Fruits Basket Volume 14

Fruits Basket Volume 14 by Natsuki Takaya

Another tear-jerker. This one was really focused, much more so than usual. There were only two main story lines, with a mother theme tying everything together. Very good.

Fruits Basket Volume 13

Fruits Basket Volume 13 by Natsuki Takaya

I’m reading them so fast now, I’m going to have to come back and read them again to really soak everything in. Of course, with the early ones it helped that I’d seen the anime. Mystery, suspense, romance, comedy… Ah, Fruits Basket.

Fruits Basket Volume 12

Fruits Basket Volume 12 by Natsuki Takaya

This one really made me cry. Laugh, too, of course – plenty and hard – but especially cry.

Fruits Basket Volume 11

Fruits Basket Volume 11 by Natsuki Takaya

So good!!!! More and more is being revealed, and things are coming to a head. This seems like the beginning of the end, and my mind is filled with the theme song. Oh, Fruits Basket! May your ending not be too sad! I’m sure Tohru will break the curse, I’m just afraid of what that might entail…

Fruits Basket Volume 10

Fruits Basket Volume 10 by Natsuki Takaya

The one has the cutest cover, since Kisa is on it. We are now definitely into story that took place post-anime. It’s so good… so hard to put down! People continue to be developed more – Hiro, Mayu (that friend of Kana’s, the girl Hatori used to go out with, whose memory was erased), Tohru, Yuki. As Tohru would say, if she were me… I love Fruits Basket!

Fruits Basket Volume 9

Fruits Basket Volume 9 by Natsuki Takaya

This volume… I can’t really tell you most of what it was about. It wasn’t about anything that’s covered in the anime, you see. It was good, of course. New things keep happening, new people are being introduced, interesting things are happening with old characters… good stuff. So hard to put down. Ooh, there was quite a bit more background for Hana. I really really liked that.

Fruits Basket Volume 8

Fruits Basket Volume 8 by Natsuki Takaya

This one started out with some non-anime material about Haru, and then went back to a bit of anime stuff, with the introduction of Ritsu, or as Tohru calls him, Ritchan-san. Then back again to non-anime stuff, with Tohru’s class told to write about their future goals… summer vacation begins, and another member of the zodiac, Rin, is very mysteriously introduced. Just in some conversation and a real quick scene at the end – Tohru doesn’t meet her yet. That’s volume 8!

Fruits Basket Volume 7

Fruits Basket Volume 7 by Natsuki Takaya

This one had lots of things that weren’t in the anime, and even the things that were in the anime, like the introduction of Hiro, are developed more fully here in the manga. This is where it gets hard to stop reading… so much new cute and sad awesome material! Hiro’s still annoying, of course. What he thinks makes you like him better than what he says. Mostly his sarcasm and smart remarks, which seem so odd in someone so young, just make him seem younger. Anyway, there’s a bit more explanation in the manga. Pieces of the story fit together. Akito, Hiro, Kisa… things that happened that made sense before make even more sense as we see more of the reasons behind them. And then there’s picking out a new swimsuit for Tohru, the girls from a Yankee gang who come looking for Uo and don’t exactly come away from it as they expect… starting out with some really bad crushes on Yuki and Kyo… (= And a lot more of Uo’s background. That was really good. Tohru and her mom are/were so awesome. Then there’s some stuff with Minagawa, the head of the Yuki fan club. Poor girl. One feels so embarassed for her… oh, and allusions to two members on the class council for next year. Very mysterious.

Fruits Basket Volume 6

Fruits Basket Volume 6 by Natsuki Takaya

This volume contains the introduction of Kyo’s master and father figure, Kazuma, and the climactic anime ending scenes with Kyo. Then there was some hinting about resulting emotions in Yuki and Kagura, but not much spelled out. And then it was back to stuff from earlier in the anime, as Yuki and Tohru visited Ayame’s shop.


“‘You don’t have to…love everything. It’s okay… …if you were scared. It’s okay…Because being scared… …is proof that you’re actually looking at my ugliness. But, Mom… you always told me that you loved me, but you wouldn’t even look at me. You wouldn’t even think about me. Did you really think it was enough to just talk like you loved me?’” -Kyo


“‘Yuki-kun! Some of the student council members were looking for you. Something about “doing things by the book.”’

‘Honda-san. I… I can tie my necktie faster than I used to. And I can somehow button my shirt better. And my vegetables don’t die as often. And I think… I’m more comfortable talking to people now. I know these are just little things… …but by doing them… …I think I’m getting closer to trying the things I couldn’t stand before. Even if it’s just a little bit at a time… …it’s helping me to work through my issues. Maybe I’ll be able to open the lid I’ve closed so tightly… …without being swallowed up. Maybe someday I can become that person… …that I told Kisa I would become. But I still have a long way to go. Honda-san… I’ve worried you.’

‘!’

‘I’m sorry.’

‘Eh?! Oh no, you don’t have to do that! I just…!’

‘[I’m st]*ill… so pathetic.’

‘?!!’

‘There’s still a lot… …that I’m not ready to tell you… …Honda-san. But… …I will. Little… …by little. I’ll gain the courage… …to tell you.’

‘Okay.’”

*ink blot on the page or something, I’m guessing on the part in brackets.

Fruits Basket Volume 5

Fruits Basket Volume 5 by Natsuki Takaya

This volume was about: Golden Week and the trip to the summer home by the lake, including Shigure and Hatori, and Ayame a little later on; Ayame offering Hatori pictures from Kana’s wedding; the introduction of Kisa and Yuki’s acceptance of the role of student body president; the Yuki Fan Club’s trip to Hana’s house; Tohru getting sick after she found out she needed to take a make-up test.


“‘B- But I’ve already been treated to a trip once this year, so…’

‘Ah! But I didn’t go with you that time!’ Sigh… ‘Truthfully, Tohru-kun… …my heart longed to go with you… I felt so left out…’

‘All right, then. Let’s go!!’

‘DON’T MANIPULATE HER!!’” –Tohru, Shigure, Tohru, and Kyo & Yuki


“‘I was looking… …for her.’

‘! What a cute kitty!!’

‘I thought she’d say that…’” –Hatsuharu, Tohru, and Yuki
[Just like me! (= ]


“‘I think… …when you hear someone say they like you, for the first time… …then you can begin to like yourself. I think when someone accepts you, for the first time… …you feel like you can… …forgive yourself a little. You can begin to face your fears… with courage.’

‘…Yeah. Yeah. Yeah… I was so hap.. …py…’

‘Ki…’

‘Kisa. Kisa, what do you… want to do next? Do you think it’s okay to stay like this?’

‘No… never… I have to… try my best… …or I’ll… become… …worse and… worse. Even if I can’t make up with them… even…if they all ignore me. Even if my heart… …is still seen as inferior. I still have to… …try my best.’

‘That’s right… Someday… …I’ll have to stand up for my worthless self. Let’s try our best. I’ll try, too. And if you get sad again… …or if things get too rough… …come here. Here… Is where she is.’” –Yuki, Kisa, Haru, Yuki, Kisa, and Yuki (I think)


“‘You’re not Tohru-san and Arisa-san… Are you new friends of Saki…?’

‘No, they happen to go to the same school, and happen to have the same gender, but they are complete strangers.’

‘Is she being sarcastic?!’” –Megumi (Hana’s brother), Hana-chan, and Motoko Minagawa (head of the Prince Yuki Fan Club)
Nope, she’s not.


“‘… … Actually. …I was a little… …jealous, too… It felt like the Sohma family had taken Tohru-kun from me. It left me feeling… …lonely. But… “Respect the other person’s feelings.” You are right. That’s why I cannot be selfish… I mustn’t be like those three…’

‘You can learn from their bad example…’” –Hana-chan and Megumi, speaking of the Yuki Fan Club


“‘……… Sheesh… You’re hopeless… You know, you’ll end up with a fever if you keep that… …up…. DO YOU HAVE A FEVER?! WAIT A SECOND—DID YOU GET A FEVER RIGHT AFTER I SAID IT?! That’s dangerous! And confusing!!’

‘Hauehh…’” –Kyo and Tohru


“‘This… This means…’

‘Hey! Eat! Now! Your fever’s never gonna go down!’

‘…He’s trying… …to cheer me up! It really is delicious.’

‘…… There’s no way that tastes good. Not at all, compared to… …your cooking. ……… You being level-headed would be creepy.’” –Tohru and Kyo

Fruits Basket Volume 4

Fruits Basket Volume 4 by Natsuki Takaya

This volume had the following scenes: the bit with Kyo telling Tohru not to zone out when she’s alone, Momiji and Hatsuharu starting at Tohru’s school (Momiji in a girl’s uniform), Akito coming to the school and a bit of Yuki’s background, the introduction of Ayame, the anniversary of Tohru’s mom’s death and the introduction of Momiji’s mother.


“‘If someone can cause those scars… …there is sure to be someone… …who can heal them. That fact gives me more than a little courage.’” –Shigure to Hatori, about Yuki.

“‘Skin him. Now. Barbecue the bastard!!’” –Yuki, talking to Shigure, referring to Ayame, when he first shows up

“‘Tohru-kun… …has tried really hard. She’s been able to keep smiling for a whole year. I’m sure she scolded herself every time she was about to get depressed. I… …if Tohru-kun were to die, I… …I wonder if I’d be able to smile again… …or if I’d wish… …that I could forget ever having met her?’” –Uo-chan (I think – it could be Hana-chan, the pictures weren’t extremely clear on that)

“‘…I want… …to live with all my memories. Even if they’re sad memories. Even if they’re memories that only hurt me. Even… …even if they’re memories that I’d rather forget. If I keep them and keep trying, without running away… …if I keep trying, then someday… …someday I’ll be strong enough that those memories can’t defeat me. I believe that. I want to… …believe that. Because I want to think… …that there’s no such thing… …as a memory that’s okay to forget. That’s why… …that’s why I really… …didn’t want mama to forget. I wanted her to keep trying. But… …that was my selfishness.’” –Momiji

“‘I also… …believe that. I want to take any memory… …and hold it in my heart… …and believe that. … So I can be someone who won’t let those memories defeat me. Someday… …we’ll overcome the pain… …and we’ll have precious memories.’” –Tohru


And a couple explanations from the editor:

“1) In Japan, one of the names for a seahorse translates literally to ‘baby dragon.’ This is how Hatori refers to himself. Japanese dragons are traditionally associated with the sea, so the bizarre seahorse became associated with the mythical creatures.

2) It’s too early to say who the chicken and the horse signs might be, but yes, they do show up in the manga. The anime covers the first 8 volumes of manga, but as of now, the manga is up to 14 volumes in Japan!” –Editor

Fruits Basket Volume 3

Fruits Basket Volume 3 by Natsuki Takaya

Since I just read Telling the Truth, I realized that Fruits Basket is a fairy tale. For example, at the beginning of the story Tohru stumbles across the supernatural, a normal feature of fairy tales. Transformation, another one, is very obviously there, both in the animal transformations and as Tohru slowly heals everyone.

This one contains the introduction of Hatsuharu-san at the school distance run, the introduction of Kagura on Valentine’s Day, and the White Day hot springs present for Tohru. I found out that there’s a name for a “portrait of a deceased person” – iei. Anyone who’s seen Fruits Basket can figure out how that came up.


“‘Hey, Hanajima-san…! I bet you did great.’

‘Really?’

‘Yeah! Well, you sure look smart, and people say you can sense waves or something. How did you do on last semester’s finals?’

‘Let’s see… I think… …I had to take supplementary lessons every day… …and my parents were called in for conferences… Yes, mother was crying…’

‘That’s… I mean… What about your sixth sense?’

A sixth sense cannot make up for a total lack of common sense.’” –random student and Hanajima


“To pay for… the valentine’s… chocolate…?

‘YOU ID—’

‘Kyo-kun?!’

‘….. The bath… you… go…’

‘Huh…? Ah… oh…’

‘Very good, very good. You controlled your anger well.’” –Kyo, Tohru, and Shigure (This refers, of course, to Kyo realizing that Tohru spent all her money on the chocolate for them, and telling her to accept their White Day present and go to the onsen. It’s so much better with the pictures.)


“‘I don’t know if you care whether or not I go… but…’

‘No, no, I do care!’

‘?!’

‘It will be so much more fun with you there! I’m so happy!! Thank you so much! I’m so happy! Thank you so much!’

‘….. you… …you really are… ….. …hopeless.’” –Kyo and Tohru

Telling the Truth

Telling the Truth: The Gospel as Tragedy, Comedy, and Fairy Tale by Frederick Buechner

I had this one written already too, and my review of Fruits Basket Volume 3 references it. And so the spree lengthens. If I'm posting too much all at once for you, well... deal with it. (= Just come finish reading some other time.

Although I didn’t realize it when I checked it out from the library (or rather, had John check it out for me from the library), this book is apparently about preaching. It’s about preaching in a very general sense though, and has plenty to say to those who aren’t preachers.

I first discovered Buechner in Foundations of Global Studies, when we had to read The Sacred Journey. Buechner is farther to the left than I or most of my readers, but I really enjoy him. And I think, coming from farther to the left as he does, and speaking to an audience he assumes is farther to the left, the things he says which seem the “worst” to me are not always as bad as they appear at first. With a different worldview, the chosen language is a little different.

He’s not the best at exegesis. He’s wonderful at evoking, at coming up with what I might call “emotional truths.” I wish he were better at the more intellectual truths, since I think they and the emotional truths should be happily married, but he is so good at the emotional truths I cannot abandon him. That said, here are several long quotes. I’m sorry, sometimes it annoys me when people quote and quote and quote a book in a review, so that the whole thing takes forever to read, but he has a way of writing long sentences that make the quotes hard to shorten. And I like these ones and want to share them. Hopefully they’re good enough that you won’t be too annoyed.


“The pressure on the preacher, of course, is to speak just the answer. The answer is what people have come to hear and what he has also come to hear, preaching always as much to himself as to anybody, to keep his spirits up. He has to give an answer because everybody else is giving answers. Transcendental meditation is an answer, and the Democratic party is an answer, or the Republican party, and acupuncture and acupressure are answers, and so are natural foods, yogurt, and brown rice. Yoga is an answer and transactional analysis and jogging. The pressure on the preacher is to promote the Gospel, to sell Christ as an answer that outshines all the other answers by talking up the shining side, by calling even the day of his death Good Friday when if it was good, it was good only after it was bad, the worst of all Fridays.”


“Given the vulnerability of man and the pitiless storm of the world, tragedy is bound to happen. Given the sinfulness of man and the temptation of the world to sin, tragedy is bound to happen. Man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward, Job says, and there is an inevitability to the tears we shed over it. They are part of what it means to be human. But the announcement of the angel is just the reverse of that.

They are going to have a baby after all. It is just what was bound not to happen… It all happened not of necessity, not inevitably, but gratuitously, freely, hilariously. And what was astonishing, gratuitous, hilarious was, of course, the grace of God. What could they do but laugh at the preposterousness of it, and they laughed until the tears ran down their cheeks.

The tragic is the inevitable. The comic is the unforeseeable.”


“Switching on the lectern light and clearing his throat, the preacher speaks both the word of tragedy and the word of comedy because they are both of them of the truth and because Jesus speaks them both, blessed be he. The preacher tells the truth by speaking of the visible absence of God because if he doesn’t see and own up to the absence of God in the world, then he is the only one there who doesn’t see it, and who then is going to take him seriously when he tries to make real what he claims also to see as the invisible presence of God in the world? Sin and grace, absence and presence, tragedy and comedy, they divide the world between them and where they meet head on, the Gospel happens. Let the preacher preach the Gospel of their preposterous meeting as the high, unbidden, hilarious thing it is.”


“To moralize or allegorize these tales or to explain them as having to do with sexual awakening or the successful resolution of Oedipal conflicts is not so much to go too far with them as it is not to go far enough because beneath whatever with varying degrees of success they can be shown to mean, and beneath the specific events and adventures they describe, what gives them their real power and meaning is the world they evoke. It is a world of magic and mystery, of deep darkness and flickering starlight. It is a world where terrible things happen and wonderful things too. It is a world where goodness is pitted against evil, love against hate, order against chaos, in a great struggle where often it is hard to be sure who belongs to which side because appearances are endlessly deceptive. Yet for all its confusion and wildness, it is a world where the battle goes ultimately to the good, who live happily ever after, and where in the long run everybody, good and evil alike, becomes known by his true name.”


“The truth is all the sounds that well up within the preacher as he sits down at his desk to put his sermon together – the sounds of the bills to be paid, the children to educate, the storm windows to put up, the sounds of his own blunders and triumphs, of his lusts and memories and dreams and doubts, any one of which when you come right down to it is apt to seem more real and immediate and clamorous to him than the sound of truth as high and wild and holy. So homiletics become apologetics. The preacher exchanges the fairy-tale truth that is too good to be true for a truth that instead of drowning out all the other truths the world is loud with is in some kind of harmony with them. He secularizes and makes rational. He adapts and makes relevant. He demythologizes and makes credible. And what remains of the fairy tale of the Gospel becomes in his hands a fairy tale not unlike The Wizard of Oz.”


“The Wizard of Oz is the fairy tale dehumbugged, and the good news it bears is the good news that hard and conscientious effort and a little help from our friends pay off in the end, and faith is its own reward… As for the one who promises to save the world, he is in the richest sense a good man to be sure, but like the little bald man behind the screen, when you come right down to it not all that much of a wizard. His goodness, his love, his simple eloquence, touch our hearts and illumine our darkness across the centuries, but for all of that, both we and our world remain basically untransformed…

…The peace that passeth all understanding is reduced to peace that anybody can understand. The faith that can move mountains and raise the dead becomes faith that can help make life bearable until death ends it. Eternal life becomes a metaphor for the way the good a man does lives after him. ‘Blessed is he who takes no offense at me’ (Matt. 11:6), Jesus says, and the preacher is apt to seek to remove the offense by removing from the Gospel all that he believes we find offensive. You cannot blame him because up to a point, of course, he is right. With part of ourselves we are offended as he thinks by what is too much for us to believe. We weren’t born yesterday. We are from Missouri.

But we are also from somewhere else. We are from Oz, from Looking-Glass Land, from Narnia, and from Middle Earth. If with part of ourselves we are men and women of the world and share the sad unbeliefs of the world, with a deeper part still, the part where our best dreams come from, it is as if we were indeed born yesterday, or almost yesterday, because we are also all of us children still. No matter how forgotten and neglected, there is a child in all of us who is not just willing to believe in the possibility that maybe fairy tales are true after all but who is to some degree in touch with that truth. You pull the shade on the snow falling, white on white, and the child comes to life for a moment. There is a fragrance in the air, a certain passage of a song, an old photograph falling out from the pages of a book, the sound of somebody’s voice in the hall that makes your heart leap and fills your eyes with tears. Who can say when or how it will be that something easters up out of the dimness to remind us of a time before we were born and after we will die? The child in us lives in a world where nothing is too familiar or unpromising to open up into the world where a path unwinds before our feet into a deep wood, and when that happens, neither the world we live in nor the world that lives in us can ever entirely be home again any more than it was home for Dorothy in the end either because in the Oz books that follow The Wizard, she keeps coming back again and again to Oz because Oz, not Kansas, is where her heart is, and the wizard turns out to be not a humbug but the greatest of all wizards after all.”

Fruits Basket Volume 2

Fruits Basket Volume 2 by Natsuki Takaya

Time for a Fruits Basket review posting spree! See, I have most of them written, just not posted yet. And I actually wanted to write about volumes 16 and 17, but the only one I've posted on here before is for volume 1. So here goes.

To give a very general overview of this particular volume of Fruits Basket for those who have seen the anime, it tells about Uo and Hana coming over to check out Tohru’s living arrangements, the culture fest (with the surprise onigiri and Tohru talking about umeboshi on people’s backs and the dress for Yuki), the introductions of Momiji-kun and Hatori-san, Tohru’s trip to the main house and Hatori and Kana’s story, the New Year’s Banquet, Hatori’s change to seahorse and more of his and Kana’s story. Here are a few of the quotes I wrote down. May they remind you of their scenes and cause you to smile. Italics, by the way, mean the person is only thinking, not speaking (I assume, since italics generally appear without a speech balloon); or that they’re telling about what someone else is saying or has said, as in this first quote.


“‘People around the world are like onigiri. Everyone has an umeboshi with a different shape and color and flavor. But because it’s stuck on their back… …they might not be able to see their umeboshi. “There’s nothing special about me. I’m just white rice.” That’s not true. There is an umeboshi – on your back. Maybe… …the reason people get jealous of each other… …is because they can see so clearly the umeboshi on other people’s backs. I can see them, too. I can see them perfectly. There’s an amazing umeboshi… …on your back, Kyo-kun. Sohma-kun is wonderful. Kyo-kun… …is wonderful, too.’

‘…! Th-- That’s exactly what I’m talking about! Where do you come up with that stuff? And why does it have to be an umeboshi? Some metaphor!’

'I-I’m sorry. Should I have used salmon?’

tweee ‘Ah! Oh, the kettle…’

‘……… …hey. You know… …there’s one on your back too. An umeboshi. I can see it.’

…‘Really? Really?!’

‘It’s a little plum. A reeeeeally tiny one.’

‘I love little plums!’” –Tohru & Kyo


“Hana-chan opened a fortune-telling booth. ‘Um… are Yuki-kun and I compatible?’

‘No. You should give up on him for your own safety.’”


Kyo, staring at a cat-shaped onigiri: ‘If I eat this, does it make me a cannibal?’


“‘…I’m just so glad… …I got to meet everyone. Even if I am being used for some purpose… …giving me the life I have now… …I want to say thank you. I will never regret… …that I got involved. I never could. I’m the way I am now… …because of Sohma-kun and the others.’

‘What about me…? Are you happy you met me?’

‘Of course!’

‘Tohru is like a mutti – she makes me feel safe!’

‘Mutti?’” –Tohru, Momiji


“‘Do I… do I have to do anything?’

‘You… just need to be you. As for the rest… I think it’s still too early to tell you. I’m sorry.’

‘The Sohma family. I feel like I’ve learned a lot… …and yet, I haven’t learned a thing. I have a strange feeling about today.’” –Tohru, Shigure

Yes, Tohru doesn’t need to know her fairy tale task. Her particular umeboshi brings healing to relationships without her even really trying.


“‘Why didn’t I realize? How could I miss that? So at peace, all by herself… NO ONE’S LIKE THAT. I want to go home. I want to go home right now.’” Yuki & Kyo together


“‘But I do understand why they’d want to skip out… Even I have things I can’t stand. And sometimes even I want to run away…’

‘No, no, this year, I don’t think… …it’s because they’re trying to run away.’” –Haru & Shigure


“‘Why would I give him to you?! I don’t need you! You can’t even break the curse! I don’t need you! I don’t! I don’t!’” –Akito to Kana about Hatori

Very un-Tohru! What a sad way to evaluate people.

Ultra Maniac Volume 5

Ultra Maniac Volume 5 by Wataru Yoshizumi

And so it ends. And everything works out. It was pretty simple, really. I think the love triangle issue that had me most perplexed in the beginning was just because I didn't realize when someone was first introduced that Nina's about as main of a character as Ayu, so someone being portrayed as really cool doesn't necessarily mean that Ayu needs to end up with him. All the other issues were solved fairly simply. Well, except for Nina's big decision in this volume. Not related to who she would choose, but still a major choice. I thought she was very mature about it. Eventually. Also, Hiroki's officially my favorite character. "'Who are you?'" Heh.

Ultra Maniac Volume 4

Ultra Maniac Volume 4 by Wataru Yoshizumi

This volume was mostly about Sayaka. Yay! She's pretty awful during part of the volume, but hey, I told you she was like Rin. There are only a few complications left for the last volume. And then there's an extra at the end about the author's trip to Kenya. That was good. I liked the part about how they started calling zebras "ordinaries," and then "ords." I also liked the bit about the herd of losers. Heh heh. I guess you'll just have to read it. (Since I'm too lazy to be helpful.)

Dragon Prince

Dragon Prince (Dragon Prince #1) by Melanie Rawn

This book was way better than I expected. See, my expectations were low because it's an older fantasy, '80s I think, and yet I haven't read it, nor have people told me to. How good could it be? Apparently rather. It's even somewhat unique. It's one of the more political fantasies, concerned with balance of power between rulers and such, and it was fairly well done. Seemed slightly contrived at one point towards the end, but forgivably so. And there were some points where the author seemed a bit naive about the ease of shifting from power based on war to power based in law. I mean, I haven't studied creation of more civilized societies, but I know that even after civilization, war's still pretty darn prevalent. Made me think of "The War to End All Wars." On the other hand, on further reading, I think some of the naivete may have been the character's, not the author's, and she may not have meant it quite how I took it. At any rate, it was an enjoyable read.

“She could never take you from me. The only one who could do that is you—and I will never give you up or let you go.” -Sioned to Rohan about Ianthe

This was said after a rather awful thing happened, and I was very glad of it. It was goodness in the midst of darkness.

Ultra Maniac Volume 3

Ultra Maniac Volume 3 by Wataru Yoshizumi

A little more of the magic mishaps again in this one. There were a lot in volume 1, not so many in volume 2. Now they're back, at first. This was Yoshizumi's first fantasy though, and writing it began as a challenge for her, I think, and then became a means to an end in telling her story. So there's one romantic mishap, and then a bit later the volume really starts to unfold, when Nina, a little carelessly, changes her cat back from its human form, and someone sees her. He confronts her about it, and eventually, after being reminded that he was nice to her and loaned her manga ("'Plus, he lent me his Doraemon manga.' 'You blabbed the world's biggest secret... because of manga?'"), she admits the truth. And that leads to more amusing pet troubles! This time with his cat. A bit awkward too, wow... The Sayaka storyline also begins in this volume. I really like her story (although it's barely started yet, and it's the parts yet to come that are the best). It reminds me a bit of Fruits Basket. If Sayaka were a Fruits Basket character, who would she be? In circumstances, she's a little like Kyo, but her personality and defensive mechanisms remind me more of Rin. I love Rin.

Ultra Maniac Volume 2

Ultra Maniac Volume 2 by Wataru Yoshizumi

More of the fun. New characters are introduced -- Nina's cat, and Yuta. And there's an extra short story at the end about the pets that's great! So funny. Embarrassed and offended and hee hee! ::grin:: Anyway, love triangle stuff starts developing quite a bit in this one, and of course the magic camera that takes pictures of who people like (told you they were junior highers) makes things even worse, but there's also some nice finally getting together stuff. Cute and fun. Of course.

Ultra Maniac Volume 1

Ultra Maniac Volume 1 by Wataru Yoshizumi

Oh, the cuteness! For those who have seen Sugar (certain family members), the plot of Ultra Maniac seems very similar in the first volume. Only instead of a fairy, it's a drop-out from the Magic Kingdom, Nina, who has "annoyingly" attached herself to the main character, Ayu (always called "Ayu dear", but we know they mean "Ayu-chan"). Well, it would be annoying -- she doesn't just make Ayu late, like Sugar -- she tends to try to help Ayu by casting magical spells with disastrous consequences. The characters act very much like junior highers, especially in their methods of dealing with boy obsessions, but somehow, unlike real junior highers, it's very cute and funny and generally warm and fuzzy. Recommended. I might just look into getting the anime on Netflix, too.

Destiny

Destiny: Child of the Sky (Symphony of Ages #3) by Elizabeth Haydon

The characters still seemed a little off in this one. Maybe more so than in the last. But still, I greatly anticipated certain scenes and eagerly read to the end. Some "offness" by no means ruined it for me. I won't say much about the bits of time travel that exist in the series, so as not to spoil things, but I will acknowledge that minimal time travel exists. That way I can tell you that it deals with time travel (such as there is) better than anything else I've ever read (that I can think of, anyway). Short of making fun of the whole thing, like Douglas Adams or Bill and Ted's, there are just so many pitfalls. This series took a rather different tack (again, purposely vague), and seems to have sidestepped most of the difficulties. Many kudos.

Latina est gaudium!

I just found the best motto ever, although John might not agree. Something about me being obsessed and addicted...

"Otium sine litteris mors est." -Seneca

It means, "Leisure without litterature is death."

Prophecy

Prophecy: Child of Earth (Symphony of Ages #2) by Elizabeth Haydon

Sequel to Rhapsody, which I reviewed in July. I also finished this one in July, so I'm slightly fuzzy on the details now. One thing I know -- the thing we've all been waiting for finally happened. But we're also still waiting for it. Gaah. I think the characters may have started to feel a little more flat to me in this one. Not sure if it was this or the next. They feel a little forced, a little too much told instead of shown. Ah well.

“‘Achmed?’
‘Yes?’
Her voice was a weak whisper. ‘Will you keep singing until I’m better?’
‘Yes.’
‘Achmed?’
‘What?’ He leaned forward to catch the soft words.
‘I’m better.’”

Eclipse

Eclipse (Twilight #3) by Stephenie Meyer

10-11-11 Edit: Now that I have the page of alphabetical book reviews and it's easier to find these old reviews than it used to be, I feel the need to add caveats. Now that the series is so popular, and given some of the fans, some of the things I said in these reviews make me cringe today. I am not a complete moron. I swear. I have good friends and people I highly respect who loathe the series with an abiding passion. I do not. But I can see why you do. I am not going to defend the series here and now, but I will say that I would have been more cautious and defensive in my praise if I had posted these reviews later than I did.

And so it continues. One more book to savor, er, gobble up, and then we have to wait a year for the next one to come out. It doesn't leave you hanging, though. It's just obvious that there's more story to tell.

Towards the end of this book I realized these are the most moral vampire books ever. It makes me happy. Heck, they're more moral than most non-vampire books. I think Stephenie Meyer is Mormon. The worldview does have some things in common with evangelical Christianity, I guess. I wish one's afterlife rested in more than a pair of giant scales, but I don't expect that from most books.

This book also fleshes out the love story quite a bit. It adds commitment and sacrifice to the ideal love, so it's not just attraction. There was some of that in the other books, especially the second one, but a choice in this one adds significantly. After you've read Eclipse, read Stephenie Meyer's thoughts on the subject. Scroll down to the fifth question, the one about true love. That made me appreciate it even more.

And here's a fairly negative review from a fan, well thought out. Again, read after reading Eclipse. She makes some interesting points. She also mentions one that practically everyone has said, that the characters don't make good role models. Yes. We've known that since day one. It disturbs us a bit, but we still like the books. Yes, they do need to be read intelligently, not blindly. With the extensive references to Romeo and Juliet and Wuthering Heights (which I haven't read yet, but I've gathered a few things), it should be obvious these are not necessarily people you want teen kids to imitate. They did give me a little bit more sympathy than I'd previously had for Romeo and Juliet, but still. Meyer herself talks about the characters' fatal flaws. She doesn't list everything some of us would, but I'm okay with that too.

The review reminded me that I was going to mention the ironies in the werewolves' attitudes towards the vampires. I don't remember specifics at the moment, but it seemed like many things the werewolves said about the vampires was not true of those particular vampires, but was true of the werewolves. I'm assuming this was intentional on Stephenie Meyer's part and that it'll be more explicitly dealt with later.

New Moon

New Moon (Twilight #2) by Stephenie Meyer

10-11-11 Edit: Now that I have the page of alphabetical book reviews and it's easier to find these old reviews than it used to be, I feel the need to add caveats. Now that the series is so popular, and given some of the fans, some of the things I said in these reviews make me cringe today. I am not a complete moron. I swear. I have good friends and people I highly respect who loathe the series with an abiding passion. I do not. But I can see why you do. I am not going to defend the series here and now, but I will say that I would have been more cautious and defensive in my praise if I had posted these reviews later than I did.

Continues in the same vein as Twilight, but especially shows off how good Stephenie Meyer is at describing feelings and internal struggles. Seriously, this book is dangerous if you don't have time for one or two sittings. There's a lot of sadness in this one, and if you stop in the middle of it you may be pretty depressed, and not just because you'd rather be reading than whatever it is you have to do! I guess I may have been affected more than some people would be, since Empathy is one of my strengths according to Gallup, and I had memories this was tapping into. But still, this is a powerful one.

Twilight

Twilight (Twilight #1) by Stephenie Meyer

10-11-11 Edit: Now that I have the page of alphabetical book reviews and it's easier to find these old reviews than it used to be, I feel the need to add caveats. Now that the series is so popular, and given some of the fans, some of the things I said in these reviews make me cringe today. I am not a complete moron. I swear. I have good friends and people I highly respect who loathe the series with an abiding passion. I do not. But I can see why you do. I am not going to defend the series here and now, but I will say that I would have been more cautious and defensive in my praise if I had posted these reviews later than I did.

I really really liked this book. It's romance and suspense, with very very large doses of both. It did have a fault -- the love story seemed too intense, too unrealistic. Even for a teenager, I think. But... I'm not actually quite sure I would change that. Because, given the intensity, given who the characters are, and given the supernatural world, all the consequences are perfect. Once you have all those premises, what follows is extremely realistic, both from a fictional and a nonfictional (is that a word?) perspective. Nonfictionally (heh), certain steps naturally lead to certain results; fictionally, this love creates enough problems for it to work. We don't believe stories where everything goes right, you know. You're allowed to use coincidences to create problems for your characters, but not to solve the problems. When it comes to suspension of disbelief, we have trouble believing things like a perfect love, but throw in enough resulting chaos, and everything feels nice and realistic once again! Sad, but true. A symptom of living in a fallen world, I suppose. Anything true has to address that as well as hope.

And well, I've never fallen in love with a vampire. Maybe it would be that intense. I hate to give away that falling in love with a vampire is part of the story, but I don't think you can read anything about this book without finding that out. And I've already mentioned it to many of you in person. And it's obvious fairly early on, if not stated outright. Anyway, even with the mushiness, it's a delight to read. For one thing, the main character is now one of my favorite fictional characters. She's awesome. She has enough practicality and prose about her to compensate for the romance, and is still nerdy enough for people like me to love her. And then, of course, the suspense will keep you reading. And ok, I'll admit, I enjoyed the romance. Yes, a part of my brain was saying, "This is too unrealistic. I'll have to mention that on my blog." But the other part of me was being a normal woman and enjoying it! Unlike some movies, like Sleepless in Seattle, the couple actually spends time together before the end of the story! Whoa! What a concept! Heh.

Melanie's right and our fascination with vampires is disturbing, but... well, at the very least, this book is much less disturbing than other vampire stories out there. And keep in mind, Melanie, that Dr. Reynolds LOVES Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. It is possible to have a good story about vampires, even one that isn't just about killing them. Twilight may not seem to be in the same category, but this is only the beginning. New Moon and Eclipse, coming up.

Light

These are my pictures for the month. I guess September wasn't very eventful. I put this first one on deviantart. As I explained on there, every day at work around closing time the light slants through the windows and tempts my camera. So I start experimenting. The water bottle's probably my favorite, which is why I put it on deviantart. Of course.

















This is the shop door.








On this one I decided to focus the camera elsewhere, so it wouldn't automatically darken the picture. It's just my lunch bag, though...














Speaking of "just my __", here's another water bottle. It was glowing. Not sure that it stands out quite as much in the picture.