High School Debut, Volume 1

July 1, 2008
Gr 7 Up-Haruno, a star softball player in middle school, decides to put the same determination and effort she once put into athletics into finding a boyfriend in high school. In order to do this, she pesters Yoh, an attractive older boy, until he agrees to act as her love coach. Haruno eagerly takes in his advice but she persists in reading teen magazines in the hopes of charting a faster path to love. Yoh grows frustrated with her faith in the magic of fashion magazines and her refusal to give up her athletic clothing. Kawahara uses a pen-and-ink style similar to that in Yoko Kamios "Boys over Flowers" (VIZ Media). Lightly peppered with the message that girls shouldnt have to change themselves in order to please a man, "High School Debut" is standard fare for younger manga readers. With a clean plot and only the stereotypical female temper tantrum for added drama, its a good purchase for schools and libraries."Sarah Krygier, Solano County Library, Fairfield, CA"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.