Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About GentleRain

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Your jack of all trades eccentric. Knows a little about a lot and a lot about a little. Tends to mainly read non-fiction (history, true crime, old gossip, etc), SF/F, horror, graphic novels, "genre" books. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: GentleRain's Quick Questions interview.)

GentleRain's Reviews:

“It’s–true?” she called faintly. “It’s true?” And for the first time her voice rose strong enough to penetrate the door. “Oh, God–is it true?”

Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco

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I got this thanks to becoming aware of Valancourt Books and their publishing efforts to reprint classic horror (and other genres). My generous mom got me several titles for Christmas, and I was excited to see Burnt Offerings. I saw the movie a while ago, mainly because I love horror, Oliver Reed, and Bette Davis and from my recollections it was quite scary and in line with the novel. I could go on at length here about Oliver Reed’s ability to play fatherly and menacing so […]

“You remind me of those bullies:” Bullying Purporting to be Romance

Sick by Tomo Kurahashi

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Sick starts off with Sudou feeling confident and happy in his social status, as he’s rich and popular on campus. However, he finds himself teasing and bullying the other student in his science course, with their opening scene together being Sudou tripping Kishi to the ground and smirking. Something about Kishi makes Sudou want to torment him, to the point that he invites him out to group drinks, then corners him alone in the bathroom and starts kissing and groping him. Sudou’s friend points out […]

“No one could ever truly love a twisted person like me as an equal.”

Training Mister Sakurada by Kaya Azuma

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I have been reading a lot of BL lately, so I think a good chunk of my reviews will end up being on this topic this year. I am not usually a romance novel reader, but I love a gay romance comic. I’ve been into this genre since the first manga boom of the early 2000s when everything was shrinkwrapped and the majority of the titles getting translated had terrible art for some reason, so it’s been nice to survey the scene in 2023 and […]

“Drawing is completely useless…”

Look Back by Tatsuki Fujimoto

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I re-read this today while I was organizing my bookcases and considering whether or not to keep it. After the re-read, I’ve decided it can remain, so it’s been granted a stay of execution for now. Look Back is a one-volume manga about the friendship and working relationship of Fujino and Kyomoto. The two women meet in grade school, during which they both do comic strips for the school newspaper. Kyomoto is a shut-in and Fujino is sent to bring her her middle school diploma. […]

Bittersweet Coming of Age Manga

The Golden Sheep Vol. 1-3 by Kaori Ozaki

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Reading this was a good way to start the new year. The Golden Sheep is a three volume series that follows Tsugu as she returns to her childhood town after her parents get divorced. She is excited to reunite with her three childhood friends and get back to their previous closeness. However, while she’s been away dynamics have shifted and her reappearance riles things up. Tsugu expects things to have remained the same, but the friendship between the two boys (Yuushin and Sora) has turned […]

Rounding Out the Year With Some Manga

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (Deluxe Edition Vol. 1) by Hitoshi Ashinano

Fourth Generation Head: Tatsuyuki Oyamato by Scarlet Beriko

Pure Love's Sexy Time by Psyche Delico

4Town 4Real by Dirchansky and KAIfee

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These four volumes span the genres from YA to adult, which I think highlights the great flexibility and richness of the medium. I’ve been on a real manga kick lately and it’s always so fun going to the bookstore and finding stuff that wasn’t on my radar. We’re really in a golden age of translation right now and I’m hopeful that it will only keep going from here. Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou is a series I’ve been reading for a long time and I was happy […]



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