Ascendance of a Bookworm (Light Novel), Part 3 Volume 5 by Miya Kazuki, You Shiina (Illustrator), Quof (Translator)

As expected with the final volume of this part, there was a lot of action and a cliffhanger of sorts. Half the novel is actually the side stories and it was interesting to see the differences between the characters and their development. I was getting annoyed with Ferdinand and Myne last volume and less so this one. I am not a big fan of the tsundere trope in anime so I do not like it when Ferdinand is overly critical. He was a bit better in this volume. Now I can start the next Part which is the penultimate one.

March 8-9, 2025 on Kobo Libra 2 and Kobo Clara BW.

The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki with Yuriri Naka (Narrator), Tomoko Komura (Narrator), Jesse Kirkwood (Translator), Sadao Ueda (Narrator)

A short novel with interconnected characters in Kyoto who discover a full moon cafe run by talking cats. There are lot of these cozy Japanese fiction novels and some of them like this one do not quite hit the mark for me. They are gentle and cute, but I find the sort of self help tone a bit tedious. I really liked the talking cats but they spent most of it giving astrology advice. The voice narration was done by three Japanese actors which was different and well done. I probably will not continue the series.

1.75x. March 8-10, 2025.

My Thoughts Have Wings by Maggie Smith, Leanne Hatch (Illustrator)

Great children’s books about anxious and positive thoughts.

March 10, 2025.

Good Night, Good Beach by Joy Cowley and Hilary Jean Tapper

Simple with lovely illustrations about the beach. Very short word wise but the art style felt nostalgic for me.

March 10, 2025.

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath

This graphic novel was about a small town and its anthropomorphic inhabitants. The protagonist is a serial murderer who is depicted as a bear. The art was really well done in a soft style reminiscent of children’s books which juxtaposed some of the gory scenes. The protagonist Sam is a serial killer and while I did not love her, I found her conflict against another killer compelling. Very well done and I would have given it an even higher rating if there wasn’t so much goriness in it. I am not a horror person.

March 10, 2025.

Stay True: A Memoir by Hua Hsu (narrator)

A coming of image memoir from the author’s college days in the late 1990s and centering around the death of one of his best friends in a car jacking. While the memoir is testimonial to this friendship, it’s also one about the 90s. As a millennial, I can’t say how accurate this is to Gen Xer experience but it really felt like a 90s memoir even down to the author’s well meaning pretentious vibe from that era. It also had some reflections on Asian American identity and being a child of immigrants. It’s written well and served more of a time capsule to that part in his life. It felt very personal.

1.5x. March 9-10, 2025.

Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 4 Volume 1 (Light Novel) by Miya Kazuki with quof (Translator), You Shiina (Illustrator)

We have finally reached the part which some consider one of the best aspects of the series and the longest so far. It’s the Harry Potter magical school arc! After a disorienting time jump for Rozmyne, she prepped to go to the Royal Academy. She blazed through her exams and shocked the whole school along the way. Fun times.

March 10-13, 2025 on Kobo Libra 2 and Kobo Clara BW.

Beauty by Hubert, Kerascoët (Illustrator)

A graphic novel fairy tale about a woman who makes a wish with a faerie to be beautiful. Many problems ensues as the woman is coveted, sold, assaulted, and traumatized. The art was interesting when they depict her beauty by others. The protagonist was naive and self centred for most of the book. I liked the ending but it happened much too quickly. The author should have spent more time developing the character development and ending.

March 13, 2025.

Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 4 Volume 2 (Light Novel) by Miya Kazuki with You Shiina (Illustrator), quof (Translator)

This book was action packed. Actually these last two volumes cover less than two months of time. Even though there’s a lot of studying, so much happens at the Royal Academy. It was very exciting and fun to read. I took the day off work for my birthday weekend and read this volume while having brunch. I even broke sleep hygiene rules and stayed up late finishing it. This book reminded me about how fun the Harry Potter books were but this series is more lighthearted. I liked the introduction of the new characters including ones who are unique, odd, and grey as well.

March 14-15, 2025 on Kobo Libra 2 and Kobo Clara BW..

Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 4 Volume 3 (Light Novel) by Miya Kazuki with quof (Translator), You Shiina (Illustrator)

I was sleep deprived and ended up reading this whole volume in one day on my birthday. The series is my number one comfort these days. While I gave this a 5 stars as I have given for most of this series, I have mixed feeling about this book compared to than the last one. Rozemyne returns home from the Royal Academy but she has a lot of work waiting for her. This included the nullifications of her original contract with her childhood best friend Lutz. Lutz still remains one of my favourite characters and it was sad to see him side lined. I think this was the first time that the translator used the F word in his chapter. The relationship that Rozemyne has with her lower city family and Lutz is still the most compelling and emotional of this series. I was verklmept at the end. Now she has no emotional support in her new life. I know people love Ferdinand but I do not find him developed enough to be her emotional support let alone her romantic interest. It frustrated me a bit that Rozemyne will have to keep putting on this fake noble personality, get scolded for it, and have no one to be truly unguarded with. I continue to find it amusing that all she wants to do is to be left alone to read while makes her very relatable to me. While Gil and Lutz left me hopeful at the end of this, I am a tad concerned that there will be more drama with Rozemyne’s new engagement and her lack of emotional support network. Onwards to the next one.

March 15, 2025 on Kobo Libra 2 and Kobo Clara BW.

Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 4 Volume 4 (Light novel) by Miya Kazuki with You Shiina (Illustrator), quof (Translator)

Had another so-so day so I read this to end off the birthday weekend. I do love how I can truly escape to it. The pace of the books has slowed down so much. Each volume of this part is only a couple of months at most. I was getting a bit bored with the printing and business stuff. There are now so many characters involved with it and it’s less personal than it use to be in the earlier volumes. I liked the short story from Gunther’s perspective, but not much else was riveting in this volume. It was largely setting things up for future developments such as the worsening political situation. Still better than most other books since I adore the characters.

March 16, 2025 on Kobo Libra 2 and Kobo Clara BW.