S46354595 > Recent Status Updates

A large chunk of this book is a glossary/index at the back. I am almost there. So I'm actually probably closer to 80% done if I don't count those pages.

I forgot I read a few pages of this the other day. Ikiisa is the best character in this series. I don't understand why everyone hates her.

I love Lucy, but his eyes stare right into my soul. It's a bit creepy. Yes, you heard me right, Lucy the elephant is a male elephant. They didn't know that when they named him Lucy lol

I was curious to know what real life bug the Scatterbug is based on, since it takes in toxins and then releases them similar to how sea slugs protect themselves. In the process, I discovered the bug with the funniest name ever: cockchafer. It's a type of beetle. I do not know how it got that name. It has nothing to do with Scatterbug btw. Scatterbug are based on carpet moth larvae. Please enjoy this cursed knowledge.

This is the coolest thing. It legitimately feels like I'm reading a science book about animals, except they're Pokemon. Best Pokemon book ever published imo.

Ever heard of the brown snout spookfish? Well look them up. They have four eyes. Two that act as mirrors to catch light from above. And two to project that light down below into the darker parts of the ocean. I am not yet sure if the photos I've seen with colored eyes are because someone was shining a light on them, or their actual color.

I have too many books and too little time to read them all. Doesn't help that I keep finding more things at the library. Like architecture books, for example. Or books about ancient history. Or folklore. I need someone to tell me no more library holds until I finish the books I have checked out at home.

Baseball? Two whole chapters of it? Ughhhhhhhhh it's fine...

Not sure what the point of that story was. It felt more like an excerpt from something larger than a story all on its own.

It would probably be really fun to work at Laika. Most of the people they interviewed sort of ended up here by accident, and have now been here 10-20 years.

I need to watch more of their movies.

Angy at mouse. Must watch more good art.

If I wrote a piece of music that got spread around before it was finished and then I made a finished version, I would not try to take it away from them. I would be confused, and maybe a little sad that no one enjoys the version I'm proud of. But I cannot imagine wanting to burn the record. That's insane to me.

She's on another page. Alrighty then. I guess we got her. But she's not on her page :(

How DARE thy show us a photo of the male lion guard statue but not the female and her cub! Guarding the emperor with mama.

The royal throne in China is a couch lol. We should forever adopt this.

Yuva nooooooooo (he looked). The execution of that joke reminded me a bit of the glue scene from Yotsuba. We're told that a thing could happen, and then flip the page and it happens. Granted, very different contexts, but it's the same paneling technique. There is absolutely no way to translate this style of humor to anime because of the paneling. I wish there was :( it's so good and entirely unique to manga.

I don't think the third story would be making as much sense as it is if I had not recently done some digging into the history of Hong Kong and the opium wars. I'm not fully done with it yet. I just wanted to note that it makes a lot more sense if you know the history.

Ok yeah I do like her writing. That second story was brilliant.

I'm curious if I like anything else she writes besides Monstress. Most of her other books and comics I wouldn't really be interested in reading. But if she ever wrote anything else, I just want to know if it's her writing that I enjoy or just the story of Monstress.

I now know half of the common cuneiform signs! Give me another year and I'll be able to post such unintelligible nonsense.

Huh.

I like Ikiisa. I wish she wasn't constantly in fear of people hating her. She's just a little weirdo who can't find her place in the world.

She has horrible intentions. But she's making fascinating decisions that keep the story interesting.

Never mind, I hate her.

I know the main character is supposed to be unlikable, but I actually don't feel that way. Yeah, she's stubborn, but it sounds like no one took the time to really understand what she wants. Also, why is it not common knowledge that the dolls choose their own purpose? This would have solved the issue. And it would make it so doll makers in general know what they're getting into before the exam.

If this dragon doesn't make it... please buddy hold on.

Themes remind me of Monk and Robot. But a lot weirder and darker.

I feel like I'm reading a book that is a lot of little ideas crammed into one. And with this being a novella, that makes it doubly important to not overwhelm the reader with too many details. I would love to see this as a much longer novel, so we really have time to sit with the man character.