frogie's review
3.0
The art was unique in the best kind of way - almost rough, yet still colourful, and exuding a lovely sense of cosiness. I just wish the story was more coherent; while it was fun to see the characters explore Japan and look for yokai, the story sequence felt too jumpy and disjointed for me to hold a continuously clear picture of what was going on like I was getting only snippets of a larger story.
sydneystabler's review
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
otterno11's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Depicting themselves as encountering beings drawn from Japanese folklore, the French cartoonist team Atelier Sento’s short comic Onibi: Tales of a Yokai Ghost Hunter delves into a unique travelog of the folklore of Niigata prefecture. Though I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this teen-oriented comic as I began reading it as it itself blurred the boundaries between reality and fiction, it was a rather unique framing for a travel book with each chapter using a folklore story to highlight a certain aspect of the culture of Niigata. Framed around the charming trope of stumbling upon a special camera that detects yokai from an antique store, Sento captures the ways that folkloric entities intersect with daily life in Japanese society. However, while the framing was fun, it made it a little less useful as a guide to the region.
I discuss other works recently published in English on Japanese folklore at Harris’ Tome Corner- Narrating the Strange: Kaidan of Yokai and Yurei in Japanese Folklore.
I discuss other works recently published in English on Japanese folklore at Harris’ Tome Corner- Narrating the Strange: Kaidan of Yokai and Yurei in Japanese Folklore.
riskapoetryayu's review
5.0
Lebih suka buku yg satunya yg festival, tapi yg ini juga bagus kok.
Menceritakan 2 orang turis yg berasal dari perancis, mereka membeli kamera di toko barang antik disebuah desa di jepang. Konon kamera tersebut bisa menangkap sosok makhluk astral yg tak kasat mata.
Disinilah dimulai petualangan mereka mencari spot untuk mengumpulkan foto-foto makhluk astral disana.
Baca ini bikin aku tau beberapa hantu di jepang yg dipercayai para penduduk disana.
Menceritakan 2 orang turis yg berasal dari perancis, mereka membeli kamera di toko barang antik disebuah desa di jepang. Konon kamera tersebut bisa menangkap sosok makhluk astral yg tak kasat mata.
Disinilah dimulai petualangan mereka mencari spot untuk mengumpulkan foto-foto makhluk astral disana.
Baca ini bikin aku tau beberapa hantu di jepang yg dipercayai para penduduk disana.
halschrieve's review
4.0
This quiet fantasy travelogue follows two gaijin as they traipse around Japan, trying to take pictures of yokai (spirits) with a small plastic child's camera. Arranged in a series of short vignettes each centered around a single photograph, the story takes on a melancholy, existential quality as the characters wonder whether they are in fact photographing ghosts in the Japanese countryside, or just on a goose chase. Between chapters, readers can see that the photos they take really do bear fruit: mysterious shapes snake between trees, and one old gentleman who guides their quest and insists he be photographed in front of a shrine shows up transparent.
The spirits in this book are barely visible and it is unclear what their goal or motives for interacting with mortals might be; if anything, this adds to the appeal. No gnashing teeth or heads bitten off--but a giant foot might come through your roof, or an eyeball appear in your coffee. The artist has reverence for the apparently absurd qualities of the unseen world, and doesn't attempt to explain it--just to contact a little of its magic.
There's a little Western voyeurism at play here, and I have no idea about whether the stories contained in this book reflect real local traditions, but the art would pull me back to this book for a browse a few times more. I like the nods to the creators' real travels and interactions with Japanese elders, who pass on short stories about the spirits they have encountered--including ones created by nuclear fallout. An interesting quirk of the art is that the narrators' faces are drawn very simply, while Japanese locals they encounter have detailed, individual faces with lots of character. Likewise, the food, pretty scenery, dappled sunlight, and cool forest floors that the two characters explore are rendered carefully; they appear almost like travelogue guidebook photos, but with a little cartoony charm.
The spirits in this book are barely visible and it is unclear what their goal or motives for interacting with mortals might be; if anything, this adds to the appeal. No gnashing teeth or heads bitten off--but a giant foot might come through your roof, or an eyeball appear in your coffee. The artist has reverence for the apparently absurd qualities of the unseen world, and doesn't attempt to explain it--just to contact a little of its magic.
There's a little Western voyeurism at play here, and I have no idea about whether the stories contained in this book reflect real local traditions, but the art would pull me back to this book for a browse a few times more. I like the nods to the creators' real travels and interactions with Japanese elders, who pass on short stories about the spirits they have encountered--including ones created by nuclear fallout. An interesting quirk of the art is that the narrators' faces are drawn very simply, while Japanese locals they encounter have detailed, individual faces with lots of character. Likewise, the food, pretty scenery, dappled sunlight, and cool forest floors that the two characters explore are rendered carefully; they appear almost like travelogue guidebook photos, but with a little cartoony charm.
mehsi's review
5.0
Birthday re-read 2021: A wonderful re-read, spooky and fun and adventurous a trip of two people in Japan with plenty of supernatural stories and great photographs and gorgeous art. I am glad I decided to re-read this one! I flew through the story again and I loved seeing them discover Japan and all sorts of small villages and towns. Yummy food as well, so now I am hungry. XD
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Come with Cécile and Olivier as they travel through Japan, finding hidden spots that may have youkai!
I was super-excited about this book. Japan is on a shared number 1 (along with Venice and Egypt) spot of places I want to go to really badly. So naturally I had to have this book which combined travelling through Japan and finding + photographing Youkai.
The book is separated in parts, namely a prologue and then for each Youkai picture. I really loved that they went for this format, now each photograph got the attention it deserved, plus it wasn't chaos of figuring out where what photograph belonged to again (which it would have been if it was just one big continuous story).
Our duo wasn't even planning to go hunting for Youkai but they get (or I should say Cécile got) a very special camera that apparently allows the user to make pictures of Youkai. I loved that while Olivier was a bit shocked at that Cécile bought that camera, he was all the more eager to help out with finding Youkai. :P
In each part they go to a certain part of Japan and I just adored seeing forests, shrines, mascots, parades, seasides, eventually heading to the place where the camera was created (and with it apparently others). I also can't forget the food, we also get plenty of yummy food that made (and makes as I still need to eat breakfast as I type this) my tummy rumble.
I have to say I expected a bit of twist regarding the owners of Margutta. The way our duo talked about them made it seem like they are some kind of magical beings that lured people to their place. So I was more than prepared for them to appear as Youkai when/if Cécile was going to take a picture. But they were just humans who cared deeply about others and made people feel comfortable and happy, thus having them stay.
I loved the extra bits, like the instruction for the camera (and how to photograph Youkai) and the how to get Youkai out of a film (as they don't just show up instantly).
The ending was OK, I am glad that we got that final shot, even though it was just a dream-sequence. I guess the Youkai also wanted to say goodbye to our duo.
The art was fabulous, it was the third thing that drew me to the book. That cover was just amazing, but I can tell you that the inside is just as gorgeous and pretty.At times I was just staring at a page for a bit longer than normal, just because it was so nicely drawn with tiny little details.
All in all, a fantastic book that I would highly recommend. I could probably talk about it for a bit longer, but I don't want to make my review too long.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
---------------
Come with Cécile and Olivier as they travel through Japan, finding hidden spots that may have youkai!
I was super-excited about this book. Japan is on a shared number 1 (along with Venice and Egypt) spot of places I want to go to really badly. So naturally I had to have this book which combined travelling through Japan and finding + photographing Youkai.
The book is separated in parts, namely a prologue and then for each Youkai picture. I really loved that they went for this format, now each photograph got the attention it deserved, plus it wasn't chaos of figuring out where what photograph belonged to again (which it would have been if it was just one big continuous story).
Our duo wasn't even planning to go hunting for Youkai but they get (or I should say Cécile got) a very special camera that apparently allows the user to make pictures of Youkai. I loved that while Olivier was a bit shocked at that Cécile bought that camera, he was all the more eager to help out with finding Youkai. :P
In each part they go to a certain part of Japan and I just adored seeing forests, shrines, mascots, parades, seasides, eventually heading to the place where the camera was created (and with it apparently others). I also can't forget the food, we also get plenty of yummy food that made (and makes as I still need to eat breakfast as I type this) my tummy rumble.
I have to say I expected a bit of twist regarding the owners of Margutta. The way our duo talked about them made it seem like they are some kind of magical beings that lured people to their place. So I was more than prepared for them to appear as Youkai when/if Cécile was going to take a picture. But they were just humans who cared deeply about others and made people feel comfortable and happy, thus having them stay.
I loved the extra bits, like the instruction for the camera (and how to photograph Youkai) and the how to get Youkai out of a film (as they don't just show up instantly).
The ending was OK, I am glad that we got that final shot, even though it was just a dream-sequence. I guess the Youkai also wanted to say goodbye to our duo.
The art was fabulous, it was the third thing that drew me to the book. That cover was just amazing, but I can tell you that the inside is just as gorgeous and pretty.At times I was just staring at a page for a bit longer than normal, just because it was so nicely drawn with tiny little details.
All in all, a fantastic book that I would highly recommend. I could probably talk about it for a bit longer, but I don't want to make my review too long.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/