Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist

To an author, to write is to live. What happens if you can no longer write? What then, is life? When I first came across this book, I knew nothing about it nor its author, Asumiko Nakamura. The cover art alone intrigued me enough to want to pick it up, and I'm glad I did. The art on the inside was off-putting to me at first because because the characters, especially the male ones, looked like typical Yaoi or Shonen Ai character designs. Which means that they may be shown to sometimes have unusual, broad shoulders, be incredibly handsome in the face, or suffer from Yaoi basketball hands. The male characters may have some visual tropes from those more erotic comics but the women are also drawn very beautifully. With that said, it would be really unfair to judge this book by character design preferences because there are a lot of good things going for this book. As the title of the book implies, Utsubora is the story of a novelist. The main focus of the story is about an author and what happens to him when he succumbs to the lows of plagiarism. Filled with mystery, drama, and sensuality, Utsubora is a fun read. In the end, Utsubora is also a smart book that will have you guessing what exactly is going on with the cast of characters in the book. At the end of the book, there are some extras. Including an Illustration Story and Translator Notes. I really appreciated the translator's notes segment because it included interesting, informative cultural facts of things seen in the story and its the closest you can get for having commentary for a book. I feel this really adds to the cultural understanding of modern Japan. Utsubora is Asumiko Nakamura's first book published in English, and I enjoyed the book enough that I would definitely pick up another book by her if it were ever published. Recently released in North America in a single, thick volume by Vertical Inc, Utsubora is definitely worth checking out.

awesome read!!! i absolutely freaking love this book. it’s a little complex for the average reader (lots of time jumps/skips) but it is so good. easily become one of my favorites of all time.

I really liked this book. I'd love to see more of this authors work. I think that the artists' drawing style is lovely and the dark mood of the story was conveyed very well through the artwork. The story was very engaging and the characterization was done quite well. I think the book works well as a thriller and is best enjoyed with as little information about the plot as possible. The lot of these characters are rather twisted and express a lot of intense emotions but I especially enjoyed how contemplative the writing is. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a mature book that delves into human psychology and tells a rather tragic story of romance and desire.

I came to Nakamura Asumiko through her BL and yaoi-- specifically Doukyuusei, The Inheritance of Aroma, and Double Mints-- and I really like her art and storytelling prowess. I bought this on a whim because I work in publishing and I'm a sucker for stories about authors, plus the twists and intrigue promised by other reviewers were a draw-- I don't think people start reading manga expecting the stories to be so nuanced and the characters so complex. I know I didn't! In a nutshell, Utsubora is a story about an author who does the unthinkable, the repercussions of his actions, and the eventual reveal of his motivations. To say more would spoil you and I'd hate to do that-- suffice it to say that nothing and no one are who they seem. Four stars because the translation needed one more pass by an editor (for example, 'snucked' is not a word), but it's otherwise good. Also, when you read the notes at the end you realize that a lot of little winks and nods and cleverness is missed. The title, for example-- throughout the novel it's referred to as 'Utsubora' but translated into English it is a very obvious reference to one of the characters. Not sure why the translators chose to overlook that, other than that Utsubora 'rolls off the tongue' (eyes?) more easily? I enjoyed one particular 'scene' that was nothing more than two characters eating a meal and chatting-- the names of the dishes being rattled off must sound beautiful in Japanese but most readers might not know what is fish and what is fowl. Regardless I enjoyed it. I used to live in Japan and miss the food very much. Nakamura's work is very reminiscent of art noveau style tinged with Al Hirshfeld in terms of the lines and languid forms. There's sex. Occasionally I had to really stare at the page to figure out what I was seeing because the mangaka did a lot of 'close shots' and not all were immediately recognizable. Still, really like her work so not such a hardship!

First, I applaud Vertical Inc for taking a chance on "utsubora". There aren't any ninjas, giant robots or super powered aliens here. Instead, Nakamura has crafted an intense mystery "whodunnit" around the death/murder of a novelist. The artwork is minimal, solid and striking as we are taken on a journey to find out who the killer is and how all the players are involved. In the story Mizorogi Jun is a writer who unable to come up with a new book steals a novel from a friend. he soons finds himself as a suspect when the girl is found dead. I don't want to say too much so this review is vague. The mystery gets deeper when we realise the deceased author had a twin sister and Mizorogi actually enters into an affair with the sister. This a great stand alone work and really worth the purchase.

A superb introduction to the world of manga once i had tuned in to the authors style i thoroughly enjoyed this dense graphic novel which will withstand many rereadings.

Vertical Inc. has an peculiar way of ''deconstructing'' the whole language of masterfully crafted work of arts. And I mean that in a bad way, of course. For the sake of an artistic appearance, they just won't mind splatterin unheard of, absurd expressions at the most key story moments, leaving the reader in a frustrated state of mood, classic.. Rest of the review might come out as a spoiler so please refrain yourself from reading my comment if you enjoy fiction with a blind perspective. The construction of the story is told in a complicated time pattern, and the whole idea behind the story's mystery is made out from this desing concept. My words might sound like I am disappointed but no, it's the exact opposite. Even as someone who doesn't enjoy this kind of oblique storytelling, I enjoyed the entire comic, due in part to Asumiko Nakamura's masterful paneling.

Utsubora es otro de los trabajos de la brillante Asumiko Nakamura, y no falla en entregar una historia profunda llena de misterios. Desde el principio, el libro está lleno de muchos acertijos extraños que pueden confundir pero, como avanza la trama, Nakamura resuelve cada uno de ellos con resultados de distintas magnitudes. Los personajes son la mejor parte de Utsubora, con el autor Mizorogi y la misteriosa Sakura Miki, quien es uno de los conflictos centrales de la historia, y muchos otros que no serán fáciles de olvidar al final. Aunque sí seré honesta, Utsubora no es para cualquiera. Es recomendado tener una mente abierta y madura debido a las situaciones sexuales que son introducidas, además de que requerirá leer el libro aunque sea una vez más para comprender todo lo que sucedió, y lo más importante, el arte no será para todos. Nakamura siempre ha tenido un estilo definido es su anatomía y diseño de personajes, por lo que el dibujo puede volverse un factor que no alente a muchos a leerlo.

Llegó en muy buen estado, la edición esta muy bien y yo que estoy enamorada de esta artista he quedado encantada con esta obra suya, muy recomendable siempre que te guste su estilo.

とても良い本でした。満足しています。状態も内容も素晴らしく，今後とも利用したいと思います。