Sakura, Saku, Vol. 1

サクラ、サク。 [Sakura, Saku.] #1

by Io Sakisaka

A mysterious boy comes to Saku Fujigaya’s rescue when she falls ill on a train, but he leaves before she can thank him. After this experience, Saku never ignores strangers in need of help to emulate the boy who helped her.

Saku Fujigaya would like to thank the boy who helped her, but all she has is a note signed “Ryosuke Sakura.” She discovers that a boy at her high school, Haruki Sakura, has an older brother named Ryosuke. She asks Haruki to deliver her thank-you letter to Ryosuke, but why does he refuse?

Genres: Manga, Romance, Shojo, Young Adult, Graphic Novels, Slice Of Life, Contemporary

192 pages, Paperback

First published May 25, 2021

About the author

Io Sakisaka (咲坂伊緒) is a Japanese manga artist. She also designed the characters for the anime movie HAL. Her works are:

-Call My Name (2001)
-Watashi no Koibito (2002)
-Bye-Bye, Little (2002)
-Blue (2006)
-Mascara Blues (2007)
-Strobe Edge (2007)
-Ao Haru Ride (2011)
-Sono Omokage o Shitteru (2013) (oneshot)
-Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare (2015)
-Otome no Itari (2020) (oneshot)
-Sakura, Saku (2021)

Reviews

[Bookishrealm · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I wasn’t necessary blown away by the story, the close analysis about the meaning of kindness is interesting and it’ll be fun to see how Sakura and Saku continue to interact with each other. 3.5 Stars.

[Bianca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved Haruki from the first moment I saw him🥰
~
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I need this story in my life because it is by Io Sakisaka ꒡ꆚ꒡

[Laura A. Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

"What are you talking about?! Everyone cares! Being kind is essential!"

This was AMAZING!!

And I am OVERJOYED at the fact that I can EASILY get my hands on an Io Sakisaka manga from VOLUME ONE! I quickly became a fan of her series because she writes such real and relatable characters (including when you wish they made different choices), with this volume taking the cake for me!

Seeing Fujigaya struggle with anxiety and having nausea right out the gate was something that instantly had me wanting to learn more about her. Even later when we see her have physical symptoms from nerves, anxiety, and fear, it made me want to tear up because that is SO relatable! I haven't seen a female lead have similar struggles as I do when it comes to anxiety as well as even how she gets labeled as a "goody two shoes" because she wants to help those around her. While I don't know if I would go as far to say that I help EVERYONE as she has (I have definitely become a homebody *nervous laughter*), the happiness she feels and wanting to thank the person who has changed her life was very much something I have felt time and time again. I feel VERY excited to read more of Fujigaya's story because in previous series I've read by Sakisaka, I related more to the mental struggles of the male leads than the female leads, so having that relatable with the heroine was awesome!

I also liked Haruki a lot! I was a little nervous at first because his physical look reminds me of Ren from Strobe Edge and thought I would have an issue of disassociating the two, but those nerves quickly vanished! He is much more vocal compared to some of her other heroes I've read and is VERY adamant that he's not kind when his actions show that he IS kind (which I found interesting and want to know why he is so adamant about this). I liked his gradual progression of being less grumpy and more curious about Fujigaya and looking for her in the people around him as the story goes on, especially when it gets closer to the end. I am definitely looking forward to a romance between them!

Since I read this digitally first, there were quite a few pages I took screenshots of because I thought there were profound things said (which IMO is typical for Io Sakisaka and is one reason why I love her works). One example is how Haruki asks/tells Fujigaya does it matter if she can't thank the person who changed her life because doesn't it matter more now who she is and living out that change? (Paraphrasing since I don't have my Kindle in front of me.) I thought that sort of like…oh, yeah, I guess that is true. Also, another example is how Fujigaya wishes that she could share her feelings via telepathy because she doesn't feel words will be enough to reflect how she feels. (When she internally expressed how she was frustrated that "Thank you" had to be enough and desperately hoped it conveyed all our feelings, I deeply felt that because TRUTH!)

Overall, I am head over heels for this new series! I am hoping the releases will be quick because the first volume definitely left an impactful impression with this volume! Highly recommend!

*(I received an e-ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts expressed are my own.)*

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was incredibly sweet and cute. Now that I think about it, I think what really resonated with me was Saku being so kind and helpful to those around her, as a sort of legacy to the mysterious person who helped her on a day she really needed it. I think being kind and genuinely helpful is something we need more of in this world, so am 100% behind that story thread.

I get why she is so obsessed with finding the person who helped her, but am glad that she realized at the end that it was a bit much. Though now that she doesn't have that idea to fixate on, she's moved on to fixate on something/one else.

I will reserve my judgment on that until I can see how it plays out in the next volume, which I for sure will be reading. I wasn't a huge fan of the artwork in this one, but the characters and the plot are really solid and I want more.

4, this is a good start to a new series and I can't wait to see how it continues, stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and VIZ Media LLC for an eARC copy of this to read and review.

[Miss Akacia . · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cómo puede ser tan bello y tan soft y tan jfdkkdkww. De verdad es que sé que me voy a hartar de llorar con este manga de lo bonito que va a ser, además es que adoro el dibujo de Io Sakisaka 😍😍😍.
Haruki, cásate conmigo.

[Violet ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super fluffy and gorgeous! 🌸

[Caamille · Rating 4 out of 5]

ehhh mon premier manga ???? saku est adorable, la facon dont le concept de gentillesse est exploré et décrit c’etait trop bien et interessant. Haruki <333333 voila allez donnez moi la suite maintenant svp

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rejoice - Io Sakisaka is back with a new series! The queen of thoughtful shoujo romance is at it again with another quietly hopeful, bittersweet story, this time about a girl named Saku who has always felt like Tree #2 in the school play of life. When she was in late middle school, she nearly fainted on a train and lost her bag; later when she wakes up she finds that someone rode back to the station to return it to her. All she has is a piece of paper with their name and a non-working phone number, and Saku makes it her mission to find her savior.

The realization of how one kind act by a bystander helped her makes Saku decide to become a good Samaritan herself, and even if people call her a Goody Two-Shoes, to her that's just validation that she's doing something worthy of notice. But inside she's still anxious and uncertain, and when she meets a boy at her high school who has an older brother with same name as her savior, she becomes determined to use him to find and thank who she assumes is her guardian angel. But...Haruki Sakura isn't thrilled with girls always trying to get to his brother via him, and he distrusts Saku pretty fiercely. He's just as unsure as she is, and even if there's a love triangle being set up, seeing friendship blossom between the two of them is worth it.

As a note, there's a subplot about Saku's new friend Kotono and her emotionally abusive, controlling boyfriend. Haruki and another boy recognize his behavior as NOT OKAY, but the girls don't. I trust Sakisaka to handle the plotline well, but be aware that it's there, because it is upsetting.

[Meyssoun Riahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

J’AIME TROOOOOOOOOP JE VEUX LA SUITEEEEEE
les mangas ça se lit trop vite

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saku’s life changed when a stranger’s kindness made her want to help people. Armed with his name, she’s been trying to thank him for a long time, so when his brother shows up in her class it must be fate. Of one sort or another.

Io Sakisaka returns! I make a lot of jokes about her manga because she loves her melodrama and she loves staying very firmly in the lane of traditional shojo, but I only poke fun because in that specific space there are few mangaka who do it as well as she does.

The hallmarks of her work are all over this one - Saku’s looking for her helper but ends up spending a lot of time with the attractive brother instead, a quick friend group of unique personalities is formed, there’s a smattering of humour (the teenage rebellion line made me laugh), lots of potential problems are introduced (that boyfriend isn’t long for this world), and the true romance looks poised to run for volumes to come.

The crux of the mystery, such as it is, hinges on Saku having been given the name ‘Ryosuke Sakura’ and a phone number that never worked. Ryosuke, when she meets him, says that wasn’t him. Nobody seems to notice that Haruki Sakura, the brother, might not have owned a phone at that point, nor has he technically heard the exact nature of what happened to Saku. Just saying, solutions abound.

Which is all kind of besides the point. The writing is good and Saku especially is charming as all get out, with her desire to be a helpful person and do things for others just because she was helped once. She’s not really naive, she’s just utterly nice.

Haruki is your basic shojo boy who starts out cold and begins to thaw faster than a polar bear habitat in the Karakum Desert. He likes Saku, he just won’t admit it for ages to come and undoubtedly not until many misunderstandings and assumptions.

And that’s fine - I don’t mind eating oatmeal as long as it’s done fancy enough and this is basic shojo done very correctly. Sakisaka is a veteran who knows exactly what she’s doing and how she likes to do it and it shows the whole time.

Her skill with a good group of friends in particular is especially impressive and I loved the new personalities who showed up in this volume and the way they all came together in various ways. It’s a plus to have that framework laid out early to have something else to focus on.

The switch to all digital does seem to have changed her style up a little bit, but it gets better as it goes and the whole thing really finds its feet as it goes. It’s genuinely nice to read a series and know that you’ll be in pretty good hands.

Apparently one character is directly lifted from her last series, but good luck remembering that unless you read it fairly recently. We’re starting this series two years after its Japanese debut, so it’s a bit late for that. Between that and the sameness of it all being both a feature and a bug all at once, it isn’t perfect, but it’s terribly good.

4 stars - this is a good, strong start to something familiar, but not unpleasantly so. Her last work, Love Me, Love Me Not, was the weakest I’d read for my money, but it was still well worth the journey. I like the start of this one more, honestly, so that bodes well. Either way, I’m confident it won’t waste my time.

[Lily · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25⭐️
V cute

[Rereader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is was a cute start to the series. I wouldn't say that I'm overly attached to the characters or the story, but Sakisaka's art continues to be pretty and adorable. I'm curious to see where the story and themes go, looking forward to it!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so excited to continue this series, I loved this volume. I've read some of Io Sakisaka's other works and they're all so good. Definitely very traditionally shoujo, but I personally love that.

I really like Saku and how she prioritized kindness over everything else. I also really like Sakura, the way he is kind in a very understated way is great in comparison to Saku who is very outspoken about it. Sakura was adorable when he was shy. I love that Saku is already starting to realize her feelings for Sakura, I just know it's going to be so cute. I also love that we are getting to see them form their friendship group instead of being introduced as an already established group. I love when friendships have a big focus in shoujo's.

Apparently, Sakura's older brother was in Love Me, Love Me Not but I read that series a while ago and don't remember him. Maybe it's time for a re-read.

I am wondering if Saku ever told Sakura the whole story about what happened on the train, I have a feeling that it was really him and he probably wrote his older brother's number down instead.  

[MeoLi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un premier tome vraiment rafraîchissant. J'aime beaucoup l'intrigue du début, l'objectif de Saku est assez amusant mais on voit bien que ça lui tient à cœur. Son objectif après avoir été sauvée fait plaisir à voir même si on ne sait jamais qui pourrait abuser de son aide...J'ai quand même hâte de lire la suite, c'est toujours un plaisir de suivre les histoires de la mangaka en plus de retrouver ces dessins magnifique !

[Raquel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me voy a enamorar de cada manga que escriba Io Sakisaka? Por supuesto🛐💗 esta señora me puede escribir LA VIDA y yo sería la más feliz

No creo que este vaya a ser mi fav pero me va a dejar el corazón calentito como todos🥺💗

[Agapibooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

[Loue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks you to bookbestie Ella. She gifted me the first four volumes, and it's so refreshing 🌷

[Cici · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quel bonheur de retrouver les dessins de Io Sakisaka. Ma queen <333 Faut que je t’attende tous les deux mois pour avoir les tomes suivants par contre LOL

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Between a 3 and 4. I'm going to settle on 3 cause it didn't blow me away despite it still being solid.

Basically Sakura was saved a year ago while she was on a train by a mystery person. As she goes to school she meets a boy name Saku, who's brother is named Ryo. Ryo is the first name of the person who saved her so she badly wants to give him a letter. But Saku might be catching feelings for her, but will Sakura aswell?

Cute and fun. The dialogue is the strongest part, the characters feel real. But the plot hasn't gone to anywhere too new or interesting but this is the first volume. So let's see how it evolves.

[Ris Sasaki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sakisaka-sensei is hitting us once again with a banger

[Artemissia G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Je ne connaissais absolument pas Io Sakisaka et j’étais très curieuse de découvrir ce titre, notamment à cause des jolies couvertures des deux premiers tomes sortis en simultané.
Pour une fois, je vais commencer par le style graphique. Je le trouve beau, agréable, aussi aérien que léger et les personnages ont ce côté mignon et pétillant qui me plaît beaucoup. S’il y a peu de décors, ce n’est pas grave en soi et j’aime ce côté non surchargé justement qui laisse plus de place aux expressions émotionnelles.

Dans le premier tome, nous faisons la connaissance de Saku qui s’évanouit dans un train. Elle est sauvée par un mystérieux jeune homme qui lui a laissé un faux numéro et son seul nom : Sakura. Dès lors, la jeune fille fait tout pour le retrouver. Mais pas que… depuis ce jour, elle a décidé de toujours aider son prochain. Cela lui permet de se montrer utile et surtout, elle ne se sent plus invisible aux yeux des autres.

C’est dans ce contexte qu’elle croise un jeune homme de son lycée, Haruki, qui serait le frère cadet de son sauveur. Sauf que le garçon ne veut pas l’aider à passer un message et Saku n’aura de cesse de le convaincre quitte à paraitre lourde et collante. Les choses étant ce qu’elles sont, nos deux protagonistes vont finir par se rapprocher doucement.

[ℂ ✧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un shojo d'institut amb una premissa molt tendra: una noia es troba malament al tren i rep l'ajuda d'un desconegut, qui en recuperar la bossa que es descuida li deixa una nota amb el seu nom i telèfon. Inspirada per aquest acte d'amabilitat, la Saku, la nostra protagonista decideix oferir la seva ajuda a tot aquell qui ho necessiti i deixa enrere la seva personalitat més introvertida, però no s'atreveix mai a contactar el misteriós noi. Quan comencen les classes coneix un company de classe amb el mateix cognom que el seu salvador i resulta que el seu germà gran concorda amb les dades de contacte. L'admiració de la Saku s'ha convertit en alguna cosa més amb el pas del temps i està decidida a entregar-li una carta per confessar tots els seus sentiments. Ara bé, aquesta missió li permetrà conèixer el Sakura company de classe i adonar-se que potser la seva amabilitat encara és més gran que la del seu germà o salvador. La gràcia d'aquest primer volum és que no és gens introductori, ja va per feina i deixa intuir que passarà alguna cosa ben aviat. Molt gratament sorpresa i amb unes il·lustracions molt cuquis ❤️

[Cam · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.25) En toute honnêteté, je suis assez déçue. J'ai lu et relu Strobe Edge. J'ai aimé et adoré Blue Spring Ride. Sakisaka Io est clairement une valeur sûre pour moi. Mais en même temps j'ai toujours quelques craintes concernant ses récentes séries tellement Blue Spring Ride avait mis la barre haute selon moi. C'est très mignon certes mais surtout beaucoup trop classiques. Les années passent mais l'autrice n'innove pas vraiment ici et je trouve ça assez dommage. Le point fort reste toujours l'état d'esprit des personnages. Mais c'est trop ordinaire à mon goût. Ça manque de charme et j'en suis la première déçue.

[Ailbhe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a cute wholesome read, I’ve gotten into this volume a lot faster than the authors other series’.
The main character Saku gets into a spot of trouble and a stranger that she can’t seem to find helped her out, it drove her to change her way of life and always help others out if they need it, even if it gets her into sticky situations.
I’m so excited for the rest of this series, definitely one to read if you need a feel good read!!

[Margaux · Rating 3 out of 5]

C’était pas transcendant mais c’était agréable à lire. L’ambiance est douce et bienveillante.
Saku est trop mignonne! Et je pense que j’apprécierai encore plus le personnage masculin dans les prochains tomes
En plus de ça, les dessins ont un style assez "rond", ce qui renforce le côté doux de l’histoire

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Another series by Io Sakisaka in English, queue the love triangles and melodrama! I normally like Io Sakisaka's manga so hoping this one turns out ok though the first volume was just ok. Art is very pretty as always.

[Manon · Rating 3 out of 5]

J'ai lu les 3 premiers tomes sur la plage parce qu'on me les a gracieusement prêtés. C'est mignon mais Saku est quand même très niaise. Ils sont tous très lisses en fait, à part Iryû qui vient mettre un peu de piment dans tout ça. Je ne sais pas si je lirai la suite...

[Lesaffairesdelouise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Assez introductif mais j’ai hâte de découvrir la suite 🤭
Ce que j’aime surtout ce sont les dessins de la mangaka, ils sont d’une douceur roh lala

[Rebecca Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

[Ridah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t usually rate my manga individually but I just love io sakisaka’s works so much. They mayke me so happy and emotional. I’m SO excited for this new series!!