愛書家クラブ

Kafka - I'm currently reading v.3 of the Youjo Senki series subtitled "The Finest Hour". I am sure you are familiar with the series because of the success of the anime, but the premise is that a Japanese salaryman who views the world in a very methodical way, heavily influenced by the Chicago school of economic thought, gets pushed in front of a train by a desperate man he fired earlier that day. Before dying, he has a conversation with a mysterious being that claims to be God. This being, angered by the man's lack of faith and dispassionate demeanor, decides to reincarnate him in a low fantasy world on the brink of war in an unclear attempt to force him to change his ways. Reincarnated as an orphan in the bleakest circumstances, but with magical ability, the main character becomes Tanya Degurechaff, the youngest mage in the imperial army, where she quickly becomes, almost by accident, a war hero. The story follows the war as Tanya attempts to build a bridge to a...

I was in Kinokuniya when I first noticed this book on the display for books that got awards in 2016. But I didn't actually pick it up until 2017. But I really wish I'd picked it up sooner! I didn't know what to expect when I started reading it either, just that I had a good feeling about it. And I'm glad my feeling was on the mark. It's an interesting book that starts by telling you what happens at the end, but it's never really about the end. Just like life, it's about the journey. The things the main characters experience and what they learn from them. The story was incredibly engaging and, despite how long it took me to get to the middle, I stormed through the ending. It's interesting seeing how well fleshed out the characters are and how they grow as people through the story. I also think that what helped with the flow was the fact that there are almost no character names. The protagonist is always referred to by his relationship to other...

Jenn - I'm currently reading "Back Stage!", a boys love light novel based on the manga series Love Stage! Don't knock boys love until you've tried it. The story is very sweet. The story follows Rei, the manager of a family of famous people while he struggles to get the youngest son to drop his dreams of being a mangaka and join the family business of being famous. This isn't helped by the fact that he's dating the second son Shogo, a famous musician. He struggles with the guilt of being in a relationship with someone he's not only supposed to be working with, but who's adored by screaming fan girls all over the world. This novel is full of interesting vocabulary because it's written for an older audience. This book uses furigana at points because of the complicated kanji the author likes to use. But then drops it as soon as a word is mentioned once in a chapter. I'm collecting the vocabulary and learning it on Memrise [ click h...