It has been two weeks and I'm still struggling to determine if I ACTUALLY enjoyed this book. I have ended up feeling like I'm better off just leaving my response at Meh. It wasn't bad, it just didn't resonate with me the way it had with others.

I know I didn't feel moved in the way others have. I'm not typically the type to cry at things either I suppose.

Maybe it was the fact I listened to the Audiobook, rather then read the physical edition. I t just ended up not being my thing saddly.

DNF: 51%
I was really interested in this book based on the description. But this is definitely the type of book that could benefit from some Content Warnings. As this book talks about drug use, suicide attempts, molestation, to just brush the surface.

I initially wanted to stop reading around chapter 6, as Lynette's conversation with her own mother and how her mother throws Lynette's mental health problems back at her. But also the whole conversation was just too similar to the kinds of arguments I've personally experienced.

But after that I couldn't really get into this book.

You know how anime has those quintessential beach episodes or sometimes baseball episodes?

Giant Days has me convinced that we need to do that with trips to Ikea, because it seems like it would be way more fun.

While being very gay, I think this is one of the weaker volumes I've read. But still overall pretty good.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around issue 28 it very much felt like a fever dream and that has clouded my memory of the rest of the volume

Issue 32: I was certain that was lava coming out of the shower, 10/10 didn't read that as blood.
Also the depiction of wood worms, is terrifying.

TLDR: This whole Volume is a depiction of a toxic relationship and also apparently student housing is crap everywhere.

This book at its core is about Colonization. Colonization of peoples and organic spaces. In the end I was left like this book was justifying it. Which left me feeling icky afterwards.

Below this is Spoilers:


Let's start with the attitudes to the people.
These people crash land on a planet, and judge these people as savages, at no point showing respect for these people or the lives they live. Instead they say things like they will teach them to live with dignity, and judge their practices. Even when they find people who aren't 'worshipping' The Great One. It still didn't feel like they treated these people as equals.
Then there is The Great One a sapient being who lived on this planet long before humans ever existed here. And has been threatened at every turn by humans. Causing it to take drastic measures to try and ensure their safety. To only once again be threatened with destruction by humanity and humanity adjacent.

While the core of this book COULD have been about whether taking away one person's free will, to ensure your survival is moral. Instead The Great One is considered "Evil", even when given no real proof that was the case. We do see, these beings rescue them when they crash land, playing with children on the beach.
We even hear from this entitiety the whole reason started was because they were scared for their life, paired with images of them being slaughtered by those who first landed here.
I am not saying this makes taking the free will of people away is alright. Forcing a hierarchy chain of humans working specific goals in order to help ensure that they are powerful enough to keep humans from destroying them by enslaving more humans to continue this process. I can say well that was not a great choice and is kinda terrible. But this was life or death for The Great One.

But we also see that there are humans that aren't under The Great One's control, who tried to bring their loved ones to the path of having free will. Those people chose the happiness they found in the life they had been living. We also see that The Great One could have had these other humans under their control to if it had really wanted, but they didn't until threatened with absolute destruction.

Even once The Great One backs off, now locked in a standoff with humanity's creation. Those who crash landed don't accept that these people might miss this happiness, miss the lives they were living that was fulfilling for them. They had that decision made for them by another outside force, in reality subverting their supposedly gained free will.

The last pages left me feeling like I was seeing something akin to the Spanish Inquisition and the Native American Boarding Schools. Where outsiders seemed to think they knew better. Which is in reality beginning to end the narrative that this book tells.

It's Queer and it SLAPS!!

"You're a waste of a pair of balls" is probably my new favorite insult by far.

While I don't know if I personally will continue with Boys Run the Riot. (I probably will because my partner is super excited to read this) I honestly loved this manga volume from start to finish.

This is the first manga, I have picked up with a Trans character, in it and not knowing Keito Gaku beforehand I was a little worried about what to expect in this book. But I was incorrect in having that worry.

Ryo is an awesome main character and watching him grow throughout this volume as he finds friends who support him for who he truly is, as well as his capabilities. And watching him find empowerment through that is amazing,

This book also has some great Allies as well., especially Jin.

I would recommend this wholeheartedly, because along with some really heartfelt moments it will have you laughing.

I loved the art style of this book, it is honestly what initially drew me into looking into this book.
Followed by seeing that this book was tackling the topic of Mental Health. I was further drawn in.

I found it interesting, but in the end I felt myself concerned that this may be a less then faithful portrayal of mental illness overall. What is shown looks more similar to what I've heard about DID but I could be incorrect.

Paired with the less then helpful (or even supportive) adults in Elle's life. Honestly I could have let it slide if at least Elle's Psychologist(?) had been at least been shown as being moderately helpful..

Right now I'm uncertain as to whether I would pursue the sequel or not.

I am not sure why but the first time I started this book I couldn't get into it. Event though I found the premise interesting and then I kept hearing about it on Tiktok telling me it was really that good.

It was in reality as good as the people on tiktok claimed.

It is the particular type of Historical Fiction that I like where we have multiple points of views, where at least one is in the past and one is in the "present".

This story was intriguing from start to finish, and I really enjoyed the character growth overall.