Farewell, Daisy: Jun Mayuzuki Short Story Collection

by Jun Mayuzuki, Amanda Haley (Translator)

In her first collection of short stories, Jun Mayuzuki (Kowloon Generic Romance) captures the experiences of women as they navigate life, relationships, and their own sense of being. Seeking independence. Seeking acceptance. Seeking…the attention of a cute coworker…? With reflections on the female role, identity, and sex, this thought-provoking volume ultimately resounds with humor and hope as these women bid “farewell” to the past and step into a shining future…

Genres: Manga, Short Stories, Josei, Japan, Seinen, Romance

284 pages, Paperback

First published May 18, 2018

About the author

See also: 眉月じゅん

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

An oddly mixed collection, Farewell, Daisy's primary takeaway is the way women can beat themselves up in the belief that they need a man. Several stories, most notably the second, use the idea of penetrative sex as frightening because it violates the woman's body and sense of self - it becomes something she has to do rather than she wants to do, to the point where at times she has to pretend to want it. That's not to say that is is anti-men or anti-sex, but its exploration of the theme of women being tied to men sexually, to have worth, is one that Mayuzuki toys with in her longer works as well, albeit not nearly as bluntly. I'm not sure I loved this book, but I certainly do appreciate it.

[Kelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, conceptually, I like a lot about this collection.

I appreciate how it explores the female experience through a couple different lenses. It’s one of the rare manga that actually features female characters who feel like real, legible people. They’re mean, gross, sexual, vain, naive, introspective, and bananas. They’re not just objects for readers to consume. I really like that.

But, I’ll be honest with you, the only story I genuinely liked in this collection is the first one—“Everyday”.

To me, the other stories in this collection are more focused on making a point than on being good stories.

As a reader, it feels like “Everyday” is the most recent short story this author wrote while the others are from further back—mainly because the craft and storytelling gets progressively more tenuous.

Anyway.

Those are my two cents. If you like “Kowloon Generic Romance”, this collection may feel familiar in some ways?

But, it’s also very different.

This author’s interest in telling subversive stories that feature characters and experiences often excluded from mainstream manga narratives is present throughout—but, the quality varies greatly from one tale to the next. Beware~

[Irene ➰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.7/5

Raccolta di storie con svariati finali e modi di approcciarsi alla vita. Una lettura piuttosto veloce e poco impegnativa ma con aspetti presi dal quotidiano a cui sicuramente in un modo o nell’altro ci si può senz’altro relazionare.

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not convinced...

I'm very fond of Kowloon Generic Romance, like it's probably among my favorites lately (as in, I'm impatiently waiting between each volume) and also, I just know that I'm gonna love After the rain when I eventually get to read it.

That being said, I was expecting to like this anthology.

Guess I was wrong.

Not that I truly disliked it but...

I mean, I did fully enjoy the very first story. But the rest was really meh to me. If not kinda creepy sometimes. Also, some of the sex scenes felt very unnecessary to the plot.

There are some thoughtworthy points, but most story plots failed to bring me there. All in all, I don't regret reading this, but I feel like it could have been so much more.

[Laurence · Rating 4 out of 5]

This yosei short story collection is a rare feminist manga gaze onto the worlds of Japanese women that is commonly only accessible through the eyes of the much younger, idealized and heteronormative shoujo girlhood perspective. Not all stories are as strong, and unfortunately the most extensive three-part story revolves around a female stalker whose behavior is presented as cute and loveable. This perpetuates the obsessive otaku trope in a simplistic genderbend that seems to argue that because it concerns a woman, it isnt so bad. Surprising in an otherwise rich feminist bundle, which makes numerous beautiful and nuanced points about bodily alienation, the performativity of girlboss feminism and the relation between art and content in the age of social media.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kowloon Generic Romance became a new favorite series from volume one, the art and the story are both fantastic, so I was excited when I heard about the short story collection from the same artist. Id like to give a little grace and attribute the lower art quality here to these being I think older stories probably so much earlier in her career. That said, I dont think youd be missing out if you skipped this one. None of the stories stuck with me and as others have said some of the sex scenes just seem pointless.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Living as a woman may not be easy, but Jun Mayuzuki demonstrates the lives of the varied women within this collection of six short stories. From meeting, hooking up and breaking up. From developing a crush, having a relationship and ending a relationship. You may not find commonality between yourself and these women at all, but Farewell Daisy is an entertaining read as the characters all try to seek happiness.

[Zephorah Dove · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I need a full on series for the first story in this collection. It reeled me in and had me hooked from the randomness of it. I enjoyed many of the stories included and am a huge fan of Jun Mayuzuki's other work, Kowloon and After the Rain. I really liked how adult all the stories were and real issues they included.

Thanks so much to Yen Press and Edelweiss for the DRC.

[Felicia · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story I liked the least was actually the title story. I didn't really get the ending of that one, and to be honest, I was a bit confused by the endings of the other stories, too. The ones I enjoyed a little more were the one with Emily and the one with the 'Amazon.'

[Jillian -always aspiring- · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard to believe this is a collection of shorts from the same creator as After the Rain. From a social commentary standpoint, I understood the intention of the stories, but they still left a bad taste in my mouth overall.

[Christina F. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only story I really liked out of these was Connected Night, but I can appreciate the concepts this collection tries to convey: the image of women vs. society vs. themselves. The execution, however, was lackluster

[treadawilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5✨

[Marika C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Primo manga che leggo di Un Mayuzuki, mi ha incuriosito molto, è stata una bella lettura, tocca il mondo delle donne e tutte le sue sfaccettature, dall'amore alle insicurezze. Ve lo consiglio

[Kitsu · Rating 2 out of 5]

:/

[Zenobia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Paulette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Josei!! I enjoyed this collection, and while some stories were better written than others, I was charmed by the topics presented.

[Marianna Rainolter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daisy è la protagonista della prima storia scritta da Jun Mayuzuki. Daisy è una giovane strega ingenua che non sa nulla dell’amore. Ma conoscendo Kenji dovrà imparare a muoversi in questo mondo sconosciuto e dove i sentimenti annebbiano la tua capacità di ragionare. Lo capirà sopratutto quando sarà costretta ad andare nelle viscere della terra e convivere con gli orchi. Lì capirà cosa vuole fare della sua vita e a chi dedicare il suo amore e la sua magia. Daisy la conosciamo alla fine del volume di Sayonara Daisy, ma prima non mancheranno altre e diverse ragazze e donne con i loro problemi amorosi e non solo. Kyoko Sakigami è una scrittrice che invita le donne ad essere libere, ma ha paura del sesso. Per superare questa avversione e provare piacere troverà aiuto in un burbero e per nulla affascinante buttafuori. Saiko Imawano è una ragazza un po’ cupa e introversa. Riuscirà con i suoi comportamenti particolari a conquistare il suo collega di lavoro gentile e solare? Abbiamo una giovane commessa per nulla soddisfatta della relazione con il suo ragazzo e ossessionata dai like sui social e dalle apparenze. E una cameriera che vede sempre una donna in un angolo in attesa di qualcuno. Chi sta aspettando e perché?

In queste storie sono mostrate tante e diverse donne e ragazze, che pur nella brevità di questi racconti sono ben esplorate e raccontate. Cambiano le età, il background, il carattere ma tutte cercano l’amore, cercano qualcuno da amare e da essere giustamente ricambiate. Qualcosa che pare semplice e forse scontato ma in realtà non lo è affatto. Viene fatto uno spaccato sul mondo femminile mostrando anche i problemi delle donne, di quel loro amore dato con troppa facilità, di uomini che si approfittano del loro buon cuore, della paura di lasciarsi andare per non rimanere ferite, per non ritrovarsi sole. Ci sono anche elementi di critica sociale dove le donne devono essere in un determinato modo, devono fare determinate cose e remano contro in piccoli gesti queste convenzioni e pregiudizi.

Sayonara Daisy racchiude molti elementi presenti anche nelle altre opere di Jun Mayuzuki. Troviamo il suo disegno ancora grezzo ma adatto alla narrazione, come anche parti più esplicite non sono voyueristiche ma necessarie per raccontare quello che succede alle loro protagoniste, perché anche il sesso e la nudità sono necessarie per la loro crescita personale, per accettare se stesse, il proprio corpo. Sono storie che pur essendo uscite anni fa (quasi decenni, ormai) a loro modo non perdono una certa attualità e motivo di riflessione per le donne verso loro stesse ma non solo. Siamo tutte un po’ Daisy ed è giusto imparare a dirle anche “addio”.

Recensione scritta per il sito NerdPool e che trovate anche al seguente link: https://www.nerdpool.it/sayonara-dais...