Otomen 6

This volume should really be summarized by someone other than me.  Why? 

Because:

1.  I could not find the Aunt or her brother, aka Asuka's father, except once, early on in the volume.

2.  I could not figure out what was being said about, for, to, or with Asuka's Aunt or father; personally Kanno failed me .

3.  I could not figure out who or why new characters are introduced in this volume.  They do not add new   twists to the dilemma an Otomen faces, nor do they further the story line in any meaningful direction.  Same old, same old, in my opinion.

All of the above makes me tired just thinking of reading volumes 7 & 8, but read them we will! 

                        See you on Wednesday, May 8, when we discuss volumes 7&8.

Otomen 5

This fifth volume of the saga about an adolescent male's identify process, continues to entertain and and inform.  We see, for example, that there is definitely a double standard working in modern [Japanese] society:  a girl can be a tomboy, while still winning a beauty pageant in which contestants demonstrate certain female domestic skills (i.e. bento lunches, flower arranging, etc.) while young men have to hid their otomen talents (such as cosmetic make-up artistry) behind intimidating metal masks that hide their identity from the public. 

Nonetheless, it seems that only the adult community is judgmental about  rigidly defined, gender-specific activities;  all the kids appear supportive, even those who are in athletic competition with one another.  Where Ryo may not know how to make a bento box, she was a whiz with an axe when re-creating Asuka's uncle's seaside restaurant. In this volume,  Asuka did not hesitate to show Ryo how to artfully design her bento.

The final scene in this volume introduces a new character, who is about to whisk Asuka away -- is it a kidnapping?  Read Otomen 6 to find out.  We will discuss the adventure on Wednesday, April 10, 2013.

 

 

 

Otomen 4

A review of Otomen 4, led us to conclude that Ryo's father really wants to learn what girls like; as a policeman his otomen qualities are somewhat thwarted by his profession.

However, the real question remained:  Do you think Ryo is romantically interested in Asuka or is she not interested in having a boyfriend?  How can we explain Ryo's lack of response to Asuka's charming, clearly romantic attention towards her?

One answer from the group mind was:  She is like a man in her interests and talents, and therefore, like a man, she is clueless and not overtly affectionate.  Even the guys in GSTS agreed with this possibility.

Likewise, Asuka is reminded  yet again, that he isn't the only one with issues about his otomen interests -- in this volume he meets a mysterious young man who is ashamed of his fondness for flowers.

So it goes in volume 4, with rivalries, tension, and the omnipresent question:  "what makes a man?"

We will meet again  March 13 to discuss Otomen 5.  

 

Maximum Ride Manga Volume 6

It seems like years ago when we started reading and James Patterson started publishing Maximum Ride as a  manga series.  For GSTS it was our first manga; prior to that we read graphic novels only (as opposed to mangas).

Naturally, for some of us, the manga series was redundant -- we had read the books, loved them, and waited not so patiently for the final volume, Neverland.  Well Neverland was finally published last year, and still we haven't finished the manga series -- because the manga series breaks up the saga into smaller units.  I wonder if that was a functiion of transferring narrative prose into a graphic format, or just a marketing device, to get as much out of the series as possible.

Regardless of the motivation, GSTS is hooked on the manga.  Each time a new volume is issued, it is like a reunion for us, a time to retrace the story, and what has gone on in our own lives as each manga is published.  It is so like a reunion, our GSTS non-readers even show up for the discussion...adding wit, if not insight into Patterson's work.

Some of us thought that the manga version is moving too slowly -- a volume of manga is about 1/2 - 1/3 of the narrative version.  Jacqueline naively thought that we would finish the manga series by the time our youngest members graduated high school -- she no longer thinks that, and in fact, hopes she lives long enough to see the entire manga version published (lol).

Several of us find Patterson's technique of bringing formerly dead characters, back to life, a cheap literary device to further the story.  But the action is so cool, we don't care.

See you February 13 for Otomen volume 4. 

 

 Otomen,  Volume 3  

Recent discussion of Otomen 3 elicited some strong observations:

1.  Otomen is funny!  How else do you explain, as in volume 2, the  arranged marriage attempts by frustrated parents -- especially if they include "cute" houses intended to imprison potential husbands?
 
2. Also curiously funny is Juta, a romance author, who requires and promotes the love life of others (instead of his own imagination) to create a best-selling manga series!

3. Likewise, it is sadly funny that the vignettes enable characters to hide their REAL selves, the essence of  their own being -- the results of which are very complex, if not laugh-out-loud silly. 

4.  The action scenes are terrific, such as when Asuka saves the life of a youngster at the nursery school; what he did was impossible, but we applaud him as a hero nonetheless.  We can FEEL that rescue.

Jacqueline remains annoyed at the parents in this story -- they have no respect for their children's emotional health, and instead, put their kids in a difficult position that forces these teens to show respect for their parents by betraying or hiding their inner selves! 

Wednesday, January 9, 2013 we will read Maximum Ride Manga, Volume 6.  See you then.

  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Otomen Volunes 1 & 2

What we have learned from Otomen, so far is that
1.  Relationships are confusing.
2.  Someone cannot be forced into a relationship.
            
Otherwise, when asked about their favorite character, some readers responded that they did not like the book to begin with, so there were no favorites.

Others thought that Asuka was a terrific blend of man and cook and/or sewer (note: seamstress nor tailor was NOT used to describe someone who has this skill -- why is that do you think? A translation issue or a cultural bias?) 

When asked about Juta's role in the story, it was decided that he was necessary to promote the relationship between Ryo and Asuka, while serving his own ends in order to find material to use in his own, highly successful manga, CHICK LOVE.  Besides, he loved Asuka's Bento lunches...

              

Jacqueline's personal favorite villain is Asuka's mother, who not only has made Asuka feel ashamed of his talents, but in volume 2, actually had the gall to organize an arranged  marriage.  Poor Asuka did not want to hurt her feelings, but honestly, isn't there a limit to familial respect?

And, finally, we heard that in volume 6, Asuka's aunt has another, maybe positive take on her brother -- aka Asuka's  father.  When asked if we should skip to volume 6 to find out what those positive remarks may be (Jacqueline can't wait to read them), it was voted that we would continue to read this manga in order!   

Which brings me to our next meeting, which will be December 12.  We will be doing 1 of 3 things at that meeting, depending on the arrival of our next books.  

Those 3 options for December  12 GSTS are: 

1.  Read and discuss Otomen, volume 3.

2.  Watch a movie of the group's choice -- PG-13.

3.  Distribute, if not discuss, Maximum Ride Manga volume 6 -- the final volume!

Have a terrific Thanksgiving.

 


When last we met, on October 10, we planned to discuss Otomen by Aya Kanno.  However, because our leader (Ms. Rice) is so inclusive and somewhat misguided, she allowed 3 visitors to dismantle all form and content for a viable book discussion.  As a  result, we will begin our discussion of Otomen next month, and it will include a discussion of volumes 1 & 2.

Because Ms. Rice cannot be trusted to intuitively suss out who is really interested in GSTS from those who would distract us, she has decided that only those who read the monthly selection will be allowed to join us at future GSTS meetings. 

Volume 2 of Otomen should be here by November 1.  Pick up your copy at the Reference Desk after the 1st.

See you on the 14th of November.

Our last meeting was a review of favorite summer reads.  Here's what we shared:

13 to Life is a series by Shannon Delany, where, according to the official website,  science and magic meet!

  Maze Runner series  
   5 works, 4 primary works

	The Kill Order (Maze Runner, #0.5) by James Dashner (Goodreads Author) 3.71 avg rating — 2,809 ratings — published 2012 — 8 editions book 0.5
	The Maze Runner (Maze Runner, #1) by James Dashner (Goodreads Author) 3.98 avg rating — 60,181 ratings — published 2009 — 33 editions book 1
	Thomas’s First Memory of the Flare (Maze Runner, #1.5) by James Dashner (Goodreads Author) 3.95 avg rating — 551 ratings — published 2011 — 1 edition book 1.5
	The Scorch Trials (Maze Runner, #2) by James Dashner (Goodreads Author) 4.04 avg rating — 34,972 ratings — published 2010 — 18 editions book 2
	The Death Cure (Maze Runner, #3) by James Dashner (Goodreads Author) 3.80 avg rating — 22,124 ratings — published 2011 — 14 editions book 3

Post-Human by David Simpson is a self-published series (available through amazon) that began in 2009.  "This novel depicts,in a quite unprecedented way, the great potential of humanity to exceed its own natural boundaries and become something greater, while still

remaining true to our virtues. It is thought-provoking without impeding the flow of the story. David Simpson does a fantastic job of tying together a multitude of compelling concepts in a way I haven't seen before."   For more info see Simpson's website: http://post-humannovel.com/

I Am Not A Serial Killer is a 2009 young adult thriller novel written by Dan Wells. It is the first installment in the John Wayne Cleaver trilogy. Its sequel, Mr. Monster, was released in 2010 in the UK. The third installment, I Don't Want To Kill You, was released in January 2011 in the UK. Critical response was mainly positive; young adult author Jack Heath said, "Wells is a first time novelist, and already he's created a sympathetic villain, the holy grail.









Unwind    by Neal Shusterman 
Unwind is a 2007 science fiction novel by young adult literature author Neal Shusterman. It takes place in the United States, somewhere in the near future. After a civil war—known as the Second Civil War or the Heartland War—is fought over abortion, a compromise was reached, allowing parents to sign an order for their children between the ages of 13 and 18 years old to be unwound—taken to "harvest camps" and having their body parts harvested for later use. The reasoning was that, since 100% (actually 99.44% taking into account the 
appendix and "useless" organs) was required to be used, unwinds did not technically "die", because their individual body parts lived on. In addition to unwinding, parents who are unable to raise their children to age thirteen for retroactive abortion have the option to "stork" their child by leaving it on another family's porch. If they don't get caught, the "storked" baby then becomes the other family's responsibility. (source:  Wikipedia)



The Rock and The River by Kekla Magoon
In 1968    Chicago, fourteen-year-old Sam Childs is caught in a conflict between his father's nonviolent approach to seeking civil rights for African Americans and his older brother, who has joined the Black Panther Party.