blumoonie's reviews
53 reviews

Japanese Short Stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

4.0

This was my first experience reading Akutagawa, and I was not disappointed. His depictions of macabre scenes are particularly moving; I was surprised at how gripping even the folk stories had become through his retelling. 

Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

10 short stories depicting horrors of diferent kinds in a mix of vivid colour and chilling greyscale — this was genuinely very scary. made me excited to read more of his works.

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

emotional mysterious medium-paced

2.0

of the 8 stories in this collection, I could only really follow 4 of them, and only truly enjoyed reading 2 (Understand and Story of Your Life). I feel that with a better grasp of the real scientific and philosophical concepts Chiang discusses through his plots, I would be able to draw a deeper meaning from the other stories. hence, this book gets one star for each story I enjoyed (though I really do wish I could rate it higher).

No Longer Human by Junji Ito

dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Osamu Dazai’s dark, semi-autobiographical novel is the perfect match for Junji Ito’s horrifically riveting art style. this is a story that can perhaps be best described with the help of an alternative title translation — “Disqualified from Being Human”. it’s the story of a man who never finds a place to truly belong, and that anguish clearly carries through the entire story.

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 1 (Light Novel): Osamu Dazai's Entrance Exam by Kafka Asagiri, Sango Harukawa

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

learning that episode 6 and 7 of the anime (some of my favourite episodes) were first a story about Dazai and Kunikida working together for the first time made me mad. WHY DID THEY CHANGE IT WTF IT WAS SO PERFECT 

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 7 (Light Novel): Dazai, Chuuya, Age Fifteen by Kafka Asagiri, Sango Harukawa

adventurous mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

our favourite fruity duo had to have a beginning somewhere, right? well, this was it — and never fear, they absolutely despised each other from the very beginning. this is a must-read for any BSD fan for two reasons: 1- the anime left out a few vital scenes (as they always seem to do for this show), and 2- upon meeting him for the first time, Chuuya kicks the shit out of Dazai, which is very entertaining to watch. Harukawa’s illustrations are, as per usual, absolutely perfect, and posts of panels from the new manga adaptation have me super excited to read it once it’s published in English.

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 8 (Light Novel): Storm Bringer by Kafka Asagiri

adventurous dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

so we learn in the anime and manga that Chuuya’s ability is unlike any other, but why is that? how did he come to be in posession of the power of a god? Storm Bringer explores this question, along with others (like what was his initial role within the Port Mafia and why does he wear that hat all the time) with a cast of quirky characters and a plot just as confusing and intricate as any other BSD arc.

The Overcoat by Nikolai Gogol

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

equal parts comedy, tragedy and pointed anti-government sentiment, this classic left me pleasantly surprised at how entertaining it was. I picked up this book to better understand the character from Bungou Stray Dogs who was named after Gogol, and put it down feeling truly enlightened.

salt slow by Julia Armfield

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

uncanny, mysterious and poetic. horrrific in the same way uncovering your deepest flaws is, like looking in a mirror and not recognising the person you see.

Bungo Stray Dogs: Wan!, Vol. 1 by Kafka Asagiri, Sango Harukawa, Neco Kanai

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

CUTE CUTE CUTE