Feb 11, 2018
I love Higashimura's work and when I heard of this one and it's plot I was immediately interested.
The first and second volume and a bit of the third were so intensely engaging with amazing life quotes and steady rising flow, but by the 4th volume that intensity slowed and you reach the point of where all the characters' are stuck in their own kind of slump and conflict more individually but still together since they are the tokyo tarareba girls.
I really recommend picking this up since it's getting a physical release this summer (I read it digitally because I thought such a niche title would
...
only get that).
The characters and the story are all interesting and if you're an older reader or just becoming a young adult, there are a lot of worries about getting old and finding happiness that can really make your heart twinge at times. It can be a bit of a horror story for those that feel the most related to these characters, as a lot of Japanese women in their thirties (fellow tokyo tarareba girls as Higashimura called them) told Higashimura themselves.
At the end of the volumes there is also a kind of advice column where Higashimura herself answers the questions and woes of real life tokyo tarareba girls and those are really funny and sometimes painful simultaneously.
Furthermore, the end of the story gets a proper resolution that did feel satisfying as well which I was very wary about since I had heard the drama adaptation ended a little one note and simple about what the characters should have known in the first place, but the manga is different.
It slows down towards the end and you wonder if anyone will find any sort of resolution or happiness, but Higashimura manages to deliver in a not so cliche way a kind of happy end for everyone. It's a very nice end for all the conflict and strife our tokyo tarareba girls had to face to get to that point and gives the reader one last inkling of advice to ponder on ourselves.
Overall, the story goes between hilarious banter and self-reflecting monologues and conversations that make you laugh at how you change as you get older and also cry at how fast you grow older. There are some monologues that still stand out to me and I feel like I'll be rereading this again and buying the physical later on to have as I get older and to recommend to my friends if they ever get into an age slump or when they hit 33 years old. It was also a nice read before the 2020 Olympics coming up as they mention it multiple times.
I highly recommend, especially if you're a fan of josei or have reached a slump, or have just turned 33. (But beware, you might find it so relatable it feels like a horror as well).
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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