A review by yellowbinge
Hanami by Julia Cejas

informative lighthearted fast-paced

3.0

Publishing date: 06.08.2024

Thank you to Netgalley and Humanoids Inc for the ARC. My opinions are my own. 

The book as a meal: I am shoving a slice of bread in my mouth while running to my bus stop 

The book left me: Appreciating the simple trash collection system in my own country (don't worry, we are recycle things too)

Negatives:

Wish some of the "stories" lasted a little longer or that they didn't end so abruptly

Sometimes the text was a little hard to read

The art could be a little confusing or hard to process

Positives:

Pretty color scheme and cohesive art

Relatable situations 

Features: 

An insight into what it is like to live in Japan, a little bit of culture-shock and how to deal with it (not in a self-help way), relatable situations, not a one-lane story but more of a collection of stories, slice of life storytelling

Why did I choose this one?

My graphic novel era is back again from my teenage years, so I want to dive into as many genres as possible. This one is not marked as an autobiography but I would put that tag on it. The almost monochrome color scheme caught my eyes while browsing the books, so I was interested in the art too. 

Pick-up-able? Put-down-able?

Pick-up-able. The stories are short and quick to read, so this was a one-day read for me. I didn't swallow the book whole, but split it up into chunks for my day 

What was the vibe and mood?

Although the seasons clearly changed throughout the book, I was in a spring mood the entire time. Probably because of the pinks in the art. I also felt like a student again, which was bittersweet. 

This is a chill collection of stories that has lots of relatable situations a lot of people have found themselves in. Cue the awkward social ones ... I think this also gives a more realistic view of living in Japan as foreigners and not just the "dream" that so many people have. 

Final ranking and star rating?

C tier, 3 stars. Nothing really wrong with it. I enjoyed myself reading it, but I didn't connect with the stories and situations as much as I would like. The art also confused me at times and the text could be a little hard to read, which stalled my reading. Some stories were not long enough (although I understand that isn't really possible if it is based off real life), or they ended a little abruptly. Just nitpicks really ...

I think this book is more aimed at poeple who have migrated to Japan or wish to do so in the future. I am neither of those. A miss for me, but a success for the target audience I believe