Monica

A few gems, but otherwise same old Rupi Kaur inspired shallow insta-poetry

Beautiful art from Junji Ito as always. 

I don't know how to explain it, but the dialogue in a lot of manga, including this one, feels stilted and campy. Not a big deal in most cases, but tree are times it doesn't fit with the tone of this particular story. I chalk it up to something getting lost in translation. 

Considering it's supposedly autobiographical, simply said this is a sad tale. I'd never heard of the author until now and it has me curious to seek out Osamu Dazai/Shūji Tsushima's works

Male violence is a big theme. It's the men who become too emotional and hysterical (stereotypical traits that are disliked in women), driven crazy by Tomie's beauty. I guess it can be argued that Tomie's responsible for her narcissistic behavior, but her murders often expose male entitlement and their objectification of women.
I guess I could see the idea of the affects of the cycle of abuse on you and the relationships around you. Or a comment on society's unhealthy obsession with possessing and/or destroying beauty.
The art greatly improved as the story went on. Overall, this one didn't sit great with me. Maybe my opinion will change over time. For now though, I liked Uzumaki more

Great book on protection magick, informative. Some of the example rituals/spells that are suggested aren't likely to be used by me, either because materials would be hard to come by or the spirits/deities invoked aren't my go-tos, although Miller himself does make a point to customize each rite as you choose so

Beautiful artwork! The short stories are cute, but lackluster. 

I read a couple of stories with my 10 year old nephew and even he was mostly just perplexed and disappointed by the endings instead of intrigued or even mildly spooked. Like me, he did love the art though.