**ARC provided by NetGalley for honest review**

My Wonderful World, Volume 1 by Mizuho Aimoto was more of an informative manga than much of a story-based manga. It follows the life of a young man who can't finish school or hold down a job because he has trouble reading and writing. He then comes to find out that he has dyslexia and starts to adapt to his life with that knowledge, discovering some new passions along the way.

This seemed to be a pretty realistic representation of dyslexia in manga, but it did seem weird that he didn't find out until he was an adult, though that might be common, I don't know. The art was fine, and I'm sure this will be an important piece for many people, but I didn't particularly get any new information or extra enjoyment out of it.

Thank-you NetGalley and Kodansha for the chance to review this ARC.

I really enjoyed My Wonderful World.
It had a lot of heart and that's something I look for when reading slice of life manga.
I liked the topic this tackled dyslexia and it made it simple to understand which I think it's great because it gives readers a chance to learn about others struggles.

I really liked the art work and character design here.
I can't wait to continue the story.

My Wonderful World is a cute slice of life story following a guy who struggles to hold a job due to his difficulty reading. That is until he meets someone who tells him that his trouble has a name and there are ways to empower himself and make working easier. I appreciated the dyslexia representation and thought the book did a good job explaining how it works and how it is different for different people. There’s not much plot in the first book, just the start of character exposition, but it’s sweet, quick read overall.

More of a 3.5, but I will round up.

Several of the manga I've read recently have been dealing with important issues. This one revolves around disability, specifically dyslexia.

While I appreciate the set-up, I still don't feel like I know the characters. This manga could use some better characterization beyond dyslexic man, wise cafe owner, and exchangeable side characters. I'm curious to where this series will go, because this is only the beginning.

As someone who knows little about dyslexia, I felt that this manga was a good introduction to the disability. It showed Shinobu's struggles with daily life tasks that most people take for granted, as well as the stigma that society often has against people who can't read or have learning disabilities. It also makes you happy for Shinobu that he's beginning to learn some tools and tricks to help himself navigate the world,

In Volume One of My Wonderful World, readers are introduced to Shinobu who has struggled with reading and writing since childhood. Because of this, he has had trouble keeping jobs, learning in school, and navigating life. One day he meets a café worker, Haruka, who opens his eyes that he has been living with dyslexia, which gives him clarity as to why reading has been so difficult for him. Determined to have a new outlook on life and try new things, Shinobu takes the reins in his life.

I’m always trying to look for manga that is new to me and this series piqued my interest as I had never heard of a manga that discusses dyslexia. Dyslexia is a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words. Though I have read about dyslexia I did come away from this first installment of this series with a greater understanding of it. Aimoto does a solid job of detailing this disorder as well as showing how it can affect those that have it differently.

It was heartwarming to see Haruka (who has dyslexia) become a mentor to Shinobu as he tries to navigate the newfound relationships and day-to-day situations he deals with. The reader can really empathize with Shinobu and his frustrations not only from his upbringing but also his determination to learn more about it. I think though the first volume is fast-paced it felt somewhat realistic, but at times some of the situations felt a bit far-fetched.

I did enjoy the illustrations and the simplistic drawing style that fit the story’s slice-of-life genre. I appreciated that this series opens an awareness of dyslexia for a wider audience and how informative it was. The manga is mainly a story about prejudices and has a positive message about working towards a goal or pursuing your passion. Volume One ends on a cliffhanger, and I am curious to see how the story and characters will flesh out over the course of the series.

the idea of showing dyslexia was great even to educate a bit, i think most people think that people would search the why but a ton of times in japan and even in Europe professors only see the grades and don't care to try to understand the why. in the manga the art is fine but the volume is boring

My Wonderful World, Volume 1 was an enjoyable beginning to a new short localized josei series. You follow a young adult named Shinobu who struggles with his inability to read. He soon meets a cafe owner who is dyslexia and begins to realize he might also be dyslexia. This Volume had a strong start, but after Shinobu started working at the cafe the pace slowed down and became a bit dull. The side characters weren't exciting or fun to read about at all. The artwork was nice. I just wish the volume was more engaging storywise. Overall it's an interesting series and I wouldn't mind picking up another volume. I am a huge josei manga fan and hope more josei series are in the works!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodancha for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first volume in a series about a young man who finds out the thing that has made his life difficult, his inability to read and write properly, has been caused by dyslexia, a term he had never before heard until walking into a cafe. This was incredibly interesting and as someone who also grew up in a country with little understanding of such conditions, it was refreshing to see the discussions taking place.

On the back of this volume, it appears as though they wrote the volume with a lot of research assistance into the condition. I am not dyslexic myself but I found the various aspects of him finding out his condition very interesting, and the smaller yet significant consequences that had for his life also interesting. I also found interesting the coping mechanisms put into place to compensate for this difficulty in reading and writing, and the conversations had between characters about the different nature of symptoms in different people.

Overall an incredibly enjoyable volume, good art style and general theme.

Also as a sidenote: his grandmother is adorable and I want her to adopt me, that is all.

<i>I received a complimentary copy of this volume from Kodansha via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review</i>.

This book was really refreshing. Seeing Shinobu struggle with his inability to read, and start to slowly come to terms with his disability was really interesting. I’m excited to see how the story shapes and his character arc evolves. Dyslexia is such a common issue that doesn’t get written about very much. I love seeing these disabilities in the media, so that people who have these problems can see themselves in media the way via, neurotypical people do.

Volume 1 of Aimoto's manga My Wonderful World introduces us to Shinubo, a young man who cannot proficiently read or write and struggles to keep a job to help support himself and his grandmother. Over the course of the manga, Shinubo learns that his difficulties with literacy may stem from dyslexia after he is introduced to the concept by an employee at a local cafe who is dyslexic. As the story progresses, Shinubo begins to spend time with a local theater troupe that uses the cafe to practice and develops a budding interest in theater himself. The representation of dyslexia is well-researched and seeing Shinubo's struggles and triumphs as he navigates is disability is moving. It's great to see more and more manga available told from the perspective of characters with disabilities; I will recommend this title to our YA buyer for purchase and keep it in mind to suggest to teen readers who are interested in manga.

Quite enjoyed this book, the characters were honest and relatable. The main character has dyslexia and the way it is portrayed is brilliant. Recommend this one.

I have never read a manga that had the main character that a language disability. This was something new to me and I quite enjoyed it. I read it in one sitting and was upset that there was another volume because I wanted to read it to the end and see what the main character came up with.

I have nothing to critique in this manga. The artwork was a little different that what I am used to, but it did not bother me at all. Actually, I quite enjoyed looking at the artwork as it resembled the early 2000's way of drawing characters, more realist than false.

The title itself speaks for itself, the manga really is a different but beautiful world because once you realize what you want in life, it changes your whole outlook and then you may want to try new things and activities which is what our main character is now learning after going through a rough childhood because of his disability.

I can't wait to see the adventures that Shinobu gets himself into in the next volume. I was upset to learn know that I had to wait when it got to the end!

First, this was pretty short. I read this in one sitting. Which I’m not mad about at all. This series is different. It’s about a boy, Shinobu, who struggles with dyslexia but has no idea most of his life. It isn’t until someone points it out to him that everything clicks. This almost reminds me of Tokyo Revengers and Erased. The main characters in those stories both feel that they’ve lived boring or ordinary lives and haven’t amounted to anything. But, some event causes them to wake up and want to change. This story is a lot like this. I’m looking forward to the second volume. I’m not very knowledgeable on dyslexia but the author seems to being doing their research and I’m looking forward to learning more about it through Shinobu’s story. I recommend this to those who love slice of life animes, shorter mangas, and characters who have learning disabilities.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for providing an eARC for my honest review.

My Wonderful World is an OK manga, but had so many bothering things that I couldn't really enjoy it. The best part is that the main character Shinobu Asakura is dyslexic. We hardly see disabled characters and especially not like this. This was the reason why I got super excited and perhaps my expectations were high due to it. Shinobu cannot hold a job, since the guy cannot read or write. We see the hardships of his life right from the start until he meets this café owner, who's the one making the diagnosis for him (!), since he's dyslexic too. I have dyslexic friends and I don't think it's something you can actually see like that. It bugged me. Not only that, but how did Shinobu survive school if he can't read or write? What kinds of teachers let him through the system and how come no one noticed and he himself doesn't get it either? This makes no sense. I don't know if Japan works this way, but in Finland this wouldn't be even possible.

The art is OK, very soft and round. The art is very 1990s ad simple, which kind of makes the lines dull. The series is only five books long, so I don't know what Aimoto wants to do with this? The whole thing isn't credible and at the same time it feels cheap if this condition is used to be the hero of your own life like it doesn't matter. Hooray for diversity, but meh for everything else...

tl;dr
Pleasant artwork and a good opener that loses itself in the second half. Not an OwnVoices author.

About
Shinobu Asakura has trouble reading and writing - and it's made his life very difficult. Jobs are hard to hold onto, people around him think he's lazy, and he's pretty certain he's just stupid. But when a cafe worker asks if he might be dyslexic, Shinobu's life begins to change.

Thoughts
This is a tough review to write, because I'm very torn. I initially picked this up hoping it would be an OwnVoices author, but notes in the back imply this is not the case. The author lists her resources and consultants, so you can check those out if you're curious. I'm also not an OwnVoices reader in this case, so I won't really be dedicating time in this review to the accuracy of the depiction (you can find other reviews for that).

Art is soft and easy on the eyes, and each page moves easily into the next. Character designs are likewise very soft and pleasant. I think I liked the first half of the book more than the back half. Shinobu is set up as a likable guy who's just doing his best, and there are several instances that show off how genuinely smart he is. His grandmother is also very nice. The turning point for Shinobu figuring out he's dyslexic wasn't a magical moment that suddenly transformed everything into a positive happy ending, and watching both him and his grandmother work through their understanding was very touching. The second half of the volume is less touching. The cafe owner who initially helps Shinobu, plays a bizarrely cruel prank on him that feels utterly out of place. There's also a subplot about an acting troupe that feels pretty shaky. Overall, it's a mixed bag. There were some moments that really resonated with me (e.g. Shinobu's desire for a normal life, and his grandmother's earnest struggles to understand), but other pieces don't quite fit, and I'm not sure what to make of this as a whole.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

An informative read that felt like it didn’t quite get how to be engagingly interesting.

From the get-go and throughout the entire volume, this manga was highly educational, explaining what dyslexia is and showing how it impacts many facets of a dyslexics’ life. It was very effective in this area and it handled delicate topics well, showing realistic emotions through the protagonist’s reaction to things.

The tone was primarily depressing. The protagonist kept focusing on all he couldn’t do and whilst it was motivational for a while when he wanted to change and grow, he quickly slipped back into his old “woe is me” pity party ways. Granted, he had a valid reason to be so down considering his limitations due to his dyslexia, but it made reading this vol quite an unappealing and dull experience for the majority of it.

Moreover, the entire play sequence felt out of place and totally random. By the end it became apparent that the play was simply a tool to express the protagonist’s feelings towards his dyslexia and there was a nice moment of self-realisation, but for the most part the theatre troupe and play parts of the plot felt like filler content that didn’t illicit any real emotions. And all the theatre people were a bunch of nameless characters whose only interactions with the protagonist involved repetitively calling him by the wrong name despite his insistence otherwise and peer pressuring him into doing things he didn’t really want to do (regardless of whether he ended up enjoying doing them afterwards, it still felt uncomfortable to see the protagonist be such a doormat). It highlighted the protagonist’s vulnerability, something that was supposed to be worked on throughout the course of the vol but in reality he didn’t make as much character progression as he should’ve, ending almost exactly how he started.

The protagonist and other characters’ cluelessness as well as the author admitting she’d only heard of dyslexia a decade ago made me wonder why dyslexia wasn’t more recognised in Japan. Perhaps it’s because Japanese as a language is considerably easier for dyslexic people than English so it’s harder to recognise if someone is dyslexic (the Japanese kana writing system corresponds to pronunciation very well so it’s easy to comprehend, although the kanji system is difficult but it’s considered hard even for those without dyslexia) or perhaps it’s because Japan is lacking in mental health awareness and disability/disorder awareness in general. It’s not as though individuals themselves are biased against those who are disabled (though I imagine that is the case for some) it’s that as a society Japan tends to find disabilities taboo so people suffering from hidden disabilities or disorders are not likely to come forward and even if they did the disabilities or disorders are often not recognised enough for the appropriate care or support to be available, so it’s like there is no point in them attempting to address problems that they face because of a disorder or trying to get people to understand their point of view. It’s a sad cycle that does not lead to the progression of an inclusive society, however, that’s what makes this manga all the more beneficial because it brings awareness to Japanese readers (and readers in general) of the disability of dyslexia.

So, all in all, a great manga if you’re looking to learn about dyslexia but otherwise it’s a mixed read with a protagonist that was more glass half empty than anything.

Very different manga than what I usually read. I love how it brings awareness to dyslexia, and the different social stigmas associated with it. I'm not a huge fan of how black or white the characters are when addressing the main character with dyslexia (being extremely rude or extremely helpful), since I feel like real people aren't like that and it can be a mix of reactions. Overall, it's an interesting manga that I wouldn't mind continuing.

Cheers Netgalley and publisher for the volume 1!

It’s refreshing to see a character who goes through dyslexia and identifying the challenges that come along with this well-known reading disorder that many people have (I knew a few who have this!). However it lost me at the near end of volume 1 where he joined the trope so yeah great concept when it comes to a real life disability but in the end, the direction just brought down my attention span unfortunately.

My Wonderful World follows Shinobu who has trouble reading, this causes him to lose jobs. He soon meets a café owner who asks him if he has dyslexia. This begins his story of learning about his disability and working with it.

This was pretty good. I think invisible disabilities like dyslexia definitely need more rep and I think the topics discussed in here are relevant. Would recommend.