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No one can look you in the eye and tell you that kids today don't read Japanese literature. A simple stroll by the manga section of any well-stocked bookstore will put your mind to rest on that particular matter. But what the kids aren't reading these days is Japanese prose. How many novels for kids, translated from Japanese, can you come up with off the top of your head? Living as we do at a time when children's literature is profitable and all encompassing, you would think that publishers woul...
Reminded me of Ursula LeGuin, but not as powerful. LeGuin's philosophy runs much deeper. Uehashi is a good storyteller with a painfully ordinary plot, and only a little bit of depth which I suspect will be deepened in the next books of the series.
Originally reviewed on Kirkus' Science Fiction & Fantasy Blog“Your Highness,” she said. “I’ve already explained that no matter how much you might give me, it’s no good to me if I’m dead. Forgive my rudeness, but I must speak plainly. You have dealt me an unfair and cowardly blow.”The queen went pale and began to tremble violently. “What do you mean?”“I saved the prince’s life, yet you reward me by taking my life. What would you call that but unfair and cowardly?”On the prosperous, island kingdom...
The Moribito (= Guardian) series is one of my favorite works, not only of Asian Fantasy, but of the fantasy genre in general. The world-building, the characters, the story, everything about it is not only, imho, original and creative, but also worked perfectly for me. I will try to express what fascinated me the first time I visited the worlds of Nayugu and Sagu, and what still impresses me after reading (and watching) the story multiple times.First of all there's the world-building. The book is...
I came to this book after having watched the anime and falling love with the characters and story. I was hoping that the book would be more expansive than the anime adaption, but in this case, it seems to be the other way round. Still, it was an enjoyable read and despite it quite evidently being aimed at younger readers, I'm glad to have it in my collection!
> 4.5 stars This book is slightly old now, and it was published in the time where diverse (and #ownvoices) fantasy often wasn’t given the time of the day, so it’s not that well-known either. But it’s brilliant, and needs more love! And as Asian fantasy and diverse fantasy overall is becoming so incredibly popular, with releases like Girls of Paper and Fire and Flame in the Mist, this novel is perfect for those looking for more Japanese fantasy. Moribito presents truly memorable characters in Ba
I really loved this book. Both Balsa and Chagum are great characters. I especially like that none of the characters tried to hide things from Chagum but rather included him in everything, even when it would hurt him emotionally.As far as the Japanese there are a lot of old-times/classical-ish Japanese being spoken by the royal characters but most of the chapters do not include them so it's not so bad. There's a lot of hiragana used in place of Kanji and every time a term is used again in a diffe...
Some things I liked about this book:- Balsa, the female heroine of this novel, is strong and battle-hardened yet still well-written - sadly unlike the vast majority of such characters- The main characters all could easily fall under the 'chosen one' trope, but didn't read like it. They just feel so overtly 'special', which made the story feel much more real.- There's a minor romance plotline, but it isn't forced in and just a nice little touch. In fact, it's not even a plotline. The love interes...
