Miki Falls: Spring

I'm not that much of a manga person when I started looking into this book for our library. But being the inquisitive person, I decided to at least look at the first five pages. (Always a tell all to me...) Before long it was almost closing time in the store. I ended up buying the whole series in a matter of days. Miki the ever sweet and strong character decides to become the tough girl, no Misses Nice Girl. It's true, although we didn't see what Miki was like before she made this resolution, you can tell throughout the book how she is trying to becoming a better person, a stronger person. In some places she is put into some pretty awkward positions that if any girl in high school had to deal with would have run away crying. But she was stronger then I've ever seen in any story, (especially manga, and the genre itself)I've read. Unlike so many, where the heroine is the clumsy, always flighty girl, Miki is steady and level headed. A little over the top at times, but truly this story was worth every minute. I would suggest this to anyone who likes a good love story without all the cursing and innuendos. I also enjoyed the wonderful artwork, (not as flat lined and uncultured as most manga are) it was very detailed, and almost life like in some parts. So if you like good clean stories of love, life and the ever noble search for the one we all hope to be 'Prince Charming', you will love this book.

I won't go into the storyline (except to say that Mark Crilley is every bit as good of a storyteller as he is an excellent Manga artist!) Once you've read Miki Falls - SPRING, you'll be hooked and want the other 3 immediately so you might as well get all 4 now. :-) OKAY ~~ Now a Review from the VIEWPOINT of a PARENT: I bought the "Miki Falls" series for my daughter after watching several of Mark Crilley's "How to draw Manga" videos that he is kind enough to create for his many fans on YouTube. Let me just say that the "Miki Falls" series is both CLEAN and Very Entertaining. ...The storyline is deep, thoughtful and touching ...The artwork is great quality & often breathtaking ...The series is packed with adventure, mystery, suspense, action, and True Love For those who don't know, Mark Crilley has a huge (teen / young adult) following on YouTube by kids who are simply interested in improving their art skills (and those who want to learn the necessary skills to be a "published" artist someday). In today's "anything goes" culture, it's really refreshing to find an author (and artist) like Mark who goes that extra mile to assure that teens and young adults are viewing / reading principled and respectable artwork and stories. In short, I admire Mark for many things, but mostly because I can TRUST his artwork and "how to draw" videos with my own child. Keep up the Great work Mark Crilley!! ~~ I truly hope that more Miki books are somewhere on the horizon!!

Miki Falls: Spring is the first manga that Mark Crilley has done, and is the first in the four-part series. Miki Falls' story line follows the seasons of one year to present the story seasonly. This book may be written by someone in the west, but it takes place in Japan and looks a lot like a Japanese manga; but Crilley has thrown a unique style into the mix. His characters and artwork will have you dazzled that will keep your hands glued to the book until you've read every page twice. The story is about Miki Yoshida, a girl in Japan who hopes to make her senior year her best. Rumor has it that there's a new boy in town, Hiro Sakurai, who catches Miki's interest. At first she really isn't interested in romance, but a friendship so that Miki can find out who this guy is. She discovers that there is more to Hiro then meets the eye, and she wants to know desperately what it is Hiro is hiding. Miki Falls is my first manga and is a great introduction to this style of comics. Miki Falls may seem like a girls manga at first, but as characters develop, boys and girls will enjoy this short read equally. Miki Falls combines romance, drama, suspense, and super-natural things all in one beautiful book. The romance isn't really that big of part of the book, but expect some. Miki Falls is clean of curse words and other inappropriate things, so this also a good choice for those who don't appreciate when a good manga is ruined because of inappropriate drawings, story lines, scripts, or anything else. This is a great book and I look forward to buying Summer, Autumn, and Winter.

What a wonderful good read Miki Falls: Spring is! I wished it were twice as long, so very much did I love every page. To be honest: I hated for it to end. I look forward to devouring the next three books. This is a book boys will enjoy equally with girls. Hiro is a strong character and very compelling. Miki is beautiful, thoughtful and deeply caring. Is it worth the money? Absolutely. The dialogue is pitch-perfect. Those who aren't familiar with Manga will find Miki Falls a perfect introduction to this exquisite art form and those seeped in Manga will readily conclude this book to be among the best examples of it. It is exquisitely well drawn. The representations of Japanese landscapes are breath-taking in their beauty. When one is finished with Miki Falls: Spring you feel like you have been living in Japan a long time.

Miki Yoshida is about to start her first day as a senior in high school. She is resolved -- no more Mr. Nice Girl! From now on she's going to just be herself and not try to please everyone else. On the way to school she gets an earful from her boy-crazy best friend, Yumi, who is determined to find her a boyfriend. Miki isn't interested, but Yumi is not convinced. There's a new boy in town, and maybe he'll be just what Miki needs. I guess they'll find out when he starts school the next day. As it turns out, Miki won't have to wait till the next day to meet him. She runs into him after school, knee deep in a rice paddy. She was practicing archery when a fly buzzed in her ear and her arrow went right out the window. Instead of the lost arrow, she finds Hiro Sakurai. Talk about an embarrassing way to meet someone. Especially a really cute someone, of the dark and brooding variety. Hiro, however, is beyond antisocial. To the point of being rude. But, Miki is sure that there's more to him than the face he shows to the world. She is determined to be his friend. The less he wants her around, the harder she tries to break through. It's obvious that there is more to Hiro than meets the eye, and Miki has every intention of figuring him out. No matter what it takes. First off, I have to say that I'm not a huge fan of Manga. It's actually a bit unfounded as a prejudice, since I've never actually read any of it. Reviewing these books has opened me up to pop fiction, but I still wasn't sure about actual Manga. Low and behold, this book and its sequel arrives, and they look kind of like comic books. So I put off reading them. Finally I get to opening the book, and the next thing I know I'm done with both and wondering when the next one is coming out! MIKI FALLS: SPRING is a quick, fun read, with an unexpected twist. Actually, the themes are pretty familiar: wanting the boy who doesn't seem interested, resolving to be a stronger person... That's kind of what high school is all about! Definitely a "chick" book, and great fun, much to my surprise. Give Miki a chance -- you'll be glad you did. Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman