I Shall Never Return 01
16 journalers for this copy...
Manga / Yaoi / Romance / Drama / Mature
www.deux-press.com
Upbeat Ritsuro and downbeat Ken have been longtime friends. Although Ken leads a dark life of prostitution after dropping out of high school, Ritsuro still cares about him. When Ritsuro realizes that what Ken wants is something more than friendship he vacillates between Ken and his girlfriend Moeko, setting the stage for a bizarre love triangle.
A true masterpiece of early Yaoi!
I Shall Never Return (Boku wa Konomama Kaeranai) is the five-volume, classic Yaoi manga series by Kazuna Uchida. Enjoy!
I saw the anime for this title years ago and heard a rumor that it was finally being published. Lo and behold, it now has been.
The artwork is different than most of the manga out today - I like the way the panes slide into each other. Plus, from the get-go, Ritsuro's and Ken's relationship is full of uncertainty and difficult decisions. Ken continues to sell his body for money while Ritsuro goes to school and thinks that Moeko might be the girl for him. I can't wait to see where the story leads.
Available for a book ring
Current BookRing List
Starting from New York to:
1. Ingootje (Netherlands)
2. okyrhoe (Greece)
3. spacedog (US)
4. kanaye44 (US)
5. hippolein (Finland)
I received it today.
thanks laevina, for sharing this book
While the manga is beautifully drawn, the story can't impress me a much. It's the first time that a mangastory can't impress me.
The book will now travel to okyrhoe. I will send this book a.s.a.p.
Journal Entry
8 by
Ingootje at on Monday, January 21, 2008
Released 16 yrs ago (1/19/2008 UTC) at
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
RELEASE NOTES:
I'm glad I made the trek in the snow from where I work across the street to the post office, as this nice manga was waiting to be read!
Thanks laevina for adding me to the bookring, and Ingootje for posting it to me.
Best wishes for 2008 everyone!
There is something sincere about
I Shall Never Return that I hadn't experienced before with other manga titles. The emotional tension between the characters is dominated by confusion and ambivalence, typical of that age, but possibly frustrating for the reader who prefers things to be more straightforward & clearcut.
I am not sure, at the end of this volume, whether Ken's intentions towards Ritsuro are honest or not....
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vol 2 vol 3
got a few days ago. thanks. will get to it soon.
whoops. i'd forgotten about this book for a while, but i picked it up and finished reading it today. the artwork and the general style feel dated, but the story and the characters are interesting. a bit shallow overall, but it'll be interesting to see where it leads. thanks! i've contacted the next person so i should be able to send it off shortly.
Its pretty good, I read it almost as soon as I got it. I plan on sending it off within the week. After I read it a few more times, teeheehee.
Mailed this today and its on its way to Finland!
Arrived safely today in Helsinki.
Thanks to everybody that helped the book get here ;-)
Looking forward to give it a try, but seen the topic of the book, I think my daughter still has to wait before she's allowed to read it ...
Finished the book yesterday (as didn't find the next in row of my bookrings and this one was sitting nicely on the table).
The artwork is all different from the manga stories I have seen on the bookshelves here at home, but I liked it. Took a bit of time to get into the story, but the intense feelings that are shown are very nicely pictured. Just a pity this is only volume 1, now the question is, what comes next ...
Will be nice to hunt to find the next part ;-)
Journal Entry
17 by
hippolein at
By mail, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases on Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Released 15 yrs ago (7/9/2008 UTC) at By mail, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
This manga book goes back home today (just noticed had still one enveloppe left, new didn't arrive yet). Thanks for sharing and hope it gets safely over the ocean!
Journal Entry
18 by
laevina at
Manga / Graphic Novels, A Bookbox -- Controlled Releases on Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Released 13 yrs ago (11/19/2010 UTC) at Manga / Graphic Novels, A Bookbox -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Put into the Manga/Graphic Novel Bookbox (US Only)
forum post - http://www.bookcrossing.com/forum/20/445483
off into the wild . . .
Journal Entry
19 by
GoryDetails at
Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Thursday, December 2, 2010
Journal Entry
20 by
GoryDetails at
Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Sunday, March 24, 2013
[Sorry it's been so long - I read the book not long after I got it, but it went into my to-be-reviewed pile until I could finish the series, and I only got around to the last two volumes recently!]
The story opens with a tense relationship between high school student Ritsuro and dropout Ken, both of whom are hard to like at times - Ken's clearly had a very troubled past and is generally wrecking his own life, not to mention hitting on any girl that Ritsuro seems interested in (most recently Moeko, who's in love with Ritsuro), and Ritsuro himself is pretty clueless about his own feelings, not to mention how to deal with others' feelings without hurting them. And even when they do seem to start trusting each other a little, along comes an old flame of Ken's to stir things up...
There are some fairly explicit scenes here, from Ritsuro discovering Ken naked, bound, and beaten in bed after an encounter with a client, to the encounters between Ken and Ritsuro (some of which are quite steamy, and others rather sweet - though that doesn't last). I like the artwork well enough, though there are times when I can't quite figure out which character is which; if only Ritsuro kept his glasses on all the time {wry grin}.
Journal Entry
21 by
GoryDetails at
Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Released 11 yrs ago (3/27/2013 UTC) at Nashua, New Hampshire USA
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
I'm sending this set of five books out on a bookray (see the forum thread
here); they'll be on their way to the first stop, with BCer BMVCOE in Maryland, today. (I'd like the last person on the list to offer the books in the forums again, but if there are no takers, the books can be released as the holder desires.) Hope future readers enjoy them!
Current mailing order:
BMVCOE [MD]
HI77 [FL]
quietorchid [MN]
Rrrcaron [NH] (asked to be skipped)
hyphen8 [HI]
.
.
.
azuki [FL]
Tsjara [Netherlands]
okyrhoe [Greece]
Andrasthe [Austria]
.
.
.
Journal Entry
22 by
BMVCOE at
Beltsville, Maryland USA on Monday, April 1, 2013
Caught in the mail! Will be trying to fit in the reading around my end of semester craziness.
Journal Entry
23 by
BMVCOE at
Beltsville, Maryland USA on Thursday, April 25, 2013
I had some trouble with the flow of reading at first, though whether that was because it's been a while since I read manga or since I wasn't really clear on the timing of the storyline, I don't know. I had a hard time believing that Ritsuro and Moeko were really boyfriend and girlfriend--more time developing those characters together without Ken would have helped--so it didn't seem like so much of a love triangle than as a foregone conclusion that Ken and Ritsuro would end up being together. Ritsuro's conflicted feelings were genuine and compelling, though, leading me to want to read the rest of the series.
Sending off to HI77!
Journal Entry
24 by
HI77 at
Fort Myers, Florida USA on Saturday, May 4, 2013
A firecracker set off,
the spark the fell in dry weeds
growing into a blaze
Journal Entry
25 by
HI77 at
Fort Myers, Florida USA on Monday, May 13, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (5/13/2013 UTC) at Fort Myers, Florida USA
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
I'm glad I took the time to join up to this bookring for the set of this series.
To be honest, I have actually seen the 2 episode anime for this series. And I just wasn't impressed. In fact, it kind of bored me, which is why I never bothered to collect and read this manga of it.
I've read a LOT of yaoi and usually, the older stuff that first was printed in English is just flat out lame. It's the more recent yaoi that has good plot and humor, real emotion and whatnot. There are exceptions in the old stuff, but not much.
That being said, I think the series could have been developed better but given what else was being put into print at the time, it was really top notch, if that makes any sense.
This first book is a big of a slow start, but having read the whole series, I know it gets better. :)
Now, this set is moving onto the next person.
Journal Entry
26 by
quietorchid at
Saint Paul, Minnesota USA on Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Wow. Real teen age angst. Were we ever this troubled in High School? Stupid question, of course we all were. Obviously a well written saga, I'll be interested to see how it develops.
Recieved in the mail today, with 4 other volumes. Thanks for sending them!
Journal Entry
27 by
quietorchid at
Saint Paul, Minnesota USA on Thursday, June 6, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (6/6/2013 UTC) at Saint Paul, Minnesota USA
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sent off to Hawaii. Enjoy!
Welcome to Bookcrossing, where Books roam freely! I hope you enjoy the book, and leave a journal entry so I can see where the book ended up. You can remain anonymous if you'd like, or join and follow the book's travels throughout the world. The site is free, secure, and non-spamming. Take a look around, and then go read!
P.S. If the book is too good to read and release, that's okay, you can keep it, just let me know that it's found a good home!
Journal Entry
28 by
hyphen8 at
Honolulu, Hawaii USA on Saturday, June 8, 2013
Received today with thanks. Life is a bit hectic at the moment but I'll get to these as soon as I can.
Journal Entry
29 by
hyphen8 at
Honolulu, Hawaii USA on Saturday, August 3, 2013
My first exposure to yaoi. I agree with quietorchid about the angst: sometimes I wish I could have a "do over" for high school with the perspective I have now. On the other hand, that would mean facing calculus again...
Journal Entry
30 by
hyphen8 at
Honolulu, Hawaii USA on Saturday, August 31, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (8/31/2013 UTC) at Honolulu, Hawaii USA
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
The boys are off to find a new reader in Florida - bon voyage!
Tracking number 9114901123086446255650; ETA 9/20..maybe.
The box weighed 2# 11.5 oz.
Journal Entry
31 by
Azuki at
Miami, Florida USA on Thursday, September 12, 2013
The speed these books arrived probably set a record.
I look forward to reading them, however right now I have another set of manga ring, Pluto, to go through first, and life has been rough lately.
And it's hopeful that Tsjara may not have to wait too long to receive this.
Journal Entry
32 by
Azuki at
Miami, Florida USA on Thursday, November 14, 2013
I too have serious trouble starting the series. I somehow thought there were three time lines: thirteen year old when Ken's parents divorced, high school and then the characters as working adults... because they do look more mature in some panels. Also at times it's difficult to track which dialog balloon belongs to who.
However, once I get the story straight, it does become more enjoyable (to me the reader I guess, as the characters certainly are not having a good time... Ken's past continues to haunt him and Moeko to my surprise isn't out of the picture yet.)
Now this is set aside. I should be able to send it to Tsjara in December via surface mail.
Journal Entry
33 by
Tsjara at
Assendelft, Noord-Holland Netherlands on Saturday, January 25, 2014
The books have safely arrived in the Netherlands (again ;)). Thanks so much Azuki for sending them all the way from Hong Kong (and for the 3 extra wishlist books too!!)
Looking forward to read these, it's been a while since I have read any manga.
Thanks GoryDetails for hosting the (new) bookray and laevina for sharing the books. :D
Journal Entry
34 by
Tsjara at
Assendelft, Noord-Holland Netherlands on Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Released 10 yrs ago (3/11/2014 UTC) at Assendelft, Noord-Holland Netherlands
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
I really enjoyed this volume and read it in one sitting. The look of drawings feel slightly dated somehow, but didn't notice it much after I got more into the story. Interesting how the style changes looking back from vol. 5 to the first one again. Wasn't sure what to think of the characters. Ken is rather self-destructive, and Ritsuro can't seem to make up his mind about Moeko and Ken.. and ending with a bit of a cliffhanger :P (glad I had the next volumes here)
The 5 volumes are wrapped up and on their way to okyrhoe. Happy reading :)
Journal Entry
35 by
okyrhoe at
Athens - Αθήνα, Attica Greece on Saturday, March 29, 2014
A re-read, but this time part of the full set. Yummy!
*Thanks* tsjara for posting the box! The stroopwafels were a nice treat :-)
Journal Entry
36 by
okyrhoe at
book ring/ray, By Mail/Post/Courier -- Controlled Releases on Sunday, May 25, 2014
Released 9 yrs ago (5/23/2014 UTC) at book ring/ray, By Mail/Post/Courier -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
On its way to Andrasthe. Enjoy!
Journal Entry
37 by
Andrasthe at
Klagenfurt, Kärnten Austria on Tuesday, June 10, 2014
got it.
17.06: off to find new readers
Journal Entry
38 by
-Kata- at
Tampere, Pirkanmaa / Birkaland Finland on Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Volumes 1-5 all arrived today, thank you Andrasthe! :)
Journal Entry
39 by
-Kata- at
Tampere, Pirkanmaa / Birkaland Finland on Sunday, October 12, 2014
I read the whole series and really enjoyed the story. Oh the young love! <3 :)
The drawing style was exceptionally beautiful.
Journal Entry
40 by
-Kata- at
A BookCrosser, A Bookcrossing member -- Controlled Releases on Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Released 9 yrs ago (10/23/2014 UTC) at A BookCrosser, A Bookcrossing member -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Volumes 1-4 are traveling together to Belarus.
Journal Entry
41 by
Lamilla at
Мінск / Minsk, Minsk Belarus on Friday, December 26, 2014
All four arrived today. Looking forward to reading them!
Journal Entry
42 by
Lamilla at
Мінск / Minsk, Minsk Belarus on Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Act one is a mess, it took me some time to get into the story. Anyway, I'm going to follow it to the last volume. I can't believe this story was published in 1992. So much has changed since then!
Is going to Vekiki next.
Journal Entry
43 by
Lamilla at
Мінск / Minsk, Minsk Belarus on Sunday, January 18, 2015
Released 9 yrs ago (1/18/2015 UTC) at Мінск / Minsk, Minsk Belarus
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sent today along with volume 3