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sandraagee's review against another edition
4.0
I'm absolutely convinced that if I were to write a children's book, I'd write about libraries. Every library in the US would purchase a copy because we librarians have just as much vanity about the awesomeness of our jobs as the next person - perhaps more because our jobs actually are that awesome.
So needless to say, a book titled, "Library Wars" was certain to grab my attention. The premise has been seen before - in the not-to-distabt future books are being censored and inappropriate titles are confiscated by a federal government task force. Not cool, say the librarians. They in turn form their own task force to oppose the censors and keep their materials safe for public use. What makes this rendition of the concept interesting is that many of the librarians on this task force are trained in combat along with librarianship. Sweet! These are librarians for the modern age - capable of finding whatever it is you need, but who also kick butt on behalf of freedom of information.
Enter our main character, Iku Kasahara. She has dreamed of being part of the Library Defense Force ever since her teens when a gallant Defense Force member rescued a book for her when the government attempted to confiscate it. She looks up to this mysterious man as her hero, her idol, her knight in shining armor. Iku is actually very good at the combat training and has passion in spades for the cause, but lacks focus and has fallen behind on her library studies. She butts heads with her superior officer and one of the other new Defense Force recruits. Antics ensue. All in all, it's a fun story and I will happily track down the rest of the series.
Keeping the characters straight was kind of tricky in the beginning, because several of the characters have pretty similar designs. But once you get it all straight you see that the art is clean and interesting to look at. And not that this first volume wasn't a lot of fun, but I have a feeling that as the series progresses and characters become better developed the story quality will improve as well.
So needless to say, a book titled, "Library Wars" was certain to grab my attention. The premise has been seen before - in the not-to-distabt future books are being censored and inappropriate titles are confiscated by a federal government task force. Not cool, say the librarians. They in turn form their own task force to oppose the censors and keep their materials safe for public use. What makes this rendition of the concept interesting is that many of the librarians on this task force are trained in combat along with librarianship. Sweet! These are librarians for the modern age - capable of finding whatever it is you need, but who also kick butt on behalf of freedom of information.
Enter our main character, Iku Kasahara. She has dreamed of being part of the Library Defense Force ever since her teens when a gallant Defense Force member rescued a book for her when the government attempted to confiscate it. She looks up to this mysterious man as her hero, her idol, her knight in shining armor. Iku is actually very good at the combat training and has passion in spades for the cause, but lacks focus and has fallen behind on her library studies. She butts heads with her superior officer and one of the other new Defense Force recruits. Antics ensue. All in all, it's a fun story and I will happily track down the rest of the series.
Keeping the characters straight was kind of tricky in the beginning, because several of the characters have pretty similar designs. But once you get it all straight you see that the art is clean and interesting to look at. And not that this first volume wasn't a lot of fun, but I have a feeling that as the series progresses and characters become better developed the story quality will improve as well.
rachelm31f6b's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
datnerdylibrarylover's review against another edition
4.0
It was definitely alot better than I had expected when I picked up the manga months ago and put it right back on the shelf. I like the mystery surrounding the main character which seems uncharacteristic of this particular main cguarantee. I would recommend this to a student who liked shojo but didn't wasn't the feudalism, fantasy or girly-ness that can be associate with such a passionate, careful lead role such as Iku.
letty10's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.75
awesomejen2's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
romem_m's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
sarah_bear's review against another edition
3.0
Not the best manga I've read in regards to writing/artwork, but certainly not the worst. I think R.O.D. will always win for me when it comes to Library spys, haha, but this one is still pretty amusing.
ugh_m's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
library_kb's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This is mostly a character and world introduction volume. I’m not sure what the overarching plot of this story will be but I want to keep going! Definitely has some strong anti censorship messaging in it that appeals to librarians!