My sister
India has gotten really into manga, so why not review my favorite manga, “Thermae Romae” by Mari Yamazaki? It’s about an Ancient Roman bathhouse designer named Lucius who gets all his ideas from traveling down the drain to modern day Japanese bathhouses. Every chapter, he goes down a different drain to a different bathhouse. I love how he’s always completely dumbfounded at the amazing inventions that he finds in this alien world, such as fruit flavored milk and movie posters. My favorite chapter is when he’s sent to a bathtub showroom. He is thought to be a businessman and an employee is sent to show him around. The very proper employee thinks he is really weird. He arrives naked in a bathtub, he only speaks Latin and wears a bathrobe he is given like a toga.
The
art in Thermae Romae is not like traditional manga. It has a few similarities with
manga, but it’s really its own thing. I really like the way Mari draws Lucius’s reactions to
modern tech. His eyebrows raise up on his forehead and his mouth gapes open. She makes it clear that Lucius has a lot of trouble communicating
with the Japanese.
I am
going to give a warning to parents. There is naked people in da book. Apart
from that, Thermae Romae is perfectly clean. It has educational pages in the back of each
chapter. They tell you about Ancient Rome and modern day Japan I would give Thermae Romae 5 Roman legionnaires out of 5.
"It’s about an Ancient Roman bathhouse designer named Lucius who gets all his ideas from traveling down the drain to modern day Japanese bathhouses. Every chapter, he goes down a different drain to a different bathhouse." Sold. Why do graphic novel characters get to have all the fun? I wish I could travel back in time to the swingin' 60s in London when I drain my bathwater!
ReplyDeleteYou gotta protect parents from nudity and cuss words. Good move.
Milo! I am beyond impressed with your review. I would never normally have the desire to read a graphic novel (except for yours, of course) but after reading this, I may just go buy some. I'm most interested in reading about the different bathhouses and seeing Mari's coinciding artwork. Fabulous job- cant wait for more!
ReplyDeleteMilo - I think this may be your best review yet! Very clear, and excellent use of vocabulary. And, yes there is explicit - although not gratuitous - nudity in the book, so thanks for the warning.
ReplyDeleteA month from tomorrow, we'll be on our way to London AND we will have to make time to visit Bath, the site of an ancient Roman bath. I assume that's where the word "bath" came from, unless the town was named after the activity.
"...unless the town was named after the activity." It was. I spent four months there in college! Beautiful place.
ReplyDelete