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A review by irl_bookworms
What Did You Eat Yesterday?, Volume 1 by Fumi Yoshinaga
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Slice of life mangas are my fave. Slice of life mangas with food? It’s a match made in heaven.
What Did You Eat Yesterday? is the story of Shiro, a cheap, narcissistic in-the-closet lawyer who loves to cook, and his boyfriend Kenji, a laidback hairstylist who is out at his place of work.
What I really enjoyed in this novel was how it addressed different expectations for different characters, like when it discussed the difference between Eastern and Western Culture when it comes to the experience of being gay, and also when it examined the strain of a relationship between someone who is out and someone who is in the closet. While it did tackle some heavier topics, this manga also really highlighted the lovely and soft parts of being a couple - specifically with Shiro taking the time to make food everyday and Kenji sitting down to cut Shiro’s hair.
It’s not a perfect relationship by any means, lots of internalized homophobia, biophobia, and fatphobia are present but not addressed - however, this is the toxic culture that a lot of gay men do face and it does reflect the age of the characters and the year this manga was originally published. There are also a few moments that hit very hard as a queer person and the one that stands out is when Shiro’s friend admitted that she’s okay with him being gay, but that she’s not sure she would feel the same if it was her own daughter. Yoshinaga summed it up in one really impactful line near the end of the manga:
“Just because they know, doesn’t mean they understand.”
I’ve read some of Yoshinaga’s series before and this first volume has most certainly made me want to continue this one as well.
CW: Homophobia, internalized homophobia, biphobia, outing, mentions of sexual assualt, fatphobia, eating disorders, & graphic depictions of domestic violence.
*I received an eARC from Kodansha Comics & NetGalley in exchange for my honest review*
What Did You Eat Yesterday? is the story of Shiro, a cheap, narcissistic in-the-closet lawyer who loves to cook, and his boyfriend Kenji, a laidback hairstylist who is out at his place of work.
What I really enjoyed in this novel was how it addressed different expectations for different characters, like when it discussed the difference between Eastern and Western Culture when it comes to the experience of being gay, and also when it examined the strain of a relationship between someone who is out and someone who is in the closet. While it did tackle some heavier topics, this manga also really highlighted the lovely and soft parts of being a couple - specifically with Shiro taking the time to make food everyday and Kenji sitting down to cut Shiro’s hair.
It’s not a perfect relationship by any means, lots of internalized homophobia, biophobia, and fatphobia are present but not addressed - however, this is the toxic culture that a lot of gay men do face and it does reflect the age of the characters and the year this manga was originally published. There are also a few moments that hit very hard as a queer person and the one that stands out is when Shiro’s friend admitted that she’s okay with him being gay, but that she’s not sure she would feel the same if it was her own daughter. Yoshinaga summed it up in one really impactful line near the end of the manga:
“Just because they know, doesn’t mean they understand.”
I’ve read some of Yoshinaga’s series before and this first volume has most certainly made me want to continue this one as well.
CW: Homophobia, internalized homophobia, biphobia, outing, mentions of sexual assualt, fatphobia, eating disorders, & graphic depictions of domestic violence.
*I received an eARC from Kodansha Comics & NetGalley in exchange for my honest review*
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Homophobia
Moderate: Biphobia, Fatphobia, and Outing
Minor: Eating disorder and Sexual assault