I liked the first manga volume a lot, but I also have seen the movie before reading it.

I feel like if you are not already familiar with the story some details are missing, which is usually the opposite way around for manga and anime, but if I'm not mistaken, this manga was made after the movie, which might explain why. Personally, I already knew I would like the story, I liked the art style as well and I would read the next volumes as well, but for someone who didn't see the movie, might not be as appealing

I loved this! It's such a unique fantasy manga and the characters are incredible.

It was a really enjoyable read and the story is exciting so it keeps you engrossed.

My only issue is that I have watched the movie before reading and preferred the artsyle from the film, this is just personal preference though.

Thanks to Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for providing me with this arc.

Suzume is a delight. The art is fun and the story is fast paced. The characters are great and the story is surprisingly sweet about friendship, opening up to others, accepting help, with maybe a tiny touch of romance, and an interesting take off accepting grief. Suzume is a bright, helpful young lady who has lost her parents and lives with her aunt. She seems a bit on the naive and clumsy side, but is quick witted and kindhearted. When she gives directions to a handsome stranger and accidentally puts him in harms way, she rushes to the rescue without a second thought and gets drawn into a crazy adventure where her possible beau is transformed into an oddly expressive and adorable chair and she must rush to find a keystone which has been transformers into a mischievous cat in order to save her home from Monsterous natural disasters. Is quite cheerful, amusing and endearing with a rapid pace to keep young readers focused and lots of exciting and distinctive faces.

Just like the movie, Suzume hits home with themes of natural disasters, self-discovery, love/loss and fear of the future. There's an abundance of imaginative story telling, as well as emotional depth. However! What I liked most about reading the novel version of this beloved movie was the insight into Suzume's thoughts. She was incredibly delightful, humorous and relatable all wrapped up in a little package that almost had me adoring the novel more than the move, which I wasn't expecting.

Suzume’s character development was critical and nuanced. Her emotional growth throughout the novel was handled with sincerity and depth that I couldn't help but feel connected to her inner struggles and triumphs. Similar to the movie, Souta was a highlight! The mere fact that he was a chair and still carried 50% of the plot is sheer mastery within storytelling. Not only that, Shinkai’s ability to weave intricate, heartfelt emotions into the fabric of the story created a powerful and moving reading experience. I really loved reading the tender bond that formed between Suzume and Souta.

Not only was the plot itself evocative, the pictures' ability to build on each other into something insurmountable was exquisite. It was fast paced, and easily digestible, but still held depth with every interaction. For anyone looking for a novel that combines magical realism with heartfelt storytelling, Suzume is an absolute must-read. :)

Perfect for fans of fantasy manga.

Suzume runs into a stranger who is looking for a certain door in a set of ruins. She accidentally leads him into an abandoned resort and goes to find him, but only finds the door and pushes it. She opens it to find a world behind time and place behind it.

I gave this manga 4 out of 5 stars. I have already seen the movie so I already knew I would like the plot. For those who have not seen the movie I would recommend watching the movie before reading because the art style is better in my opinion. The only reason I did not give this manga 5 stars was because of the art style. Other than that, I enjoyed the pacing, story, fantasy, and how well the manga kept to the movie. I would recommend this to others and especially those who like fantasy manga.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Makoto Shinkai is one of my favorite filmmakers of all time. Your Name (Kimi No Na Wa) is one of my favorite movies ever. I also love Weathering With You and Suzume. Despite this, I have never read any manga adaptations of his films. I jumped at the opportunity to read the manga for Suzume since I loved the movie so much. With the manga adaptations for A Garden of Words, certain things are in the manga that are not in the movie. I wondered if this is the case for Suzume.

As someone who has seen Suzume, reading the manga felt like watching a recap of the movie from a different perspective. If the movie is the main footage, the manga feels like the story through B-roll. I wanted to take it in as its own project, but that proved difficult for me. It was hard for my brain to stop comparing each scene to how it happened in the movie. That being said, I don’t consider this a bad thing, but I’m not sure if I personally can judge if the story would feel whole solely based on the manga.

Back to the B-roll of it all, since my brain couldn’t process this as “a new story,” I took it in as something meant to add to the movie. I felt that the manga’s direction expanded the characters in a new way, making them more dimensional. For example with Suzume, she has so much emotion. Even if there aren’t thought bubbles, the art makes me feel that I know her mind. Her small blushes or looks of determination are so noticeable.

I also find this to be the case with Souta, who is a chair for 90% of the time. The manga’s art has a way of making his movement and looks more human. I can tell, even without dialog that Souta is in there and he’s looking at Suzume or feeling something. I think the animation does a wonderful job of bringing him to life but the manga’s art captures a little more of his humanity.

The first volume covers until Suzume meets Rumi and arrives in Kobe, when she sees Daijin at Rumi’s bar. It was a good place to separate the story and I’m curious to see how it picks up in the next volume.

I haven’t seen Suzume since it premiered in theaters, so I may also be biased in what my memory of the film is compared to the manga. I may rewatch it before reading the second volume and compare my feelings then. Either way, the manga adaptation of Suzume was enjoyable for me and added a lot of exposition on these characters that I really enjoyed.

I really enjoyed this! I've seen the movie and I thought this was a fun adaptation. I'll be recommending it to friends of mine that also enjoyed the film :)

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the free graphic novel.*

I have not watched the movie yet, so bear with me. I loved the wondrous story in this graphic novel even though I was partly confused. I was a bit disappointed that Vol. 1 was so short but that was to be expected. The aesthetics are amazing, I can't wait to watch the movie really!

4 stars

This was such a stunning volume!! It was so fun following Suzume and the adventure she goes on. The storyline was captivating, the characters were funny, and the art style is gorgeous! I'm curious to see how the story continues and I'll definitely be picking up more of this author's work!

Thank you NetGalley for providing this eARC!

My first “encounter” with Makoto Shinakai was through his movie <b>Your Name</b>, which if you haven’t seen it, you must, because it’s brilliant. He is currently praised to be the next Miyazaki, and I second this.

Suzume was a wonderful anime, well worth of all the praise and nominations it received. Having it in pocket size manga is almost as good, and I can’t wait for the next 2 books.

<i>I would like to thank Kodansha Comics | Vertical Comics and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange of an honest review</i>

Suzume is a high school girl living with her aunt after her mother passed away. A chance encounter with a young man, Souta, on her way to school sends her to open a random door that stands in the middle of an abandoned shopping centre. It releases an ancient evil that only she and the young man can see.

Souta’s a closer whose job is to keep the evil from getting through similar doors. But Suzume has also released a key stone which has turned into a cat. It curses Souta and turns him into a chair that can move. Suzume and him must find the cat to return him back to normal, which sends the pair on a journey through Japan.

Having seen the anime, this was a good recap. It didn’t quite catch the spirit and lacked details that might have made following the story less enjoyable if I hadn’t seen the film. First volume has maybe one third of the story the film has. Art is good with large panels, and it follows much of the film (or the other way round?), although the characters look a bit different.

I really enjoyed the world-building and the storyline in this first volume. The illustrations were beautifully done, pulling me deeper into the story with each page. There’s something so captivating about the blend of everyday life with magical elements in this one.

Huge thanks to the publisher for sending me an advance reader copy —I found myself hooked in Suzume’s journey and wanting more by the end!

Suzume 1 is a fun and quick read that transports you into an exciting adventure with a fascinating premise. The story follows Suzume, a high school junior who unwittingly opens a mysterious door that leads to a world beyond time and space. From there, she embarks on a journey that takes unexpected twists—including a rather surprising one where the male lead, Souta, is transformed into a chair, which adds an interesting dynamic to the narrative.

The plot moves at a good pace, making it easy to get through the book quickly. The premise of the story is engaging, though the transformation of the main character into a chair was quite unexpected and slightly strange, yet it keeps the adventure lively and unique. While the writing itself is enjoyable, there are moments where it feels like more depth could be added to the characters and world-building.

Overall, it’s a fun read, perfect for those who enjoy a light yet intriguing adventure. I'm looking forward to watching the animated film adaptation to see how this story translates on screen. It’s a solid start, but it left me wishing for a bit more development.

This might be because it's the first one in the series, but there is too much going on and insufficient explanation to follow the plot. Suzume, a junior at school, sees something strange in the distance, and when she follows the person a giant spirit worm breaks out of the sky. Suzume is one of the only people who can see it, and she helps Souta close the mysterious door that appears.

Souta travels back with Suzume and somehow turns into a chair in Suzume's room, and also there is a cat that is the key to closing the doors forever, but it is going on its own adventure. Suzume carries Souta as the chair around Japan following the hashtags people have created about the cat appearing all over. Suzume makes friends with the people she finds along the way, and we get a little of her background. Her parents are gone, but she only has memories of her mom, she lives with her single middle-aged aunt who works all the time, she has always followed the rules, and she just knows she can help Souta.

There's something there, and I appreciate that there's no awkwardness between this older man and this young schoolgirl, but I have no idea what's going on and I'm not entertained enough to keep reading. If you like fantastical elements and a mystery to solve, this manga might be for you.

I watched the Suzume movie on a long-haul flight and was curious to read the manga. While manga isn't my typical genre, I found the illustrations to be colorful and vibrant, which I enjoyed. Some scenes were quite humorous. The plot was imaginative and magical, and the characters were entertaining. The cat was a fun addition. I'm sure manga fans will appreciate this book.

Thank you to netgalley for the complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

The book is adapted from the movie and follows the same storyline and offers a similar experience. While it provides an enjoyable and easy read with engaging elements, it may not delve deeply into character development or story complexity.

As a fan of the previous works, I found this story less compelling but still decent. It remains a fun, straightforward read, particularly for fans of the film.

I am a huge fan of Suzume the film so getting to read it in manga form was just a delight. The story is so magical and quirky. I love that it is word from word from the film it translates perfectly onto the page. Reading it in manga form makes certain parts like when she is babysitting the two children even more comical frame by frame. It is a great with characters that fascinating background stories. I can't wait to read volume 2. Thank you for letting me review it.

Suzume is a pretty typical teenager. One day, on her way to school, she crosses paths with a handsome and mysterious stranger searching for the ruins. Moments later, as an earthquake starts, Suzume spots a terrifying sight, stemming from the ruins she indicated to the stranger and she seems to be the only one seeing it. Taking her courage, she goes to the ruins and there, finds a door that looks a lot like the one she keeps seeing in the dreams she'd had following a tragedy that took away her mother.

After a peculiar series of events, Suzume embarks on a journey to save the world and come to terms with her grief.

This manga is the adaptation of the very popular Suzume anime that came out last year. I really enjoyed the anime so I was really excited to give the manga a try.

The drawings are beautiful and it was an absolute pleasure to reunite with the characters. So far, the manga's story doesn't take away or add anything to the anime content so I'd say this is something I'd recommend for those who'd really like to collect something in relation to the anime.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are my own

Suzume is a junior high schooler living with her aunt. She meets a mysterious guy on the side of the road and offers him directions. When she arrives at school, she finds out that she just sent him to a very dangerous place. Worried, she rushes to try to warn him. Here she finds a magical door and a terrifying worm. She dislodges the keystone that she and the stranger need to seal the door for good. And so begins a journey to reclaim the keystone and seal the worm.

Pretty interesting story. I love how Suzume and Souto make friends all along the way that are ready and willing to help them out.

Everything about this story is soooo good and captivating, the characters are great, the plot is really creative and I just love the cat, poor thing.
Also the art is is so nice and well done.
I love it and want more of it.