"What are you doing?"
"H-ah!" Alice nearly jumped out of her chair. "I wish you wouldn't do that, Cat!"
"Do what?" replied Cat.
"You know, appearing an. . . ." Alice tilted her head to one side and paused, "On second thought, never mind!"
"So, what are you doing?" insisted the Cat.
"I am reading a manga," replied Alice.
"Manga? On that TV screen?"
"It's not a TV, it's a monitor," protested Alice.
"I bought a digital copy of volume 15 of Natsume's Book of Friends (夏目友人帳) from Viz Media the other day," added Alice, "so, I am reading it on my computer now."
"TV, monitor, same difference. I cannot sit atop either in a satisfactory fashion," shrugged the Cat. "So, you like the pictures, eh?"
"You mean, the art?" clarified Alice. "No, I hate that style." Alice thought for a moment, then added, "Kind of wispy, kind of, I don't know, wishy-washy like?"
 |
| The main character, Natsume, and his cat, Sensei, finding shelter from the rain in a house. |
'Then, you must like the genre."
"Em. . . Shojo? No, not really. I like something with a bit more actions, a little bit more adventures."
Cat narrowed its eyes to two crescents. "So, you bought volume 15 of the series because you hate it? You are quite mad."
"No!" protested Alice. "I don't hate it! I LOVE it! I watched the anime. I bought the manga. I re-read the old ones, I bought the new ones, and now, I can't wait for the next volume to come out!" Alice paused, caught her breath, and continued.
"The main character is not overwhelmingly powerful, but he is not entirely a wimp either. When I read the story, I kind of feel for him. And sometimes, he made decision that is. . . .um. . . unconventional. It doesn't always work out for him, but you just kind of want to see what would happen next."
"Outside of the main character, the stories themselves always have some twists and turns that catch me by surprise. Sometimes, I got a little spooked by it too. "
 |
| Natori (left), Sensei (cat in the middle), and Natsume (right) in getting spooked in Natori's friend's house. |
"Did you say it was a horror story?" asked the Cat.
"No, no. It's Shojo. It has a tranquil, "slice-of-life" kind of feel. Most people would classify the stories as heart warming. I would grant you that. But, I would add that those characteristics are somewhat superficial. It has a lot more. . . " Alice paused and tilted her head for a spell, "em. . . a lot more layers, or dimensions to both the stories and the characters."
"I guess that is why I love it so much, even though I liked neither the art or the genre."
"You guess?" the Cat narrowed its eyes to two crescent slits again.
"Oh, and the story has a cat like you in it!"
"Like me?" now, the Cat is getting curious.
"You know, kind of. . .um. . .full-bodied, up-to-no-good, appear out of nowhere, and never there when you need it?"
". . . "
"In the main story this time, the cat didn't have much action. He did have one action scene. The main character and his cat went to see a movie. On their way back from the movie, they got involved with helping a friend of a friend. An altercation escalated physically, and the cat jumped in."
"The cat has a tiny bit more part in the second story. The main character and the cat bumped into this guy who wanted to become part of some prominent being's entourage. So, the two of them tried to help this little guy out."
"This volume also has a bonus story about the couples who took the main character in."
"Um. . . the main character lost his parents when he was young, and was bouncing from one relative's house to another, until he ended up with this couple. So, the bonus story is about this nice couple and how they initially got involved with the main character," Alice explained.
 |
| Toko and Shigeru, the couple who took the main character, Natsume, in. |
"I suppose I am not doing a good job explaining why Natsume's Book of Friends (夏目友人帳) is so good. . . ." sighed Alice.
"You just have read it for yourself! I highly recommend it! Granted, I don't like the art by Yuki Midorikawa, but her story is fantastic!"
"That's all well and good, except" replied the Cat.
"Except?" Alice asked.
"Us cats do not read.."
"Yet you speak it. . . . This is most curious!" exclaimed Alice.
