Review: Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today as Well and A Lovely Day With Yuri Sensei
I'd like to share my reviews of two Digital Manga publications by Keiko Kinoshita:
Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today as Well
and
A Lovely Day With Yuri Sensei
Yuri Sensei is In a Good Mood Today As Well
Keiko Kinoshita has published many volumes of Boys Love manga in English, and the Digital Manga Guild is releasing another huge slew of them digitally. Up until the advent of DMG, I had somehow only managed to read one of Kinoshita’s manga, and I’ve taken this opportunity to dig in.
Kinoshita specializes in real-life, understated characters, people with shortcomings like those you meet in everyday life. To me, that’s quite a huge draw. She also has a sensibility that appeals strongly to me…of the possibility of real love in a flawed world. The feelings in her stories creep up on me and slowly fill me with quiet happiness.
In one of DMG’s most recent Kinoshita outings, Yuri-sensei is a selfish, eccentric and temperamental writer of mystery stories and novels. His long-suffering editor is the young, fresh-out-of-university Muguruma. All of the staff at Sogendo publishing say that Muguruma is the only one who has been able to handle Yuri-sensei, who delights in sending Muguruma off on wild-goose chases for roasted sweet potatoes or bananas out of season. In fact, Yuri-sensei is so spoiled and demanding, that I hate him a little. It is only very, very gradually that Kinoshita reveals some of Yuri-sensei’s redeeming qualities.
One of the delights of Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today As Well is the period setting. Muguruma’s hats and suits as well as the kimono of Muguruma’s sister and omiai partner give a wonderful nostalgic air to the whole piece that is very pleasant indeed. And don’t forget those out-of-season bananas! I was a little startled until it dawned on me that the story is set in post-World-War-II Japan, and I remembered my own childhood when all fruit was not necessarily available at all seasons of the year.
The translation, editing, and typesetting are handled with expertise and style by the group Purple Prose Killer. The only things I found to quibble with are the line “The title ‘writer’ is a magnet for eccentrics,” which is repeated in both this book and its sequel, A Lovely Day with Yuri Sensei. Even though it’s not wrong or bad, I find it a little awkward and think this obviously talented translator-editor team could have come up with something pithier. In addition, the line “I thought you were all about edamame,” though funny, was oddly anachronistic. I can just imagine the editor hesitating over it and then falling to the temptation because it was so cute. Well, I don’t blame her, but it did jar a little.
Those are the only two things, and they’re matters of taste. Their work was impressive and thoroughly enjoyable. As was this whole manga. Try it out, and if you like it, make sure to check out the wonderful sequel, A Lovely Day With Yuri Sensei.
A Lovely Day with Yuri Sensei
This is Keiko Kinoshita’s sequel to Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today As Well. Don’t be fooled! I made the mistake by reading the title and thinking that THAT book was the sequel and this the original. I think it would be much more fun to read them in the correct order.
In this continuation of the slow-moving love story , the plot revolves around Yuri-sensei’s rival, Sakura-sensei, who makes Yuri’s life difficult by flirting with young Muguruma. In addition we get a delightfully spoiled young lady, Yuuko, who means to marry Yuri-sensei, giving Muguruma a reason to be a little more forward with his beloved but difficult charge.
With both Yuri-sensei and Sakura-sensei pulling out the stops to get each other’s goat, I just couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. In addition, the adaptors use a lively variety of language that spices up the story and makes it more fun to read. One of my favorites was when Yuri-sensei says that Sakura-sensei really “grinds his gears.”
One thing that I enjoy in Boys Love manga is strong women characters, and this volume offers two-pseudo-fiancee Yuuko and Yuri-sensei’s step-mother. Both are bold and outrageous and so much fun to read about!
So, I’d say this volume has it all-fun plot, memorable characters, and a beautiful (?) love story. It’s even better than the original.
Kudos again for Purple Prose Killer-they live up to their name by using real, living, fun language to tell a delightful story.
Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today as Well
and
A Lovely Day With Yuri Sensei
Yuri Sensei is In a Good Mood Today As Well
Keiko Kinoshita has published many volumes of Boys Love manga in English, and the Digital Manga Guild is releasing another huge slew of them digitally. Up until the advent of DMG, I had somehow only managed to read one of Kinoshita’s manga, and I’ve taken this opportunity to dig in.
Kinoshita specializes in real-life, understated characters, people with shortcomings like those you meet in everyday life. To me, that’s quite a huge draw. She also has a sensibility that appeals strongly to me…of the possibility of real love in a flawed world. The feelings in her stories creep up on me and slowly fill me with quiet happiness.
In one of DMG’s most recent Kinoshita outings, Yuri-sensei is a selfish, eccentric and temperamental writer of mystery stories and novels. His long-suffering editor is the young, fresh-out-of-university Muguruma. All of the staff at Sogendo publishing say that Muguruma is the only one who has been able to handle Yuri-sensei, who delights in sending Muguruma off on wild-goose chases for roasted sweet potatoes or bananas out of season. In fact, Yuri-sensei is so spoiled and demanding, that I hate him a little. It is only very, very gradually that Kinoshita reveals some of Yuri-sensei’s redeeming qualities.
One of the delights of Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today As Well is the period setting. Muguruma’s hats and suits as well as the kimono of Muguruma’s sister and omiai partner give a wonderful nostalgic air to the whole piece that is very pleasant indeed. And don’t forget those out-of-season bananas! I was a little startled until it dawned on me that the story is set in post-World-War-II Japan, and I remembered my own childhood when all fruit was not necessarily available at all seasons of the year.
The translation, editing, and typesetting are handled with expertise and style by the group Purple Prose Killer. The only things I found to quibble with are the line “The title ‘writer’ is a magnet for eccentrics,” which is repeated in both this book and its sequel, A Lovely Day with Yuri Sensei. Even though it’s not wrong or bad, I find it a little awkward and think this obviously talented translator-editor team could have come up with something pithier. In addition, the line “I thought you were all about edamame,” though funny, was oddly anachronistic. I can just imagine the editor hesitating over it and then falling to the temptation because it was so cute. Well, I don’t blame her, but it did jar a little.
Those are the only two things, and they’re matters of taste. Their work was impressive and thoroughly enjoyable. As was this whole manga. Try it out, and if you like it, make sure to check out the wonderful sequel, A Lovely Day With Yuri Sensei.
A Lovely Day with Yuri Sensei
This is Keiko Kinoshita’s sequel to Yuri Sensei is in a Good Mood Today As Well. Don’t be fooled! I made the mistake by reading the title and thinking that THAT book was the sequel and this the original. I think it would be much more fun to read them in the correct order.
In this continuation of the slow-moving love story , the plot revolves around Yuri-sensei’s rival, Sakura-sensei, who makes Yuri’s life difficult by flirting with young Muguruma. In addition we get a delightfully spoiled young lady, Yuuko, who means to marry Yuri-sensei, giving Muguruma a reason to be a little more forward with his beloved but difficult charge.
With both Yuri-sensei and Sakura-sensei pulling out the stops to get each other’s goat, I just couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. In addition, the adaptors use a lively variety of language that spices up the story and makes it more fun to read. One of my favorites was when Yuri-sensei says that Sakura-sensei really “grinds his gears.”
One thing that I enjoy in Boys Love manga is strong women characters, and this volume offers two-pseudo-fiancee Yuuko and Yuri-sensei’s step-mother. Both are bold and outrageous and so much fun to read about!
So, I’d say this volume has it all-fun plot, memorable characters, and a beautiful (?) love story. It’s even better than the original.
Kudos again for Purple Prose Killer-they live up to their name by using real, living, fun language to tell a delightful story.