[BOOK REVIEW] Rin-ne Volume 14 by Rumiko Takahashi

Title:  Rin-ne Volume 14


Author:  Rumiko Takahashi

Genre: Horror / Adventure / Comedy / School


Year Published: 2009


Year Read: 2016


Series: Rin-ne #14

Publisher: VIZ Media


Source:  Library


Content Rating:  Ages 7+ (Some Scary Imagery)


Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

Ever since I’ve been reading “Rin-Ne,” I have been wondering if they are building up a possible story arc for the Damashigami Company plot regarding Rinne’s father Sabato and it seems that in “Rin-Ne Volume Fourteen,” we see even more plot twists from the Damashigami Company that will change everything regarding this series!

In this volume, we are introduced to Renge Shima, a transfer student who immediately gets the attention of all the boys at school.  Unfortunately, it turns out that Renge has a Marilyn Monroe look-alike spirit hovering over her that is making the boys become attracted to her, but is Renge harboring a dark secret that could turn the tides for Rinne and the gang?  Other stories in this volume involve Rokumon meeting up with the Black Cat Elder, Rinne meeting up with a Nine-Tailed Fox that possesses Tsubasa and a demon that tries to steal beans from a bean throwing ceremony.

Wow! Rumiko Takahashi never ceases to amaze me with her unique writing style in her works!  Even though this volume has even more filler story arcs than the previous volumes, there were some stories that also contributed a bit to the main story line regarding the Damashigami Company.  Now, I have seen so many new characters being added to this series already, but Renge Shima was an interesting case as she seems to be the most serious character introduced in the series so far besides Kain and it makes me wonder (hopefully) if the series is actually going to get to an actual story arc sometime after this volume.  I also enjoyed the side story about Tsubasa getting possessed by a Nine-Tailed Fox since it focused on Tsubasa and it was a pretty hilarious story to read!  Rumiko Takahashi’s artwork is a treat to see as the demons shown in this volume are both scary and hilarious to look at and I really loved the artwork of the evil dragon spirit at the beginning of this volume as it was a cross between being frightening when it first arrived to being humorous after it got all the negative emotions it needed.   

For anyone who does not like images of demons and other scary characters, this volume has a bit of scary imagery of demons that might scare some people such as the dragon spirit that feeds on negative emotions at the beginning of the volume. 

Overall, “Rin-ne Volume Fourteen” is a great volume for fans of “Rin-ne” and I am definitely looking forward to reading more of this series in the future!

[BOOK REVIEW] Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story by Tomie dePaola

Title:  Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story

Author:  Tomie dePaola

Genre:  Mexico / Fairy Tale / Retelling / Folktale

Year Published: 2002

Year Read:  2010

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons       

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+  (Child Mistreatment)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

“Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story” is a Mexican retelling of the classic fairytale, “Cinderella” retold by Tomie dePaola and it is about how a poor yet beautiful young woman named Adelita has to suffer the cruelness from her stepmother Senora Micaela de la Fortuna and her two daughters Valentina and Dulce until one night, Adelita hears about the fiesta that the rich family, the Gordillos, were having and she tries everything to go to the fiesta and see the Gordillos’ handsome son, Javier.  “Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story” is truly one of the most memorable retellings of “Cinderella” ever told!

Out of all the versions I have read of the classic story of “Cinderella,” this was the first time that I have heard of a Mexican version of this classic tale and therefore, it made this book extremely unique from all the other fairytale versions I have ever read.  Tomie dePaola has truly done an excellent job at both illustrating and writing this book as the story is extremely heartwarming and dramatic at the same time.  When I was reading this book, I can actually feel sympathy for Adelita’s predicament as she is treated cruelly by both her stepmother and her stepsisters and I think that many children would feel sympathy for her too.  I also loved the way that Tomie dePaola puts various Spanish phrases in the book such as “Hace mucho tiempo” and then explaining the phrase in English like “Hace mucho tiempo – a long time ago” and what made the Mexican language much easier to understand is that Tomie dePaola provides a glossary at the end of the book detailing the translations of each Spanish phrase.  Tomie dePaola’s illustrations are much more beautiful in this book as all the characters look realistic and fluid.  The illustration that stood out the most for me was the illustration of Adelita herself as she has long black hair and beautiful dark eyes and also Tomie dePaola provides the perfect Mexican atmosphere in his illustrations by drawing images of Mexican styled houses.

“Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story” is truly one of the best retellings of “Cinderella” I have ever read since it deals with Mexican culture and is a retelling of an old fairy tale, so children who love Mexican folktales and fairytales in general will definitely enjoy this book!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the Spanish language might be a tad bit too confusing for smaller children to understand.

[BOOK REVIEW] Rin-ne Volume 13 by Rumiko Takahashi

Title:  Rin-ne Volume 13


Author:  Rumiko Takahashi

Genre: Horror / Adventure / Comedy / School


Year Published: 2009


Year Read: 2016


Series: Rin-ne #13

Publisher: VIZ Media


Source:  Library


Content Rating:  Ages 7+ (Nothing Objectionable)


Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository

Once again, Rumiko Takahashi has created another hilarious volume that introduces more crazy characters into the universe of “Rin-Ne” and I was just as impressed with the thirteenth volume as I was with the previous volumes!

In this volume, Rinne’s scythe ends up getting damaged during battle and he tries to find a scythe smith that could fix his scythe (for a cheap price of course).  So, he ends up meeting the rabbit-eared twins Right and Left, who offer to fix his scythe for free.  Unfortunately, Rinne will soon learn that Right and Left’s craftsmanship on his scythe might not be what he wanted and he might want his refund back!

             

Rumiko Takahashi’s writing is as usual fantastic to read as the humor and the action sequences are well woven together and makes the story extremely creative!  I enjoyed the introduction of Right and Left as scythe smiths as I did wondered about whether or not there are people in the Shinigami world who repairs scythes and even though I liked seeing that side of the universe, I personally was thinking about what can Right and Left really bring to the story and how their presence would affect the characters in the future.  I also enjoyed some of the other stories in this volume which included a ghost causing mayhem at a dessert buffet and Rinne and the gang being trapped inside a haunted house during Christmas Eve as they were hilarious and interesting to read.  Rumiko Takahashi’s artwork is as usual fantastic to look at as the characters are drawn in a cute and effective way and I really enjoyed the appearances of Right and Left as they look like cute human characters that have rabbit ears, which make them look unique.

Overall, “Rin-Ne Volume Thirteen” is a fantastic volume that fans of “Rin-Ne” will enjoy and I definitely cannot wait to check out the later volumes in this series!

Waiting on Wednesday #1: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling

Hello everyone! "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, that is hosted by Breaking the Spine and the purpose of this event is that we spotlight upcoming releases of books that we are excited for! 

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Title: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Author: J.K. Rowling

Expected Publication Date: July 31st 2016 

Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a new play by Jack Thorne, is the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. It will receive its world premiere in London’s West End on 30th July 2016

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband, and father of three school-age children.

While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes darkness comes from unexpected places.

Since I'm a huge fan of Harry Potter, I'm really excited for this book and I can't wait to see what this book is all about!

So, what upcoming books are you looking forward to?  Please respond below!