Storyteller – DaneCobain.com

Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata – Death Note Black Edition: Volume V | Review

Title: Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Author: Death Note: Black Edition Volume VI

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 426

Rating 4/5

I’m almost at the end now, and I’m pleased to report that it’s picked back up a little bit and I enjoyed this one more than the last. It’s still not quite as good as it was when it first started out, but it’s still good enough and it’s definitely worth reading, especially if you’ve made it this far.

I think part of the reason that I enjoyed this was that you could tell that we were getting near the end game and so the stakes felt a little higher. The authors have also shown by this point that they don’t mind killing major characters when it serves the story, which leaves you as the reader feeling like pretty much anything could happen.

Other than that, I’m not too sure what else I can say that I haven’t said in previous reviews. As always, the artwork is gorgeous, so big props to Takeshi Obata for that. Tsugumi Ohba does a great job with the story, too. He’s clearly a master storyteller, and it’s impressive how much he manages to convey through just dialogue and the image briefs that he gives to his illustrator.

If you’re thinking about reading Death Note, I’d definitely recommend picking up the Black Edition books. They’re not super expensive (I think I paid around £30 for all six of them), and they’re beautiful little artefacts in their own right. They’ll look great on your shelves, but they also look great in your hands and the quality of the print is good enough to highlight all of the details from the original comics.

The only thing that I will say is that when I first started reading the series, I didn’t know who I wanted to win because I liked both sides. Now, though, I don’t know who I want to win because I don’t really care for either side, which is probably a bad sign. I’m just not as invested in the series as I was when I first started out, and I can’t tell whether that’s because of the story or just that I’m flagging.

Click here to buy Death Note Black Edition: Volume V.

Benjamin Ludwig – The Original Ginny Moon | Review

Title: The Original Ginny Moon

Author: Benjamin Ludwig

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 364

Rating: 5*/5

Disclaimer: While I aim to be unbiased, I received a copy of this for free to review.

Benjamin Ludwig – The Original Ginny Moon

This book exceeded my expectations and made me rethink the way I think about things. It’s well-deserving of a five-star review because the author is able to use language in a way that brings autism to life, which is why it’s earned comparisons to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Personally, I think it does a better job of it, and Ludwig’s Ginny Moon is quite the character – more three dimensional than most other characters, and that’s a testament to the strength of Ludwig’s writing.

Loosely speaking, the book is told through the eyes of its protagonist, 14-year-old Ginny Moon. Ginny suffers from autism and she’s currently living with her forever parents, but she wants to find a way back to her abusive mother so that she can check on her Baby Doll. Along the way, she gets herself into plenty of trouble, but you can understand why she makes the choices that she makes, even if you don’t agree with them. And ultimately, that’s one of the strengths of this book – it puts you inside Ginny’s mind, and it gives you a great understanding of the way in which she sees things.

That all comes down to the skills of the writer, and so kudos to Ludwig for that – especially because this is his debut novel. He even nailed the little twist at the end, which I didn’t see coming but which made perfect sense as soon as it happened. That’s the hallmark of a good storyteller, and Stephen King does the same in many of his books. Benjamin Ludwig is not Stephen King, but he is Benjamin Ludwig – and that’s a name that you can expect to hear more from in the coming years.

This, then, is the impressive start to what I’m sure will be a successful career. Better still, it’s the kind of book that we all should read, because it helps us to relate and understand.