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Saturday, September 2, 2017

Review: Kiy: Son of the Forest by Neko Zujihan @AMPublishersUSA

Kiy: Son of the Forest
by Neko Zujihan
Austin Macauley



Goodreads Synopsis:

CHI SURROUNDS AND PERMEATES THE WORLD ITSELF, AS IT DOES EACH LIVING BODY UPON IT. FOR THE MOST PART, THE CHI BALANCES ITSELF BUT SOMETIMES IT DOES NEED HELP. THERE ARE THOSE WHOM THE CHI ITSELF CHOOSES TO TAKE UP THIS TASK ON ITS BEHALF. BY ACCEPTING THIS, THEY ALSO ELECT TO BECOME INTERWINED WITH THE VERY FORCES THEY PROMISE TO PROTECT. MUCH AS ONE WOULD WITH A LOVER., THE RELATIONSHIP CHANGES BOTH INVOLVED.

THERE ARE FIVE SUCH WARRIORS ON THE WORLD AT ANY ONE TIME AND KIY IS ABOUT TO TAKE HIS PLACE AS ONE OF THEM. FOR MANY GENERATIONS THIS HAS BEEN HIS FAMILY'S CHARGE. NOW ITS KIY'S TURN, AS IT WAS HIS FATHER'S AND HIS GRANDFATHER'S BEFORE HIM. 


EVERY BOY'S STORY OF THIS GROWING UP IS UNIQUE. KIY'S JOURNEY INCLUDES DISCOVERING JUST WHAT EXTRAORDINARY ABILITIES CHI GIFTS HIM WITH...AND JUST WHAT HE DEMANDS OF HIM IN RETURN. FACED WITH EXCEPTIONAL CHALLENGES, KIY'S JOURNEY IS A STRUGGLE. EVEN WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY AT HIS SIDE, INCLUDING A BABY SISTER WHO IDOLISES HIM, ULTIMATELY KIY HAS TO MAKE THIS JOURNEY ON HIS OWN.
BUT WE HAVE THE CHANCE TO GO ALONG FOR THE RIDE.

Trailer:




About the Author:

Author Neko Zujihan says “I wanted to create something that I would want to read.  Lyrical phrasing, beautiful use of language & illustrations that are more art than cartoon”.


He says “The greatest influences on my writing were childhood reading of Asian classics (Tale of Gengi, Ramiyana, Travels to the West), Russian novels & Oyate (Native American) stories” .
Commercial illustrator & historical blacksmith, Neko Zujihan is Austin-Macauley's first manga author.  Unique to this genre, Neko hails from America, not Japan.  Though his influences & education are unmistakably Asian, he also takes great pride in his partial Oyate (Native American) heritage.  It is this confluence of cultures that fuels his unique storytelling & illustrative style.

Currently residing quietly, somewhere in Northern Illinois, he is inking Volume Two of young Kiy's adventures. A studious, private individual, he divides his free time between lawn maintenance, jazz & gin martinis.  He counts himself as a proud member of the Steampunk community & diligent collector of Terry Pratchett novels.

My Review:

Being as this is my very first manga, I had NO idea what to expect.  I'm impressed that he did all of the illustrations and writing himself.  We learn about Kiy, his family and his journey into becoming a warrior.  The author was nice enough to chat back and forth with me through email to be sure I got a good understanding of everything since this was my first venture into manga.  It definitely did help in understanding this adventure of Kiy.

I found some parts to be slightly confusing in the way the writing was positioned on a few of the pages - it didn't logically follow to what I was used to in reading a book.  This is likely more my inexperience in reading this type of book more than anything the author did.  I did find a few spelling errors but that's totally nitpicking and didn't take away from the story at all.

I love the pace of this - the illustrations help to provide a mental image of the story as it unfolds and it moves quickly. I felt it ended a bit abruptly... and am unsure if that's what manga books do as a "to be continued" feel to get you to the next book but it definitely left me curious.  Kiy is definitely moving into his next step to becoming this warrior.

For my first manga, I'm happy that this is where I decided to begin.  Thanks so much to Neko Zujihan and Austin Macauley Publishers for this copy in return for my honest review.





I highly suggest you go here:  http://www.austinmacauley.com/book/kiy-son-forest-volume-one where you can see a sample pdf and decide for yourself! 

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