wait for a while…. because i’m too emotionally attached to these characters…. ooops
quote spam (spoilers in japanese!!!)
「警戒するべきは千反田先輩じゃなくて、折木先輩だったのかあ」
「……なあ。千反田はどうしてお前が退部したと思ってるか、想像がつくか？」 もの言いたげな目をして、しかし答えは返らない。「あいつは、自分が携帯電話に勝手に触ったから、お前が怒って退部してしまったと思っている」
「信じられるか？ 高校二年生にもなって、泣きそうになりながら、本気でそんなこと言っているんだぞ。
「仲のいいひと見てるのが一番幸せなんです。それは本当。だからね、先輩。……この二ヶ月、あたしけっこう、救われてたんだと思う」
Content Warnings
Minor: Toxic friendship
人間失格 by 太宰治
the fact that this and Kokoro are the two most-read books in Japan is alarming at least.
I started reading this book right before a university entrance exam (Fuvest - the exam to get into Sao Paulo University) on Sunday and finished it the following Tuesday. (my summer break started with this!!! fun !) [UPDATE feb/2022: I actually wrote the essay for the second round of this exam using arguments/allusions from this book and got a 43.3/50, the highest score I got in a specific component of the exam! the essay was about “the different faces of laughter” and I immediately thought of the “clownery” that Yōzō uses to deceive others. I was in shock with that high of a grade bc half of my “argumentative” essay was basically me explaining and analyzing the plot/characters instead of Actually Arguing lol]
I think this might take the spot of "saddest book I've ever read".
between this and "Kokoro", I prefer the latter. both are Very Sad (and obviously Very Good), but (imo) the sadness in Kokoro comes from a man who has completely lost hope in humanity - we basically follow this old dude with a wild past who has just... given up. however, in No Longer Human, the sadness comes from the fact that the protagonist, Yozo, still wants to become human. he talks about himself as if he were some kind of imposter alien but deep down, just wants to feel something - and we must watch everything in his life go wrong. it's heartbreaking shit
I tried writing and condensing my thoughts but tbh my writing skills are no near capable of describing the sheer tragic geniality of this work. this is 100% the kind of book that I'll think about constantly
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
恥の多い生涯を送って来ました。 (Mine has been a life of much shame.)
神に問う。信頼は罪なりや。 (God, I ask you. Is trustfulness a sin?)
神に問う。無抵抗は罪なりや？ (God, I ask you, is non-resistance a sin?)
the fact that this and Kokoro are the two most-read books in Japan is alarming at least.
I started reading this book right before a university entrance exam (Fuvest - the exam to get into Sao Paulo University) on Sunday and finished it the following Tuesday. (my summer break started with this!!! fun !) [UPDATE feb/2022: I actually wrote the essay for the second round of this exam using arguments/allusions from this book and got a 43.3/50, the highest score I got in a specific component of the exam! the essay was about “the different faces of laughter” and I immediately thought of the “clownery” that Yōzō uses to deceive others. I was in shock with that high of a grade bc half of my “argumentative” essay was basically me explaining and analyzing the plot/characters instead of Actually Arguing lol]
I think this might take the spot of "saddest book I've ever read".
between this and "Kokoro", I prefer the latter. both are Very Sad (and obviously Very Good), but (imo) the sadness in Kokoro comes from a man who has completely lost hope in humanity - we basically follow this old dude with a wild past who has just... given up. however, in No Longer Human, the sadness comes from the fact that the protagonist, Yozo, still wants to become human. he talks about himself as if he were some kind of imposter alien but deep down, just wants to feel something - and we must watch everything in his life go wrong. it's heartbreaking shit
I tried writing and condensing my thoughts but tbh my writing skills are no near capable of describing the sheer tragic geniality of this work. this is 100% the kind of book that I'll think about constantly
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Child abuse, Death, and Death of parent
ブルーピリオド 10 by 山口つばさ
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this is officially my favorite volume
the shibuya date !!!! the yota introspection moment we've all been waiting for!!!!!!!!
honestly, this manga couldn't get any better. it's not exciting, hopeful, or happy by any means but it's just,, comforting? in a way? in a "no one really knows what they are doing with their lives but that's just how the world works" way? in a "maybe life has no true meaning and most of the time you're just sad but that's okay" way? idk. extremely specific blue vibes
(also. yotasuke so faz lacre atras de feche esse cara eh incrivel meu deus)
honestly, this manga couldn't get any better. it's not exciting, hopeful, or happy by any means but it's just,, comforting? in a way? in a "no one really knows what they are doing with their lives but that's just how the world works" way? in a "maybe life has no true meaning and most of the time you're just sad but that's okay" way? idk. extremely specific blue vibes
(also. yotasuke so faz lacre atras de feche esse cara eh incrivel meu deus)
Content Warnings
Minor: Gaslighting
ブルーピリオド９ by 山口つばさ
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
blue period manga supremacy. the anime really did the story wrong :/
damn. the whole thing surrounding Yotasuke is,,,, tense. the treatment Nekoyashiki sensei gets is terrible (seriously. why are men like that) and Yatora's internal conflicts feel so real. Yakumo carried everyone in this volume
damn. the whole thing surrounding Yotasuke is,,,, tense. the treatment Nekoyashiki sensei gets is terrible (seriously. why are men like that) and Yatora's internal conflicts feel so real. Yakumo carried everyone in this volume
Content Warnings
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Blood