📚 25/52 ~ A Silent Voice #1 (Koe no Katachi) by Yoshitoki Ōima
genre: fiction, manga, bullying
A Silent Voice by Yoshitoki Ōima is a 7-part manga about a sixth-grade boy bullying a new classmate who is deaf. The first volume revolves around a boy's initial interaction with a deaf person. He struggles to react appropriately, leading to him bullying her. The rest of the story details his experience of the consequences of his actions and the resulting reflections.
Spoiler Alert: No spoilers, ever.
1. Why this, why now 🤔
One of my friends is a big Manga fan, and I’ve never read or seen Manga or Anime in my life before. I was intrigued by the way he described why he liked them. I was also surprised by how popular it has become in recent times.
It sounded like the perfect opportunity for me to diversify my reading list. He suggested A Silent Voice as a good starting point, and I began reading it.
2. Quotes of the book 💭
“Have you ever once said how you really feel deep down in your gut?”
“There are some things in this world that you just have to deal with!”
“I began choosing isolation of my own accord. Maybe so I could convince myself I wasn’t really alone.”
3. Going deep 🧐
A Silent Voice by Yoshitoki Ōima is a manga that touches on sensitive topics like bullying and isolation. The lead characters in the book, Shoya and Shoko, are two sixth-grade students. Shoko joins the school as a new student, and immediately all hell breaks loose. Just because she is deaf.
Shoya relentlessly bullies her due to her disability. Constantly shouting next to her ears, writing abusive things on her desk, and even breaking her hearing aids. Despite all that, Shoko remains calm and never reacts aggressively. She definitely should have, and in a realistic world, that’s what will probably happen 9 times out of ten.
But yes, when have we ever stopped blaming the victim? Despite being a manga for young readers, the book talks about a very serious issue in our world. It is so serious in some cases that it even takes lives. Some may say it’s too much for youngsters and that they may even start bullying after reading this. I’d say no.
We need to educate about the ill effects of such practices right from a young age. Children are like clay and only mirror the things they see, hear, and read. As older citizens and parents, it is our duty to mold them in the right way.
4. The author 😎
Yoshitoki Ōima hails from Ōgaki, Japan. Her work A Silent Voice is inspired by her mother, who worked as a sign language interpreter. Her first manga was Mardock Scramble, after which she got the opportunity to contribute to an episode of Attack on Titan.
She has won multiple prizes for A Silent Voice, including the New Creator Prize at the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize and a nomination for the Eisner Awards a year later. Her other works include Ore no 100-wame!! and To Your Eternity.
5. Reviews 🤩
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Also, a huge thanks to my wife, Luisa, who proofreads my writings and makes them sound less foolish.
Book 26/52: I Hear You by Michael S. Sorenson
Read about my thoughts on it next week.
Happy new week! ✨
(Disclaimer: Some of the links are affiliate links, and I will make a few cents from your purchase. I only link to books I’ve personally read and think you’d like too.)