Reviews

Library Wars: Love & War, Vol. 1 by Kiiro Yumi

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mehsi's review against another edition

5.0

Re-read 2021: Decided it was high time for a re-read! This was such a fun first volume though I felt sorry for Iku, she tries hard but she isn't so booksmart as others are. I liked that she never gives up. I love that she keeps fighting no matter how hard things get. Her friendship with Shibazaki was just the best and I love seeing them together. Dojo, not sure how I feel of him, I know he will change but it was really tough to read in this book. Plus, how does she not know who he is is hilarious and typical of manga.
Despite not having read this one in 7 years (almost to the date) I still remember that the next volume gets exciting, will be reading it soon!

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Review for when I re-read this one in 2014:

5 stars. Decided to re-read this one, since I now have Volume 1 to 5, and plan on reading this series fully.

I totally love this series. The anime was fantastic, and I have a good feeling that the manga will be even better. :)

The world setting is one that attracted me to the anime in the first place. A world where books are being censored, where books are taken from bookstores, where there is a war going on at times between two fronts. And I loved the idea of libraries as being the one protecting the books and having their own defence/attack force.

Then we have the characters, Iku and Dojo, who really, well this is no spoiler, like each other though they are both denying it and acting (in the case of Iku) as if she hates him. Iku is a wonderful character, though her hating/crushing on Dojo gets a bit annoying at times, I just wish she would be honest with herself. And her motivation to join the library forces. *snort* I can imagine the committee was laughing about that too.
The side-characters are fun too, and make the story more complete. And they all get a little bit of the spotlight, making them just as important as the main characters.

All in all, I know what is coming (I saw the anime and the movie), but I am still very much excited about it. Can't wait until we reach that point.

soforlorn's review against another edition

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4.0

it feels like you can’t really grasp the situation, the characters/what they’re going through don’t feel part of smth bigger or have a sense of urgency. slow start but fun nonetheless. loved the character dynamics

shortcakeriahhh's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

deanlockiradall's review against another edition

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"All the people have the right of access to library materials whenever they need them."

—Statement on Intellectual Freedom in Libraries, Japan Library Association

As Banned Book Week 2023 has come and gone, I am reminded of a series that I first read as an adolescent, but which rings even more hauntingly now. Library Wars: Love & War, drawn by Kiiro Yumi, is a manga (Japanese graphic novel) adapted from an award-winning light novel series by Hiro Arikawa. The light novels were originally published in the mid-2000s in Japan, with the manga first published in 2008 and its English translation (by Kinami Watabe) in 2010.

The story takes place in an alternate future Japan, not so different from our world, except for one key fact: censorship has become not only accepted, but widespread, enforced by a government agency called the Media Betterment Committee. This committee censors and restricts all media, including books. In response, libraries created Defense Forces, which protect libraries' freedom to acquire and circulate materials in their collections and to thereby resist censorship, a last bastion of intellectual freedom.

Iku Kasahara, an athletic airhead and passionate bookworm, is not only the first woman in her library's Defense Force, but also the first woman on the Task Force—an elite group of Defense Force members who are charged not just with protecting the library and its patrons, but also with day-to-day desk work done by non-combatant librarians and library staff. She has dreamed of joining the Defense Force ever since an agent saved one of her favorite books from censorship when she was a teenager. However, will her grumpy superior officer Sergeant Dojo and condescending fellow recruit Corporal Tezuka wear her down? (And how do you find that one book, anyway?!)

Inspired by the Japan Library Association's Statement on Intellectual Freedom in Libraries, Library Wars is a fun, light mix of science fiction, drama, workplace romance, and food for thought. While the reader learns, laughs, and struggles along with Iku, they simultaneously must consider the ethical quandaries of censorship, and where (or how, or if) a line must be drawn.

While the original Library Wars novels have not yet been translated into English, readers interested in Arikawa's work may enjoy The Traveling Cat Chronicles. For another fictional work centered around censorship, try Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. Fans of Library Wars may also enjoy the live action films and the anime adaptation of the same name.

theseventhl's review against another edition

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5.0

I loved it. LOVED it. Absolutely adored everything about it - the art, the humor, the drama, Iku, her relationship with Dojo (how do I love relationships between superiors and their subordinates that looks to develop into romance? ONLY A WHOLE LOT), and the entire world of the Library Forces. I cannot wait to read the next volume in this series!