i used to read a lot when i was a kid, i always preferred to read books if i couldn't keep myself occupied with the internet and didn't want to play with anyone. most of the things i can remember from my time in elementary school were me reading to keep myself entertained, most of it was educational since i liked to learn (and still kind of do) before public education completely killed my enjoyment of literature. the only thing i could really enjoy reading by the time i entered middle school was manga and graphic novels, not just because of my love for art, but it simply appealed to me more then words did. and thus, i carried around my copies of bad end night ~insane party~ into my 6th grade english class of my own willing

i started collecting manga as a hobby who knows how long ago, since it was more easily accessible to me then albums were and the manga sections were teeming with life again by the time i started. though i still do that, i mainly collect manga with queer themes these days. even if some of the ones i own have hints or characters that don't necessarily revolve around queer identity, i love reading these things to feel slightly more normal then living in a world where i know people won't respect me if i tell them i don't like gender and don't wish to identify with one

here's some manga i've collected over the years. all the images have been titled with their authors/illustrators/others for convenience

Summary: "Miku has always dreamed of being an actress – but just when she has a shot at making her dream a reality, her life takes an unreal twist. She’s hurled into the “world of the play,” a strange mansion where she meets seven mysterious, and potentially dangerous, characters. They all have their own secrets, but there’s one thing Miku knows for sure: if she doesn’t find the page that was stolen from the script, she’ll be trapped in the false world forever!"

bad end night was the first manga to my memory that i fully binged, i was already a fan of the original songs and was excited to see the story in a more understandable format when i found listings on amazon. i binged them as each novel copy arrived, brought them to school, did art studies, truly my first love

the summary doesn't put the story down the best, so to make it brief and spoiler free: the story (written by hitoshizuku) revolves around a beginner actress, miku, as she participates in a lost play written by the world famous yet mysterious "burlet", where she's cast as the lead. suddenly, she dies while at the theater, and is sucked into the world of burlet's lost play where the actors become the characters and doesn't know miku as she knows herself, and must find an ending to the play before the world of the play ends. the story was originally told in the vocaloid song series "night series" by hitoshizuku (duh) and yamasankakkei, there's only 4 songs and they're all pretty good

the story is a lot more condensed then it's novel counterpart (which i'm currently reading), but i highly recommend reading it if you're interested in the original story and gravitate more towards graphic novels of any kind. the illustrations by tsubata are gorgeous and the official translation is one of my favorite localizations ever

rating: 8/10

Summary (Kase-san): "Yamada may be shy and rather clumsy, but the flower gardens at her school have always brought her happiness. Suddenly, a different sort of beauty catches her eye–the vivacious track star, Kase-san. Although the two girls don’t seem to have much in common, they soon start a romance where each must learn an important lesson in tending their budding relationship. Can the two girls, so different from each other, learn how to make their first love blossom?"

tba

Summary (Kase-san to Yamada): "Yamada is in heaven at her school’s horticulture department, and Kase-san is training hard at the sports university. With classes and a long train ride to keep them apart, hanging out together is tough. Can they beat their busy schedules and find time for one another?"

Summary: "Nio Nakatani, known for her delicate and heartwarming portrayal of girls’ love, presents a marvelous collection of short stories that span her whole career. With works including her striking debut title Farewell to My Alter, enthralling tales from the Éclair anthologies, and a hauntingly captivating piece penned exclusively for this volume, Nakatani explores the deeper nuances of loss, identity, and matters of the heart."


tba

not pictured:
- maker hikoushiki hatsune mix (unofficial hatsune mix) by kei
- mahou shoujo madoka magica (puella magi madoka magica: the complete omnibus edition) by magica quartet & hanokage
- sakura to kase-san. (kase-san and cherry blossoms.) by takashima hiromi
- aku no hana (the flowers of evil: complete vol 1) by oshimi shuzo
- jibun no karada wo yurusu made (until i love myself: the journey of a nonbinary manga artist) vol 2 by pesuyama poppy
- bishoujo senshi sailor moon (pretty guardian sailor moon) vol 2 & 3 by takeuchi naoko
- yuri de naru espoir (yuri espoir) vol 2 by naoi mai
- sasaki to miyano (sasaki and miyano) vol 2 & 5 by harusono shou
- adachi to shimamura (adachi and shimamura) vol 2 by iruma hitoma, yuzuhara moke, & non
- banana fish vol 1 by yoshida akimi
- mirai delivery: chiisana asimov to midori no wasuremono (hatsune miku: future delivery - little asimov and the green thing left behind) vol 2 by oshio satoshi & miyama hugin