FukuFuku: Kitten Tales 1

ふくふくふにゃ～ん 子猫だにゃん [Fuku-Fuku Funya~n: Konekoda Nyan] #1

by Kanata Konami, Marlaina McElheny (Translator), Ed Chavez (Translator)

From the author of the New York Times manga best seller Chi's Sweet Home comes a delightful series of vignettes in the life of a kitten and her doting owner. To a young kitten, even the most mundane things appear fresh and exciting (and sometimes unpleasant or scary). Join FukuFuku on her journey and rediscover the world from a tiny cat's point of view.

Genres: Manga, Graphic Novels, Comics, Cats, Animals, Humor, Fiction

155 pages, Paperback

First published April 23, 2014

About the author

Konami Kanata (jp. こなみかなた), is a Japanese cartoonist best known for her cat characters Chi's Sweet Home. Her works revolves around the daily life of house cats.

She went to Futaba-Kōtō Academy in Suwa, Nagano Perfecture. Her first published manga as a profesional manga-ka was the short story Puchi Neko Jamu Jamu in Nakayoshi Manga Magazine in 1982. The magazine is a part of Kodansha Publishing, in which she published her works ever since her first debut.

[From English and German's Wikipedia]

Reviews

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'm not really sure what to say in a review of this book. it's another manga by the lady who does Chi's Sweet Home, Volume 1, and this time she's drawn the adventures of an even rounder and more kittenish cat doing cute things. like this.



and this



there's not much to get into here, in terms of in-depth book reviewing. do you think this is cute?



or this?



or any of this?




if so, you will probably enjoy this book. maggie did not enjoy it, but that's because she knows she is the cutest cat and she doesn't need to MEEE MEEEE MEEEEE like a fool to make people understand this fact.



however, she's got some things in common with fukufuku. i know that glare for sure:





it's uncanny



basically, the book is a lot of this



and more of this



and also some toe beans



that's about all i have in me book-report-wise. maybe i'm just being lazy, but this time i'm letting the pictures speak louder than words.

come to my blog!

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I took a look at this because 1) we in this house are cat people; 2) everyone else in the house read it, and 3) my ten year old girl in particular gushed over it: "so cuuuuute." And she's right. It's about an old lady and her cat, very simple, and often kinda funny IF you are a cat person. Konami is also the manga-ka of Chi's Sweet Home, also a hit with (especially) the girl in this house, which I have also read into. I kinda like this better because the cat doesn't get to "speak," so there's less verbal language, relying more on visuals.

If you want to see what I mean, look at Karen's review, which shows a lot of Konami's cats:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Beary Into Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating 4.5
“FukuFuku: Kitten Tales” by Konami Kanata is a cute manga about an adorable cat and their elderly owner. The book starts with the woman looking at pictures of a younger FukuFuku. This leads her to think about all of the good times she’s had with FukuFuku starting with the first day she brought her home. From there the reader is shown through flashbacks how they built their life together.

Honestly, this manga was so adorable and is such a quick read I recommend it to everyone. The art style was perfect. They captured FukuFuku’s personality in the drawings beautifully. FukuFuku was your typical mischievous cat but when it came down to it one could see how much she loved her owner. She honestly would feel lost and alone without her owner and the feeling is definitely mutual. No matter how much that cat tried to push her buttons the woman never got mad. If anything the owner appreciated how interesting her life became after owning such a unique cat. Overall, this was a cute, comforting read that I recommend to all cat lovers.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

More cute kitten manga! This is by the same mangaka as Chi's Sweet Home, but it's earlier work. It kind of shows. Chi's Sweet Home is an improvement on every level. If you only really want to read one cute kitten manga, go with Chi instead of FukuFuku.

[Julie (Let's Read Good Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

Typical of Konami Kanata - Cute! FukuFuku has her owner wrapped around her little claws in this collection of short slice of life comics about the kitten and her elderly owner. From her first day in her new home to her first introduction of the joyous warm of the kotatsu, FukuFuku quietly and endearingly takes ownership of her new person. Recommended for animal lovers only.

[Julia Sapphire · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was super cute and really fun! If you are a cat lover or looking for a quick and enjoyable read, pick this up:)

[Violet ♡]

What a relaxing manga! It reminded me of when the cat distribution system came to our house years ago. 😸

[LG (A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions) · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the beginning of the volume, FukuFuku's owner (whose name is never mentioned) is sitting with her adult cat, FukuFuku, and looking through old pictures of FukuFuku as a kitten. After those first couple pages, the entire series basically becomes a flashback to FukuFuku's kitten days: adjusting to her new home, dealing with her first bath, napping with her owner, learning to use a scratching post, meeting other cats, etc.

I've read and adored Kanata's Chi's Sweet Home. FukuFuku: Kitten Tales was very similar in a lot of ways. The most noticeable differences: Chi's Sweet Home was in color while FukuFuku: Kitten Tales featured black and white artwork, and Chi's owners were a married couple and their young song while FukuFuku's owner was an older woman who lived alone. Also, Chi's thoughts and dialogue were translated for readers, whereas FukuFuku just meowed and purred. I don't think the two series crossover at all, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn I was wrong.

I don't have a lot to say about this volume that I haven't already said about Chi's Sweet Home. It was very warm, sweet, and comforting, and I particularly liked the chapters devoted to FukuFuku and her owner sleeping together. FukuFuku napping inside the jack-o'-lantern was nice too. The one part that was a bit off was FukuFuku's Alice in Wonderland-inspired dream.

I plan to read more of this, although it's not the instant favorite that Chi's Sweet Home was. While I liked that readers had to rely entirely on FukuFuku's facial expressions, body language, and situation to figure out what she was thinking and feeling, this series felt a little less lively and fun than Chi's Sweet Home. Maybe it was because this volume was almost entirely focused on FukuFuku and her owner? If her owner has any family or friends, we haven't seen them yet, and FukuFuku has only briefly met a few other animals - one black and white cat made a repeat appearance, but not enough of one to get a feel for its personality.

And speaking of personality, I'd say FukuFuku was possibly a little more standoffish than Chi (it took her a bit to learn to enjoy being petted, for example), but otherwise she came across as very similar to Chi. I hope the differences in her personality start to stand out more as the series progresses.

All in all, so far I prefer Chi's Sweet Home, but FukuFuku: Kitten Tales is very nice and hits a lot of the same "warm fuzzies" emotional notes. Looks like I have another cat manga to work my way through.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute kitten manga about an elderly lady and the first days of her kitten acclimatising to his new home There are a lot of sound effects and wordless sections as ony the woman talks. I like that the kitten doesn't talk as Chi's talking was annoying from the manga-ka's previous series "Chi's Sweet Home". But, otherwise, FukuFuku is nowhere near as good as the Chi series at this point. Fuku just seems so basic, the woman has no personalitiy or dimension of her own and the art isn't as defined, it's simply not as cute or funny. I would read a second volume if it starting adding the story of the woman, as Chi was the story of a family.

[LALa · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's not really much story to it as it centers on vignettes, but that didn't bother me at all. I smiled and chuckled constantly throughout and would even return to the same panel again and chuckle some more. As I said in my progress, it's so fecking cute!!! I loved all the expressions of FukuFuku and the onomatopoeias Konami Kanata uses! I liked the tenderness/kindness of the relationship between FukuFuku and her owner just as much as the adventures the kitten goes on. I look forward to finishing these books up and reading Chi's Sweet Home.

[danana · Rating 4 out of 5]

why was it so short I need more

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I might like this better than Chi's Sweet Home, though it's been a while since I've read a volume. I think it's the dynamic between the old woman and the kitten that distinguishes it for me. I laughed out loud several times despite myself. :)

[Shae · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. This is a perfect volume of manga for cat lovers! I will be picking up the second volume as well as the previous series done by this group!

[Nalibooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Chi's sweet home (and watching all the anime) finding out that there is another manga by Konami Kanata translated into English I was so excited! We immediately ordered both volumes for our library and I can't wait to show them to kids in my tiny school library.

The artwork is so cute, the stories are very realistic (I say this as a cat owner) and they are short enough which is good for younger readers. They don't really depend on other chapters so even if a kid did not quite understand everything that happened in other chapters they can still enjoy the next one without any harm done. This is especially good when offering this to non native kids and trying to get them try out their newly acquired English skills.

Love these!

[Roselyn_Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very easy read. I normally don't read Manga or Graphic Novels but in my efforts diversity my reading im giving good different genres a try.

This one was cute, happy read. I love cats and after reading this I felt like I was reading all about Auburn as Fuku Fuku's behavior mimics my Auburn's way of being.

Overall I enjoyed the quick read and getting to know Fuku Fuku.

[Jaylee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is super cute. There's some repeat ideas from Chi's sweet home, but I like how Fuku Fuku has an entirely different personality. I wish we could hear some of her thoughts like we did Chi's? Idk this was cute and a fun way to spend a little bit of time. I want all the cute animal manga.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute, quick little read. Fukufuku is definitely similar to Chi's Sweet Home. Do find it a little odd that first chapter was Fukufuku all grown up and rest of the story is all her as a kitten/flashbacks.

[Ayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable AF

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

For all the old ladies with cats out there, this was made for us.

[Abbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute middle grade book about a little old lady and her mischievous cat

[Tara Cignarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lot of cute pictures not a lot of story

[(• ֊ •)੭ amyfish ~ love2love · Rating 3 out of 5]

the most pointless thing i've ever read
fukufuku is the cutest cat name ever ふくふく😻
reading on the kindle prob also affected my enjoyement cause there was no color lol

[Patricia Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is so sweet and adorable.

[Brinley Ruesch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book doesn't really have a big story line, but nonetheless, it is super cute!

[estrawberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute 🥹 WE LOVE CATS!!!

[Lexie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down the cutest thing I've read in a while. Short little comics about an adorable as truck kitten.

[Pink · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is very similar to Chi's Sweet Home, so if you'd like that you would probably like this. I just think Chi's is better cause I like seeing Chi's thoughts and reactions to things.

[Laurel Bradshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. I love Chi's Sweet Home, so when I saw this I took it to read on my lunch break. Same cute illustrations that really capture what being a cat is all about. But the story, a Japanese grandmother reminiscing about her cat's kittenhood, lacks the emotional impact of the Chi stories. Very low key, just a kitten and new owner getting to know each other. We follow FukuFuku through her first year. I liked the segments based on holidays - Halloween, Christmas, New Year's, etc. And the dream sequence as FukuFuku (Alice) in Wonderland was cute.

Description: Vignettes in the life of a kitten and her doting owner, wherein even the most mundane things appear exciting and fresh (and sometimes unpleasant or scary), as we discover the world from a tiny cat's point of view.

[Selena Pigoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lot like Chi's Sweet Home, but with a different kitten and a different owner (this time an old lady).

This one follow a kitten named Fukufuku, an adorable little kitten who does kitten things. Unlike Chi, we don't see this kitten's thoughts, but this comic doesn't live in the old lady's head either. It's more like being a fly on the wall, one that the kitten can't see and attack.

If you liked Chi's Sweet Home or other adorable cat silliness, you'll love this one.

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

La abuela y su gato gordo recuerdan las primeras andaduras de ambas, desde la llegada de la gatita, pasando por sus primeras aventuras, hasta sus celebraciones juntas. Es un librito bonito, tierno a la par que divertido, pero que tiene la simpleza de la autora como marca de la casa ( y no lo digo desde el punto de vista desmerecedor), por lo que es una lectura bonita y rápida. Comentar que en : “Jugamos”, sale un gato callejero igual al gato negro (p pero con otras manchas, claro) 😊