Manga Review: The Bride was a Boy by Chii

Rating (Out of 5): ~4.5

Publisher: Seven Seas

Release Date: May 2018

Volumes: 1.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The heartwarming transgender love story, based on true events!

Drawn in the style of diary comics with an upbeat, adorable flair, this is a charming tale about Chii, a woman assigned male at birth. Her story starts with her childhood and follows the ups and downs of exploring her sexuality, gender, and transition--as well as falling in love with a man who’s head over heels for her. Now they want to get married, so Chii’s about to embark on a new adventure: becoming a bride!

Review:

I'd heard good things about this one, but it wasn't until I went to glimpse through it at the bookstore, and ended up reading almost a chapter, that I decided to pick it up. The concept grabbed my attention from the beginning, and it's a diverse subject that isn't mentioned much in manga.

The story follows Chii, who was born a boy, and how she slowly discovered and accepted that she always felt more like a girl than a boy. It's autobiographical, and it shows as Chii addresses the audience often, and explains things to us, about legal issues and how she worried about telling people. This is definitely more of a lighthearted story than I'm sure a lot of people experienced, but Chii had a relatively easy time of it. For her, though, her family was rather easy-going, and the boy she meets is perfectly fine with all of it as well. He's so in love with her, that he doesn't mind she's not completely a woman yet, and is perfectly fine dealing with the obstacles of all of this with her.

This is a really cute story, but I also think it's a really important one. It's a tough thing to go through in any society, and there are a lot of obstacles and things to consider and ways to handle it.

This was a fun read, and I think it's a really important one, too. I would definitely recommend it, and would love to see more books like it released.

Comic Review: Spinning by Tillie Walden

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Themes: YA, Comic, LGBTQ+, Ice Skating

Publisher: First Second

Release Date: 2017

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

It was the same every morning. Wake up, grab the ice skates, and head to the rink while the world was still dark.

Weekends were spent in glitter and tights at competitions. Perform. Smile. And do it again.
She was good. She won. And she hated it.
For ten years, figure skating was Tillie Walden’s life. She woke before dawn for morning lessons, went straight to group practice after school, and spent weekends competing at ice rinks across the state. Skating was a central piece of her identity, her safe haven from the stress of school, bullies, and family. But as she switched schools, got into art, and fell in love with her first girlfriend, she began to question how the close-minded world of figure skating fit in with the rest of her life, and whether all the work was worth it given the reality: that she, and her friends on the team, were nowhere close to Olympic hopefuls. The more Tillie thought about it, the more Tillie realized she’d outgrown her passion—and she finally needed to find her own voice.

Review:

This is an autobiographical comic, about Tillie as she was growing up, as an ice skater, and a lesbian.

It's about ice skating, and discovering herself, and coming out, all as a growing teenager.

This has a pretty good mix of all of these things. We see Tillie practicing, as she gets up very early every morning to ice skate, whether she enjoys it or not. We see her with good and bad coaches, with good and bad friends, as she enjoys it and works hard, and as she starts to question whether it's just habit and discovers that she doesn't actually like ice skating. Friendships form, and she falls in love for the first time, and decides to tell her family.

I understood parts of this book, and I really enjoyed following her as she discovers herself and decides what she wants for herself. It was also very frustrating to see her coming out, and how some people react to it, like her family. Seeing people react as if it's wrong (and parents, as if they've done something wrong) bothers me, so much, and I know it happens, still.

I really enjoyed reading this. I don't read a lot of American comics, but some of them are definitely worth reading. And I liked following this journey.