Mangaman
by Barry Lyga
illustrated by Colleen Doran
Book Description:
Ryoko, a manga character from a manga world, falls through the Rip into the “real” world—the western world—and tries to survive as the ultimate outsider at a typical American high school.
When Ryoko falls in love with Marissa Montaigne, the most beautiful girl in the school, his eyes turn to hearts and comic tension tightens as his way of being drawn and expressing himself clashes with this different Western world in which he is stuck in. “Panel-holed” for being different, Ryoko has to figure out how to get back to his manga world, back through the Rip . . . all while he has hearts for eyes for a girl from the wrong kind of comic book.
Review:
This was actually a really difficult read for me. I sort-of enjoyed the plot and felt that the concept of the two styles of graphic novels colliding was cool...but, *sigh*. I never really got into it.
I had a hard time with the American style graphic novel drawings. Stylistically, I actually enjoyed the Japananese manga-style drawings a lot more, but they also looked somewhat ridiculous next to the more western style.
As I said, conceptually, I thought the book was great. In actuality, I didn't really enjoy reading it. I'm glad I did and I can say I have, but I would not pick it up again.
