4.5

Thank you NetGalley, Kodansha Comics (one of my favorite manga publishers), and Eiichi Kitano for he opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I never expected to adore a karate book so much! Karate Heat features two boys: Shinya, a boy who knows nothing about karate, and Takumi, a boy who is a young karate national champion who has adored the sport since childhood. On a chance meeting, Takumi finds that Shinya might just have what it take to match up to his own special strength and stamina...one day. Together, the boys enter junior high and join a karate club where they strive to be the best. As long as Shinya has a set goal, he can accomplish anything he sets his mind to.

This is an excellent middle-grade novel that's not only about karate, but friendship and self-determination as well. The art is excellent and the story is very engaging and fast-paced. The characters are interesting and likable, and I want to root for Shinya as he begins to move from the basics of karate in his own unique way as the series moves forward. Recommended for middle-grade, sports lovers, and manga lovers of all ages!

'Karate Heat Vol. 1' by Eiichi Kitano is about a young boy's journey into the world of karate.

Shinya is going in to middle school, and he's never been in to sports. He meets another boy named Takumi and they become friends. What Shinya doesn't know is that Takumi is a 6-time school national champion. Takumi is supposed to only be training himself, but he sees natural style in Shinya, and Shinya brings the fun of karate back to Takumi. They find themselves in a karate school and Shinya is determined to learn and become better.

I really liked this sports story with a nice friendship at it's heart. The art is fun. There are notes throughout to introduce concepts to western readers. This was a fun read, and I think young readers who like sports stories would enjoy this quite a bit.

I received a review copy of this manga from Kondansha Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this manga.

I like shonen. I also like sports manga. Well, to be honest, I like just about all manga. This week I started a new series titled Karate Heat by Eiichi Kitano. This is a shonen manga about karate, hard work, and friendship.

Karate Heat Vol 1 is about Shinya Kinoshita, a boy who will soon be entering high school. A chance encounter during the summer leads to a friendship with Takumi Yanagiya, a boy who happens to be the 6-time elementary school national champion in karate. With a newfound ambition and friendship, Shinya is determined to learn the martial art, and Takumi is determined to teach him.

This is a lovely manga about two boys between middle school and junior high school. The main character is a likeable boy who just happens to have good posture, leading to a natural affinity for karate. His friend has done karate for years and has won many competitions. This has set him apart from other his own age, however. Takumi trains alone. He is very much a loner, though not necessarily by choice.

These two boys are very different, and work towards rather different goals. One the one hand we have Shinya who knows nothing about karate but is intrigued and willing to learn more. On the other there is Takumi, a boy who’s worked hard and in complete isolation who suddenly changes his training drastically all to be with a friend and teach him the sport.

The first half of the manga focuses almost exclusively on Shinya and Takumi. It tells of their meeting, their growing friendship, and learning some of the basics of karate. A number of new characters are added in the second half of the volume where we are introduced to the karate club at the boys’ new school. All are memorable characters with a lot of personality. Even so, we don’t know a lot about them yet. More characterization and background to them is sure to come, however, as this is only the first volume in the series.

The art is very enjoyable. Shinya is an adorable main character you can’t but root for. Other characters have unique, easily identifiable designs as well. Some of the one and two page spreads were very pretty, in particular the ones before the beginning of chapter one.

Karate Heat Vol 1 is a sweet story about a young man who works very hard to achieve his goals and grows closer with a new friend. Now, this volume does end in the middle of a sparring match which is sure to tick off some readers. Having grown up in the era when a single fight in a shonen anime would take four or five episodes to finish, this doesn’t personally affect my enjoyment of the volume. If I come across another volume of this series in the future I will most likely be picking it up.