#utsubora: the story of a novelist

[idleminds]

[kashilascorner]

Read in 2023: Utsubora - the story of a novelist (Asumiko Nakamura)

"I thought only two things existed in the world. Here and there [...] When I realized the two couldn't exist without each other, I lost sight of the boudary of the world."

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura

[thunderrabby-blog]

Live-Action Utsubora - A Story of a Novelist Series Unveils Visual, March 24 Debut - News

Live-Action Utsubora – A Story of a Novelist Series Unveils Visual, March 24 Debut – News

The official website for the live-action series of Asumiko Nakamura‘s Utsubora – A Story of a Novelist manga unveiled the series’ poster visual and March 24 premiere date. The visual shows lead actor Atsuko Maeda in her double role as twin sisters Aki and Sakura. The visual emulates the cover art for the manga’s two volumes. The series will premiere on the premium subscription television and…

[mangacapsaicin]

How was utsubora if I may ask? I've seen images of this manga a lot but idk about the plot

asumiko nakamura is definitely a very iffy mangaka with some of the BL stuff she’s done so tbh i was pretty wary picking it up, but her gorgeous art and the focus of the plot on literature and writing drew me in.

utsubora is essentially a treatise on the nature of plagarism and authorship. the suicide of a character, the novelist aki fujino, is central to the plot, so be aware if that’s a trigger. following this, her relationship--both personal and professional--to another novelist, shun mizorogi, is brought into focus, and with it so is her relationship with a young woman named sakura miki who introduces herself as aki’s twin sister. 

the story is told in a nonlinear fashion, and the reconstruction of the events into a chronology is part of the reader’s interperetive task, similarly to the not simple (natsume ono) or nijigahara holograph (inio asano). it’s definitely hard to follow at times, and quite purposefully so—but imo it languishes in its ambiguity in a way that crosses the line into something at times needlessly masturbatory (and i’m not talking about the sex scenes, which are also plentiful). but i did enjoy it overall. the identities of the characters and their true relationships to one another are the central mystery of the series. they all appear to play certain “roles” in one another’s lives at first, but as more is revealed through flashbacks you see contradictions begin to peek through and are forced to question each of their true natures.

[libralita]

Title: Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist

Author: Asumiko Nakamura

Summary: Young author Aki Fujino appeared poised to making it big in the world of publishing. Her debut title UTSUBORA was being pitched about to a number of editors and at least one person felt it was set to propel her into stardom. However, before she could ever have her book published, the young woman was found dead. Some believe it was a suicide, but those close to her feel there is something more sinister involved in this young talent's death.

Aki's death has become something straight out of a mystery. Much like the story behind UTSUBORA, there is something more to Aki, Sakura and their relationship with an author named Mizorogi than meets the eye. And it is possible that the only way to solve this mystery may be to uncover all their secrets.

Rating: ★★★★★

Review:

This was a very interesting story. I decided to read it because I heard it was like 1Q84, which I greatly adore. I really enjoyed this book. It was so interesting and twisted. I didn’t understand everything that was going on but the story and characters kept me so interested. I really loved this book.

[myanimethought]

Myanimethought

One day, a beautiful woman named Aki (Atsuko Maeda) mysteriously dies....,.........

[sean-gaffney]

Zan Sayonara, Zetsubou-sensei:  End Card #3.

Asumiko Nakamura had a manga published here by Vertical (Utsubora: the Story of a novelist), but may be more well known for her BL manga series Doukyuusei, which was digitally licensed here by DMG.  Chiri again, making sure her red string of fate is precise.

[idleminds]

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura

[treesofreverie]

Books and Cupcakes | October Book Photo Challenge

Day 15: Gave Me Chills

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist by Asumiko Nakamura

[count-mecha-blog]

Utsubora - The Story of a Novelist.

To an author, to write is to live. What happens if you can no longer write? What then, is life?  

     When I first came across this book, I knew nothing about it nor its author, Asumiko Nakamura. The cover art alone intrigued me enough to want to pick it up, and I'm glad I did. The art on the inside was off-putting to me at first because because the characters, especially the male ones, looked like typical Yaoi or Shonen Ai character designs. Which means that they may be shown to sometimes have unusual, broad shoulders, be incredibly handsome in the face, or suffer from Yaoi basketball hands. The male characters may have some visual tropes from those more erotic comics but the women are also drawn very beautifully.  With that said, it would be really unfair to judge this book by character design preferences because there are a lot of good things going for this book.

     As the title of the book implies, Utsubora is the story of a novelist. The main focus of the story is about an author and what happens to him when he succumbs to the lows of  plagiarism. Filled with mystery, drama, and sensuality, Utsubora is a fun read.  In the end, Utsubora is also a smart book that will have you guessing what exactly is going on with the cast of characters in the book.

     At the end of the book, there are some extras. Including an Illustration Story and Translator Notes. I really appreciated the translator's notes segment because it included interesting, informative cultural facts of things seen in the story and its  the closest you can get for having commentary for a book. I feel this really adds to the cultural understanding of modern Japan.

     Utsubora is Asumiko Nakamura's first book published in English, and I enjoyed  the book enough that I would definitely pick up another book by her if it were ever published.

     Recently released in North America in a single, thick volume by Vertical Inc, Utsubora is definitely worth checking out.

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura

[hakonohanayome]

Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist - Asumiko Nakamura