My Love Story! Vol. 1

Gr 7 Up—Takeo is big and manly in a macho kind of way. His best friend, Sunakawa, is handsome in a pretty/pointy-haired way, which means that girls always find him attractive. One day Takeo rescues a girl named Yamato from a groper on the train, and she starts falling in love with him. Unfortunately for Takeo, he is too dense to realize this and spends most of the story convinced that Yamato is really in love with Sunakawa. This event and the subsequent misunderstandings make up about 90 percent of the plot, but then there is a twist at the end that takes the romantic story in a much different direction (avid manga readers won't be quite so surprised). Aruko's illustrations capture and heighten the farcical nature of the tale, to the extent that Takeo often looks ugly to the point of ridicule. In an author's note, Kawahara shares that she thinks the protagonist is handsome, but readers might find themselves repelled or at least distracted by his bushy eyebrows, big forehead, and enormous lips. This is a quick read for manga fans who are looking for a light and simple work but not for deep characterization.—Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library