What do you think?
Rate this book
Casualmente
Yumiko es una joven japonesa que llegó a Inglaterra hace 10 años para estudiar diseño y se quedó a vivir allí. La muerte de su padre le obliga a volver a su país de origen y a enfrentarse a sus dudas, a su sensación de sentirse extranjera en ambos países, a su extrañeza ante ritos inmemoriales que no tienen nada que ver
con ella, a sus dudas respecto a toda su familia…
Una novela gráfica exquisita, delicada, sutil, sobre el desarraigo, las expectativas ajenas y cómo encontrar tu lugar en el mundo, realizada por Fumio Obata,que se exilió a Londres en 1991. Una ópera prima elegante y bien contada que revela a un autor con domino absoluto de los recursos del medio, claro ejemplo
de cómo hacer una historia donde lo importante está debajo de la anécdota. Además de ser uno de los libros más bonitos que se habrán publicado este año.
con ella, a sus dudas respecto a toda su familia…
Una novela gráfica exquisita, delicada, sutil, sobre el desarraigo, las expectativas ajenas y cómo encontrar tu lugar en el mundo, realizada por Fumio Obata,que se exilió a Londres en 1991. Una ópera prima elegante y bien contada que revela a un autor con domino absoluto de los recursos del medio, claro ejemplo
de cómo hacer una historia donde lo importante está debajo de la anécdota. Además de ser uno de los libros más bonitos que se habrán publicado este año.
160 pages, Paperback
First published February 13, 2014
53 people are currently reading
1712 people want to read
About the author
Fumio Obata
16 books23 followersFumio Obata is a comic book author whose work and inspiration come from cultural differences and social issues in his surroundings. He is also a visual artist in his own right.
Fumio was born in Tokyo and grew up with the Manga and Anime cultures of the 1970’s and 80’s. Always fond of drawing, at school his exercise books were always full of cartoon sketches. In 1991 he moved to the UK and has been living on the British soil since.
He studied BA Illustration at Glasgow School of Art and obtained a Master degree in Communication Design from Royal College of Art in London. Under the guidance of some great tutors he decided to pursue his career in sequential imagery/design and is eager to extend its potentials into a wider perspective.
Fumio also has a career as an animator. Between 2003 and 2008 he worked with Duran Duran, Channel4, and joined Redkite Animations in Edinburgh in 2006. In Edinburgh, he worked on numbers of joint projects with DC Thompson. During the 5years he learned the importance of teamwork, structure and planning - the practical side of creative industry.
In 2008 he undertook an artist residency at La Cité Internationale de la Bande Dessinée et de l’image in Angoulême, France. Since then he has had a close relation with the French comic book scene and chose graphic novel and comic book as his main creative outlet.
In 2010 he started tutoring as a visiting lecturer for BA courses in the UK to support young talents to develop their own/unique artistic voices in various sequential contexts such as animation, graphic novel and children’s book.
(Source)
Fumio was born in Tokyo and grew up with the Manga and Anime cultures of the 1970’s and 80’s. Always fond of drawing, at school his exercise books were always full of cartoon sketches. In 1991 he moved to the UK and has been living on the British soil since.
He studied BA Illustration at Glasgow School of Art and obtained a Master degree in Communication Design from Royal College of Art in London. Under the guidance of some great tutors he decided to pursue his career in sequential imagery/design and is eager to extend its potentials into a wider perspective.
Fumio also has a career as an animator. Between 2003 and 2008 he worked with Duran Duran, Channel4, and joined Redkite Animations in Edinburgh in 2006. In Edinburgh, he worked on numbers of joint projects with DC Thompson. During the 5years he learned the importance of teamwork, structure and planning - the practical side of creative industry.
In 2008 he undertook an artist residency at La Cité Internationale de la Bande Dessinée et de l’image in Angoulême, France. Since then he has had a close relation with the French comic book scene and chose graphic novel and comic book as his main creative outlet.
In 2010 he started tutoring as a visiting lecturer for BA courses in the UK to support young talents to develop their own/unique artistic voices in various sequential contexts such as animation, graphic novel and children’s book.
(Source)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 411 reviews
June 8, 2014
Gorgeous art- thin story. Start with the art, though, because that is what gets four stars: watercolours ( a very hard medium to work with) and stunningly assured brushwork that is entirely suitable for the Japanese theme. I look at any single image and am astonished with the elegance and simplicity with which Obata conveys a pose or expression. Literally (and rarely true) every line is perfect, and never a mark more or less. Yumiko is feminine and pretty but has an ordinary, slim body which conveys feminity though posture more than curves, It is the hardest possible body type to draw, and Obata gives himself no respite by drawing her throughout in light clothing. For comics, which are suprisingly demanding in this regards, he achieves the perfect balance of detail and abstraction. I should say that the palette too is wonderful: muted browns- though the cover is lousy and gives no idea of the quality of what is inside.
Sadly the story does not match up. It is very gentle and lovely- and I admire Obata, a man, for writing so sympathetically for a woman character- but while it worked nicely for a short story (Going Back- submitted to the Observer competition) it never builds enough for a full book. It has some huge themes to hand- cultural differences, gender divides, family love, death and grief and sadly the light touch of the art becomes a light touch in the narrative. I would have liked much more of any one of these- especially the cultural aspects. He touches on the metaphor with Noh drama, but it is never taken further than a visual impression. Maybe Obata might have been better advised to keep with the tight short story format and produced other stories for the book.
Inevitably I also find myself comparing it with the Nao of Brown - weirdly another recent graphic novel in watercolour about a young Japanese woman living in London...is this a growing sub genre? The art, to my eyes, is ahead of Nao (though this was also outstanding) but Nao had more depth of chracter, themes, ideas and above all, humour -which earned it 5 stars in my book.
But how hard is it to write a great graphic novel? You need to do everything brilliantly- and Obata is clearly a great new talent.
Sadly the story does not match up. It is very gentle and lovely- and I admire Obata, a man, for writing so sympathetically for a woman character- but while it worked nicely for a short story (Going Back- submitted to the Observer competition) it never builds enough for a full book. It has some huge themes to hand- cultural differences, gender divides, family love, death and grief and sadly the light touch of the art becomes a light touch in the narrative. I would have liked much more of any one of these- especially the cultural aspects. He touches on the metaphor with Noh drama, but it is never taken further than a visual impression. Maybe Obata might have been better advised to keep with the tight short story format and produced other stories for the book.
Inevitably I also find myself comparing it with the Nao of Brown - weirdly another recent graphic novel in watercolour about a young Japanese woman living in London...is this a growing sub genre? The art, to my eyes, is ahead of Nao (though this was also outstanding) but Nao had more depth of chracter, themes, ideas and above all, humour -which earned it 5 stars in my book.
But how hard is it to write a great graphic novel? You need to do everything brilliantly- and Obata is clearly a great new talent.
September 18, 2023
Yumiko is settled in London, she works in design and now she’s engaged to British boyfriend Mark. But when her father dies in an accident, Yumiko reluctantly returns to her former home in Tokyo for his funeral. Fumio Obata grounds his exploration of cultural identity and generational conflict in his own experiences, he left Tokyo to study illustration in the UK in the early 1990s and ended up living and working in England.
Obata blends Japanese and European graphic traditions to tell his story. It’s a sensitive, atmospheric piece, I thought the dialogue was a bit too basic at times but the strength of Obata’s illustrations more than compensated. His skilful mix of watercolour and pen washes give his narrative a subtle, wistful quality: pastel disrupted by bursts of stronger colour when Yumiko’s confronted by long-buried emotions. Obata’s narrative’s largely realist but he inserts a series of dream-like sequences, which build on images and concepts from Noh theatre: its conventions and use of masking linked to Yumiko’s shifting state of mind; her complicated feelings of grief and guilt over her choice to leave Japan and the unexpected loss of her father. Obata’s novel’s short with an abrupt ending, and Yumiko’s character a little underdeveloped, but some memorable elements here.
Obata blends Japanese and European graphic traditions to tell his story. It’s a sensitive, atmospheric piece, I thought the dialogue was a bit too basic at times but the strength of Obata’s illustrations more than compensated. His skilful mix of watercolour and pen washes give his narrative a subtle, wistful quality: pastel disrupted by bursts of stronger colour when Yumiko’s confronted by long-buried emotions. Obata’s narrative’s largely realist but he inserts a series of dream-like sequences, which build on images and concepts from Noh theatre: its conventions and use of masking linked to Yumiko’s shifting state of mind; her complicated feelings of grief and guilt over her choice to leave Japan and the unexpected loss of her father. Obata’s novel’s short with an abrupt ending, and Yumiko’s character a little underdeveloped, but some memorable elements here.
March 22, 2015
Lovely, elegant art--pen and ink with watercolors--perfect for the quietly contemplative story of a Japanese woman living in London, who needs to go home to Japan for a family emergency. The action is not the point of the story, but what the return trip requires of her, to think back to her spiritual roots in Japan, her father and mother. It's an old question: Can you go home again? Yes, to visit, periodically, but can you actually return there? There isn't much more to the story, in a sense… a London boyfriend is part of it, a conversation with her mother, an encounter in dreams and in returning to places she grew up with Noh drama. There's spiritual and cultural and heritage issues at stake here. And the art is gorgeous. And as reviewer Geroge Marshall pointed out, it looks quite a bit like the also watercolored Nao of Brown which is also about a Japense woman living with a boyfriend in London, and about psychic struggles of another kind. Just So Happens (what kind of title is this?) as lovely and contemplative as it is, pleas in comparison to the literally more colorful Nao, and the story is just less engaging. It's more muted, all around, but worth a look. Very few graphic novels are this gorgeous to look at, in almost every single panel. The watercolor serves the story very well. Fumio, a Japanese male living in London, does a great job with this fictional story of a woman who, like him, perhaps, needs to confront the cultural clashes, finally. Maybe all of us who have left home need to do this in our own ways.
October 20, 2020
Yes, the cover of this graphic novel doesn't do any justice at all!
Because the illustration inside the book is so damn different and amazing!
The story is so well written and illustrated in relation to the plot. Yumiko represents well the lives of migrants who feel a little lost when it comes to their places of origin, the traditions and family ties. The arguments and discussion about women working and living their lives to the fullest going against or with the support of family have been well represented. I enjoyed reading this one more as I got to know a bit about Japanese traditions and beliefs.
Because the illustration inside the book is so damn different and amazing!
The story is so well written and illustrated in relation to the plot. Yumiko represents well the lives of migrants who feel a little lost when it comes to their places of origin, the traditions and family ties. The arguments and discussion about women working and living their lives to the fullest going against or with the support of family have been well represented. I enjoyed reading this one more as I got to know a bit about Japanese traditions and beliefs.
September 26, 2021
This story was so moving, a woman between her identity and where she lives now. The Graphics are wonderful watercolor drawings! I really did like this very much.
January 6, 2018
Obata's story follows Yumiko, a Japanese woman living and working in London. She owns a design firm, is engaged to a British man, and extolls her love of the urban center for the first few frames of the book. Things quickly change when she receives a call from her brother that her father has died in an accident.
She travels back to Japan and unpacks some of her last memories with her father, leading up to her departure. Yumiko has this recurring vision of a character from a Noh theatre that follows her through town. The shadow character continues to visit her, seen in crowds, walking towards her on the street, etc. She is confused, but not necessarily scared of this vision. She visits her mother after her father's funeral and reads more about Noh theatre, and an interesting quote stands out:
...and within such sophistication and space, "self" becomes the obstacle...
I enjoyed the tone of the book, and the look into Japanese funerary practices and the concept of grief. Yumiko's family dynamic is so different than my own, so this was an enlightening read in that way. Obata's artwork was remarkable, and I liked the tone of the story.
--
Book Riot Read Harder 2018 Challenge "A comic written and illustrated by the same person"
She travels back to Japan and unpacks some of her last memories with her father, leading up to her departure. Yumiko has this recurring vision of a character from a Noh theatre that follows her through town. The shadow character continues to visit her, seen in crowds, walking towards her on the street, etc. She is confused, but not necessarily scared of this vision. She visits her mother after her father's funeral and reads more about Noh theatre, and an interesting quote stands out:
...and within such sophistication and space, "self" becomes the obstacle...
I enjoyed the tone of the book, and the look into Japanese funerary practices and the concept of grief. Yumiko's family dynamic is so different than my own, so this was an enlightening read in that way. Obata's artwork was remarkable, and I liked the tone of the story.
--
Book Riot Read Harder 2018 Challenge "A comic written and illustrated by the same person"
October 3, 2018
This story is about Yumiko, a Japanese who moves to London to pursue her dreams in design. She’s having conflicting feelings about what it’s like living in London, her life in Japan, what home is and what it feels like, her traditions and culture that she can’t let go off and her inner conflicts that she hasn’t made peace with yet. A tragic event happens in which she finds herself back in Japan and meets with her mother at the end of the trip to discuss some of what’s going on in her mind. We see glimpses of what life looks like for some of her family members without getting to know much about them.
This felt like a nice, quiet and incomplete read. The art depicts the story very beautifully. Yet after each chapter or each end of a conversation I feel like there was a lot that was not expressed or voiced. We’re left feeling confused or filling in the gaps ourselves. Maybe that was the intention of the author or maybe that’s what it’s like for her and her family or that’s what she’s used to. I think this book could really do with a second part though because of all that was left unsaid. I’m curious and interested and even though there wasn’t much said in terms of each of the characters story or even explanations on what’s happening with the main character, there’s still something that makes them intriguing to me.
This felt like a nice, quiet and incomplete read. The art depicts the story very beautifully. Yet after each chapter or each end of a conversation I feel like there was a lot that was not expressed or voiced. We’re left feeling confused or filling in the gaps ourselves. Maybe that was the intention of the author or maybe that’s what it’s like for her and her family or that’s what she’s used to. I think this book could really do with a second part though because of all that was left unsaid. I’m curious and interested and even though there wasn’t much said in terms of each of the characters story or even explanations on what’s happening with the main character, there’s still something that makes them intriguing to me.
June 22, 2022
Tidigare i våras skulle jag gå in till Sheen Library för att återvinna en kaffemaskin. Ja, bibliotek i England har en 'small electricals recycling'-tunna, väldigt praktiskt. Idag återvände jag för att läsa en bok jag fick syn på då. Det var verkligen skönt att bara slå sig ner i en fåtölj så där och läsa direkt, det var åratal sedan.
Genren kan kallas hemvändarlitt. Tyckte mycket om huvudkaraktärens tankar om hur hon själv skapat sitt Londonliv. Intressant iakttagelse att alla här håller räkningen på hur många år det blivit i London, antalet år sedan den själsliga pånyttfödelsen. För mig: snart 16, i vuxen ålder. Frihetskänsla och eufori, som med ens blandas med ambivalens och desperation när hemlandet kallar och anledningen är någon tragisk händelse.
Om författaren Fumio Obata läste jag efteråt att han arbetat mycket med Duran Duran. Måste ta reda på hur. Kanske som grafisk designer. Extra spännande då hela familjen Le Bon bor här en bit längre bort på gatan.
Vid samma besök då i mars upptäckte jag även Hockneys ljuvliga vårbok. Hurra för bibliotek.
Genren kan kallas hemvändarlitt. Tyckte mycket om huvudkaraktärens tankar om hur hon själv skapat sitt Londonliv. Intressant iakttagelse att alla här håller räkningen på hur många år det blivit i London, antalet år sedan den själsliga pånyttfödelsen. För mig: snart 16, i vuxen ålder. Frihetskänsla och eufori, som med ens blandas med ambivalens och desperation när hemlandet kallar och anledningen är någon tragisk händelse.
Om författaren Fumio Obata läste jag efteråt att han arbetat mycket med Duran Duran. Måste ta reda på hur. Kanske som grafisk designer. Extra spännande då hela familjen Le Bon bor här en bit längre bort på gatan.
Vid samma besök då i mars upptäckte jag även Hockneys ljuvliga vårbok. Hurra för bibliotek.
February 26, 2023
This comic book gave me goosebumps. I didn't know much about the Noh ritual, and now I am fascinated with it! I am also fascinated with the author's mesmerizing art style, which amazed me on every page. Lovely work!
January 6, 2015
I've heard a lot about this graphic novel, and it mostly lived up to the hype.
The story is on the surface quite simple, about a young Japanese woman, who lives in London and has to go back to Japan because her father suddenly dies. There she is confronted with her old self and starts to think about her choices in life, all the while the funeral and all the little practical things that has to be done after a death has occurred, goes on around her.
The art is, as everyone seems to have noted, absolutely gorgeous. The characters are drawn with a light touch and the subdued watercolours are perfect to match the delicate artwork. Obata also excels in using small visual devices to transmit ideas of how the characters feel and experience a specific moment. My favourite was probably when the main character leaves London and walks through the airport, partly in a daze from the message that her father had died. The environments and the people around her is reduced to a blur, accentuating her feeling of loneliness and alienation.
The visual storytelling is otherwise mostly in the Western graphic novel tradition, though there are times when a distinct Asian influence can be felt (Obata is, just like the main character, a Japanese living in London), especially in the silent, more contemplative scenes. Sometimes these reminded me of the comics of Jiro Taniguchi, which is praise indeed.
The story is good, though not on the level of the art. It is a subtle tale of cultural differences, of finding yourself, and reconciling with your past, and as such it is deftly told. Just so happens is a moving tale, though not a groundbreaking graphic novel. Thus my giving it four stars, and not five which the art could have deserved. I will keep my eyes on Obata, though, as there is greatness in the making here.
The story is on the surface quite simple, about a young Japanese woman, who lives in London and has to go back to Japan because her father suddenly dies. There she is confronted with her old self and starts to think about her choices in life, all the while the funeral and all the little practical things that has to be done after a death has occurred, goes on around her.
The art is, as everyone seems to have noted, absolutely gorgeous. The characters are drawn with a light touch and the subdued watercolours are perfect to match the delicate artwork. Obata also excels in using small visual devices to transmit ideas of how the characters feel and experience a specific moment. My favourite was probably when the main character leaves London and walks through the airport, partly in a daze from the message that her father had died. The environments and the people around her is reduced to a blur, accentuating her feeling of loneliness and alienation.
The visual storytelling is otherwise mostly in the Western graphic novel tradition, though there are times when a distinct Asian influence can be felt (Obata is, just like the main character, a Japanese living in London), especially in the silent, more contemplative scenes. Sometimes these reminded me of the comics of Jiro Taniguchi, which is praise indeed.
The story is good, though not on the level of the art. It is a subtle tale of cultural differences, of finding yourself, and reconciling with your past, and as such it is deftly told. Just so happens is a moving tale, though not a groundbreaking graphic novel. Thus my giving it four stars, and not five which the art could have deserved. I will keep my eyes on Obata, though, as there is greatness in the making here.
December 28, 2016
This book started really strong.
It's gorgeously produced - no page is without design or wasted, and the illustrations are just stunning.
It hones into a fascinating conversation, between our protagonist and her significant other, and they roam the streets of London. He notices something about the way she interacts with a certain group of people, and she reacts negatively, disliking that he's "watching her" as she moves through the world.
As the story moves, and she travels to Japan, it gets more ethereal. We get a peek into her dreams. It's still illustrated beautifully - it just lost me, and I'm having a hard time even remembering the plot. You might fall head over heels more than I did, though.
Read with:
Turning Japanese by MariNaomi
Vietnamerica: A Family's Journey
The Nao of Brown
It's gorgeously produced - no page is without design or wasted, and the illustrations are just stunning.
It hones into a fascinating conversation, between our protagonist and her significant other, and they roam the streets of London. He notices something about the way she interacts with a certain group of people, and she reacts negatively, disliking that he's "watching her" as she moves through the world.
As the story moves, and she travels to Japan, it gets more ethereal. We get a peek into her dreams. It's still illustrated beautifully - it just lost me, and I'm having a hard time even remembering the plot. You might fall head over heels more than I did, though.
Read with:
Turning Japanese by MariNaomi
Vietnamerica: A Family's Journey
The Nao of Brown
May 14, 2015
Can we ever really go home? How do we define home?
This graphic novel has wonderful sketchy watercolory (yes I just made up that word) art, and is quite lovely to look at. The story/plot however is so thin as to be almost transparent (pun intended). The questions asked are universal ones, especially for those of us who left home and now live in a country different from the one we were born and raised in. Yumiko was born in Japan, but now lives in London. Happily by all accounts, but when she learns of her father's death, she returns for the funeral, and is struck by the rituals of life in her birth country.
This story disappointingly does not explore deeply any of the various themes it could have, so while I really liked the art, this is not a book I'd recommend.
This graphic novel has wonderful sketchy watercolory (yes I just made up that word) art, and is quite lovely to look at. The story/plot however is so thin as to be almost transparent (pun intended). The questions asked are universal ones, especially for those of us who left home and now live in a country different from the one we were born and raised in. Yumiko was born in Japan, but now lives in London. Happily by all accounts, but when she learns of her father's death, she returns for the funeral, and is struck by the rituals of life in her birth country.
This story disappointingly does not explore deeply any of the various themes it could have, so while I really liked the art, this is not a book I'd recommend.
February 3, 2016
It was okay. Maybe a little less than okay. It felt like things were missing; like they skipped over big gaps in the plot or conversations with no warning. It didn't flow well. And I was a bit confused at times. I get she rejected her culture for a long time and finally accept it by the end but how she gets from point A to point B is unclear.
Read
March 22, 2016Lovely illustrations create a calm and reflective reading experience, but I'm not exactly sure what the author is trying to express, or what kind of experience he is hoping we'll have. You close the book and think "Huh, That was nice" and you're not sure what to think after that.
September 21, 2024
Una graphic novel dal forte sapore orientale, piena di cultura e tradizioni che non conoscevo.
Una ragazza giapponese a Londra che deve tornar e a casa per il funerale del padre.
Una ragazza che non si sente a casa da nessuna parte, credo un senso comune per gli espatriati.
Molto interessante la parte del teatro No!
Una ragazza giapponese a Londra che deve tornar e a casa per il funerale del padre.
Una ragazza che non si sente a casa da nessuna parte, credo un senso comune per gli espatriati.
Molto interessante la parte del teatro No!
January 19, 2024
Visualmente limpio y bello.
Narrativamente preciosista y depurado.
Líneas bonitas en todos los sentidos para agradar a todos los sentidos.
Narrativamente preciosista y depurado.
Líneas bonitas en todos los sentidos para agradar a todos los sentidos.
December 4, 2017
Yumiko is a Japanese woman living and working in London. She loves her new home, but her relationship with London is bittersweet, as she always feels like a foreigner. However, she doesn't feel at home in Japan, either -- something that is driven home to her when her father dies. Her return to Japan brings up many repressed feelings about her relationships. The illustrations in this are beautiful, but it feels incomplete. It's a story about Yumiko's emotional journey, but I'm never sure what she's feeling, and I was frustrated by the lack of believable characterisation.
Read
December 22, 2019I don't know how to rate this. The art is beautiful but the story is... less of a story and more of just musings. The Noh image/metaphor about being a performer in one's life where one's actions and behavior are strictly and carefully controlled was quite interesting, but it didn't really seem to go anywhere. The comic ends with Yumiko telling herself that some things never change and she must believe that. The denial/lie there reminded me a little of Kazuo Ishiguro. Beautiful art though!!! It was a treat for my eyes.
June 14, 2024
Calm, contemplative, quietly sad. I appreciated learning a bit about Noh theater, which was really nicely tied to a Japanese-English woman's experience trying to understand feeling calm and together on the surface, but having some conflict bubble up below the surface/behind the mask. I also liked the combo of the main character trying to make sense of her father's death/funeral in Japan + grappling with who she is, including which country she wants to be her home.
September 6, 2022
Yumiko è una expat. Io sono stat una expat. È sempre bello vedere messe su carta le proprie sensazioni.
April 27, 2021
Just So Happens is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Fumio Obata. It centers on Yumiko – an expat now living in London, but has to return home to Japan to attend her father's funeral.
Yumiko is a Japanese-born graphic designer now living a perfectly normal life in London. When her father passes away she suddenly returns to Japan and becomes an observer, and then a participant, in the highly structured rituals she'd left behind. While trying to navigate the cultural divide she now embodies, the memory of a long-ago Noh performance haunts her, relentlessly confusing her ability to make sense of her place in the world. She would eventually come to terms with her relationship with her father and the Noh player's symbolism, but a meeting with her mother changes her attitude yet again.
Just So Happens is written and constructed rather well. Delicate lines and vivid watercolors create bold and flowing scenes, as well as a slow, ethereal Japanese summer. The ending feels like it could use a little more, but this book can easily be appreciated by anyone torn between two cultures.
All in all, Just So Happens is a wonderful deal both gently and powerfully with grief, identity, and the pressure not to disappoint one's parents – even after they're gone.
Yumiko is a Japanese-born graphic designer now living a perfectly normal life in London. When her father passes away she suddenly returns to Japan and becomes an observer, and then a participant, in the highly structured rituals she'd left behind. While trying to navigate the cultural divide she now embodies, the memory of a long-ago Noh performance haunts her, relentlessly confusing her ability to make sense of her place in the world. She would eventually come to terms with her relationship with her father and the Noh player's symbolism, but a meeting with her mother changes her attitude yet again.
Just So Happens is written and constructed rather well. Delicate lines and vivid watercolors create bold and flowing scenes, as well as a slow, ethereal Japanese summer. The ending feels like it could use a little more, but this book can easily be appreciated by anyone torn between two cultures.
All in all, Just So Happens is a wonderful deal both gently and powerfully with grief, identity, and the pressure not to disappoint one's parents – even after they're gone.
July 7, 2024
Vraiment une très jolie BD en aquarelle sur le retour aux sources, l'identité, la place du genre, le deuil, et les racines. Autant le style est vraiment très maîtrisé (d'autant que je trouve que réussir à faire un livre entier en aquarelle est vraiment quelque chose qui mérite le respect), autant l'histoire était ... peut-être trop étirée. Il y a beaucoup de métaphores utilisées, mais j'ai l'impression que l'auteur ne savait pas trop où il souhaitait aller, et la fin est très brutale. Une histoire beaucoup plus courte, ou beaucoup plus longue, aurait peut-être donné une autre substance à tout ça.
August 24, 2022
The illustrations were unlike any style I've ever come across before in graphic novels, which was quite refreshing. The story started off pretty strong, but it's length was probably the reason it fell flat for me. This may have been due to the fact that none of the themes were really explored in depth, and everything was kinda left to the reader's imagination. I personally don't mind that, but there has to be something about a book that leaves a mark on me for it to feel special and unique. Unfortunately, this wasn't that book, but it does have great potential to be someone else's favourite.
September 7, 2018
Las mochilas familiares aparecen cuando menos te lo esperas, aunque lleves años viviendo en otro país, en otra cultura y estés perfectamente integrado en tu nuevo entorno. Una historia emotiva y muy bien contada.
April 6, 2025
Délicate BD à l'aquarelle sur l'identité, les racines, la famille, le deuil et les choix de vie. Un petit air de nostalgie et de regrets, c'était doux et amer comme savent si bien le faire les japonais.
January 26, 2023
Krótka, ale wzruszająca historia o poszukiwaniu własnej tożsamości z przepięknymi illustacjami.
February 5, 2023
Veľmi sugestívne rozprávanie o strate rodiča, vyrovnávaní sa s ňou, pocite vykorenenosti, potrebe obhájiť si svoje vlastné, nevychodené chodníčky pred rodinou aj sebou samým, o konflikte ambícií a očakávaní (vlastných i cudzích)… výtvarné spracovanie výborné.
August 10, 2024
Wunderschöne Zeichnungen, aber die Story entwickelt keine wirkliche Tiefe für mich.
November 12, 2014
Jalan cerita yang agak simple. Konflik keluarga yang biasa kita dengar sehari-hari. Saya kagum dengan setiap ilustrasi cat air yang dilukis-- warna, tona dan brush stokes. Lawa.
Paling suka bila penulis/artist illustrates each scene properly, such detailing-- London scenery, Kyoto, the temple and even the restaurant scene. And one thing bila each crowd scene (waktu the main character wandering around town or lepak kat kedai makan) mesti ada one or two person yang came out sambil pakai topeng binatang atau karakter-- kepala batman, pinocchio (barangkali that guy yang tengah melepak kat kedai makan tu tengah cakap besar/menipu dekat kawan-kawan dia sampai hidung dia jadi 'panjang'), rusa, kucing and even there's a bear riding a bicycle. Comel gila!
Paling suka bila penulis/artist illustrates each scene properly, such detailing-- London scenery, Kyoto, the temple and even the restaurant scene. And one thing bila each crowd scene (waktu the main character wandering around town or lepak kat kedai makan) mesti ada one or two person yang came out sambil pakai topeng binatang atau karakter-- kepala batman, pinocchio (barangkali that guy yang tengah melepak kat kedai makan tu tengah cakap besar/menipu dekat kawan-kawan dia sampai hidung dia jadi 'panjang'), rusa, kucing and even there's a bear riding a bicycle. Comel gila!
June 18, 2021
The style of the illustrations wasn't for me but my main problem was the virtually nonexistent story that didn't really go anywhere and at points didn't seem to flow well either.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 411 reviews