I picked this up at Barnes and Noble today, attracted by the use of the big, burly, thug-faced guy as the main character. Despite his scary looks, he's a sweet guy, and just wants a girlfriend - but the girls all go for his bishounen pal instead! What to do?

Turns out this is a truly charming story about friends and love, with lots of humor and some marvelously heart-warming bits. The conflict isn't so much about how Takeo will find a girlfriend but whether he'll be able to believe that a girl could actually like him - and when it happens, it takes some time, a few misunderstandings, and some persistence from the girl plus help from Takeo's best friend Sunakawa to convince him.

So where can the story go from there? Oh, no problem - this sweet, funny tale seems able to meander along quite happily, tossing in the occasional moment of high drama. (Takeo, while he must be barely 14, is so big and strong that he's regularly mistaken for an adult and often acts rather like a superhero.) And while there are a few misunderstandings early on, the characters are generally very good about working these out, so I seldom had that "just spit it out, you fool!" feeling.

We learn more about Takeo and Suna's childhood (they're so adorable as tots) and about the depth of their friendship. And it's delightful to see all three characters cope with Takeo's new relationship with minimal jealousy or huffiness; everyone's just so darned nice that they're a pleasure to hang around with.

[There's a TV Tropes page on the series.]

See also:

Volume 2

And for another slice-of-life, decent-people series, check out Honey and Clover.

I'm adding this book to k00kaburra's manga bookbox, which will go in the mail on Monday. Hope someone enjoys it!

*** Released as part of the 2015 June Brides release challenge. ***

*** Released for the 2015 Allergic to A challenge. ***

Guy with a face like a mac truck

but loves like a bunny,
hops towards hope.

This book is one of a few that I picked up, because I know others that will be happy to see them.

And so this one is off to a person I've been trying to seduce into joining our site! ;)

Wish me luck! :D

I'm being wooed. :D

Heh, my swapping habits tend towards a more passive/casual membership rather than in-depth participation. PBS is a bit simpler, more straightforward for me right now, but we'll see what the future holds!

I'm glad to get to read these books and will keep them moving! :)

WHOOPS, forgot to add that this was sent to a PBS member some few months ago! ^^;