Scan barcode
gcamelopardalis's review against another edition
2.0
I bought this book for like 5 bucks at the comic shop because I liked the art and the back cover sounded interesting - a series of vignettes set in modern Japan.
Yeah... So about the only part of this I enjoyed was the ending bit about cats? And even the cat story was so full of poop that I was just like...why...
The art was nice but this is such a Gross Man(tm) book. Like it's not edgy to make a bunch of poop jokes. Nothing in this really made sense, either.
Of course, it's entirely possible that I'm missing some massive cultural context here, considering this is a translation from a Japanese author. I have no idea.
Yeah... So about the only part of this I enjoyed was the ending bit about cats? And even the cat story was so full of poop that I was just like...why...
The art was nice but this is such a Gross Man(tm) book. Like it's not edgy to make a bunch of poop jokes. Nothing in this really made sense, either.
Of course, it's entirely possible that I'm missing some massive cultural context here, considering this is a translation from a Japanese author. I have no idea.
crookedtreehouse's review
2.0
I've told the story to several people of the time I recommended [b:I Kill Giants|6435893|I Kill Giants|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1356121155s/6435893.jpg|6625451] to one of my exes because he enjoyed manga, completely forgetting that the emotional core of that book (no spoilers here) tied deeply into his own childhood in a way that would lead to an emotional breakdown.
The thing is, I've recommended that book to at least hundreds of people. And as someone whose relationship with Joe Kelly's writing is split evenly between This Is Pretty Good ([b:Four Eyes, Vol. 1: Forged in Flames|8666523|Four Eyes, Vol. 1 Forged in Flames (Four Eyes #1)|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1435998904s/8666523.jpg|13538097] and [b:Space Ghost|707920|Space Ghost|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1177483077s/707920.jpg|694194]), and Fuck This Guy ([b:Bad Dog, Vol. 1: In The Land Of Milk And Money|22129931|Bad Dog, Vol. 1 In The Land Of Milk And Money|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1433923801s/22129931.jpg|41476308] and [b:Bang! Tango|24888224|Bang! Tango|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1430166570s/24888224.jpg|44536732]), I credited [a:Ken Niimura|4800063|Ken Niimura|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s art for being the most important part of why I love I Kill Giants.
Henshin isn't supposed to be anything like I Kill Giants. It's a series of short stories about transformations in ordinary life. Or so it claims. The opening story about a girl escaping bullying by visiting her uncle in Tokyo (who might possibly be Yakuza...we aren't given time to tell) is not an ordinary life story. There are other stories about cats, stories about...fart ghosts? and stories about how missing a train can derail your life, but I didn't connect with a single character in this collection. For me, this was a series of shrugs, some drawn beautifully, some just competently.
I don't know who I'd recommend this to. There's much better manga out there for off-kilter nearly normal stories, and I don't think anyone who doesn't already enjoy manga would enjoy reading this.
The thing is, I've recommended that book to at least hundreds of people. And as someone whose relationship with Joe Kelly's writing is split evenly between This Is Pretty Good ([b:Four Eyes, Vol. 1: Forged in Flames|8666523|Four Eyes, Vol. 1 Forged in Flames (Four Eyes #1)|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1435998904s/8666523.jpg|13538097] and [b:Space Ghost|707920|Space Ghost|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1177483077s/707920.jpg|694194]), and Fuck This Guy ([b:Bad Dog, Vol. 1: In The Land Of Milk And Money|22129931|Bad Dog, Vol. 1 In The Land Of Milk And Money|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1433923801s/22129931.jpg|41476308] and [b:Bang! Tango|24888224|Bang! Tango|Joe Kelly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1430166570s/24888224.jpg|44536732]), I credited [a:Ken Niimura|4800063|Ken Niimura|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s art for being the most important part of why I love I Kill Giants.
Henshin isn't supposed to be anything like I Kill Giants. It's a series of short stories about transformations in ordinary life. Or so it claims. The opening story about a girl escaping bullying by visiting her uncle in Tokyo (who might possibly be Yakuza...we aren't given time to tell) is not an ordinary life story. There are other stories about cats, stories about...fart ghosts? and stories about how missing a train can derail your life, but I didn't connect with a single character in this collection. For me, this was a series of shrugs, some drawn beautifully, some just competently.
I don't know who I'd recommend this to. There's much better manga out there for off-kilter nearly normal stories, and I don't think anyone who doesn't already enjoy manga would enjoy reading this.
southern_sea's review
3.0
Dovendo incasellare questa raccolta in un genere, lo definirei uno slice of life. Le 13 storie raccontano degli attimi di vita del Giappone contemporaneo, ordinaria e straordinaria, che hanno come filo conduttore il tema della "trasformazione" (significato del titolo) e del cambiamento.
Alcune delle storie sono di comprensione quasi immediata, altre richiedono un attimo di riflessione per capire quello che l'autore ha voluto comunicare, tutte sono piuttosto curiose. La lettura è piacevole (nonostante affronti anche tematiche tutt'altro che leggere) purché si abbia una certa tolleranza per il surreale e l'assurdo. Nessuna delle storie mi ha particolarmente colpita, ma lo stile di disegno e il modo di guardare al mondo che traspare dalle pagine mi hanno incuriosita. Sicuramente proverò a leggere altre opere dello stesso autore se ne avrò l'occasione.
Alcune delle storie sono di comprensione quasi immediata, altre richiedono un attimo di riflessione per capire quello che l'autore ha voluto comunicare, tutte sono piuttosto curiose. La lettura è piacevole (nonostante affronti anche tematiche tutt'altro che leggere) purché si abbia una certa tolleranza per il surreale e l'assurdo. Nessuna delle storie mi ha particolarmente colpita, ma lo stile di disegno e il modo di guardare al mondo che traspare dalle pagine mi hanno incuriosita. Sicuramente proverò a leggere altre opere dello stesso autore se ne avrò l'occasione.
therainbowshelf's review against another edition
medium-paced
3.0
I had this marked as read from 2016 but don't remember ever having read it. I'm not usually a fan of short stories, and humor is hit or miss with me, so I didn't love this. It's a fairly fun collection, though, if you enjoy silly, out-there, surreal shorts. Not a fan of the curry one or the one that more or less uses suicide as a punchline.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, and Excrement
pieradeglispiriti's review
4.0
sapete quando dite “l’ho divorato questo libro”? ecco per questo manga è proprio il caso di dirlo!
non ho mai parlato di manga qui sul mio profilo, non perché non mi piacciano, non li abbia letti o altro, ma perché è da tanti anni che non ne trovo uno che mi intrighi o mi piaccia.
è una raccolta di tredici racconti, storie di vite particolari, bizzarre, di eventi straordinari nella moderna Tokyo. mescolata a storie di persone poco ordinarie, c’è la storia dell’autore, che ci racconta un po’ della sua vita attraverso le disavventure con gli amici, un gatto che non si fa mai vedere ma gli lascia dei ricordini e un editore esigente.
i racconti sono un po’ nonsense e qua e là c’è un pizzico di humor nero (e sapete bene quanto quest’ultimo mi piaccia
non ho mai parlato di manga qui sul mio profilo, non perché non mi piacciano, non li abbia letti o altro, ma perché è da tanti anni che non ne trovo uno che mi intrighi o mi piaccia.
è una raccolta di tredici racconti, storie di vite particolari, bizzarre, di eventi straordinari nella moderna Tokyo. mescolata a storie di persone poco ordinarie, c’è la storia dell’autore, che ci racconta un po’ della sua vita attraverso le disavventure con gli amici, un gatto che non si fa mai vedere ma gli lascia dei ricordini e un editore esigente.
i racconti sono un po’ nonsense e qua e là c’è un pizzico di humor nero (e sapete bene quanto quest’ultimo mi piaccia
urlphantomhive's review against another edition
3.0
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
Henshin is a collection of short mangas, and also one of the weirdest things I've ever read.
They are all very short, I guess about 30 pages each and real random. Some (quite a lot actually) have a somewhat macabre twist at the end. Others are completely dedicated to cats.
It's really hard for me to make my mind up about it. It was definitely something different and I'm glad I read it. But I did feel like I should have known more before starting because it didn't make a lot of sense to me. It's because of that I don't know who to recommend this to, but if you're looking for something completely different, try this one.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Henshin is a collection of short mangas, and also one of the weirdest things I've ever read.
They are all very short, I guess about 30 pages each and real random. Some (quite a lot actually) have a somewhat macabre twist at the end. Others are completely dedicated to cats.
It's really hard for me to make my mind up about it. It was definitely something different and I'm glad I read it. But I did feel like I should have known more before starting because it didn't make a lot of sense to me. It's because of that I don't know who to recommend this to, but if you're looking for something completely different, try this one.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
hobbes199's review against another edition
3.0
3.5* A typical Manga book. Way out there stories mix with heartwarming tales, all told in typical Manga art style.
Not one I'd re-read but still worth picking up if you're a fan.
Not one I'd re-read but still worth picking up if you're a fan.