#dan vyleta

Humanity is complicated. Humans are complicated. A decently written multi-faceted character is not going to be capable of exclusively making selfless unproblematic choices. That's not even possible! even if they, the characters themselves, believe that they are following a good positive moral code, they're still going to make self-centered or potentially harmful decisions despite their intentions!

We are complicated creatures and our strongest characteristic is perspective and understanding— it's empathy! So if you want to write a decent piece of literature or create a good story, then you have to ditch your ideas about right or wrong and adopt a more complicated understanding of empathy and perspective and the whys of human behavior. Think about the people you care about! Think about the societal issues that you have strong feelings about. Think about the last time someone said you hurt their feelings! Ask yourself why!

Some sketches I did while reading Smoke, soot and ash by Dan Vyleta

Happy New Release Day/Halloween! There’s a lot of new titles out today including a really awesome CE and a box set of an iconic series.

In Books --A Darker Shade of Magic Collector’s Edition by V.E. Schwab “Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.”

This is a really good book. I still need to read the other two books in this series. The Collector’s Edition is listed has having ‘a ribbon of great fanciness’, fan art, glossary of terms, interview with author and editor, and an original tale from within the world. There is a B&N exclusive edition of it that is listed as including “A look at Lila Barn’s London” which is not listed on the other edition. Though I would classify that as being part of the Tales. I’m not positive and I’ve been having some trouble trying to find a resource listing all the differences at the moment. Other than that, the main difference is the B&N edition’s cover is grey while the CE everywhere else has a black cover. I like the black cover better cause it helps it stand out as a collector’s edition but I might end up getting the B&N if it has exclusive, additional extras.

--Akira 35th Anniversary Manga Box Set by Katsuhiro Otomo “A dystopian saga set in Neo-Tokyo, a city recovering from thermonuclear attack where the streets have been ceded to motorcycle gangs and the rich and powerful run dangerous experiments on destructive, supernatural powers that they cannot control.”

All six volumes of the iconic series are now available in a box set. The set is a bit pricey since they are in hardcover. But it does come in a cool box as well as the Akira Club art book and a patch of the pill design from the series.

--Beasts Made of Night by Tochi Onyebuchi In the city of Kos, mages called aki have the ability to call forth sin from a person in the form of sin-beasts that are created by feelings of guilt. The aki call forth the beasts to slay them but a tattoo of the sin-beast appears on the aki’s skin while the guilt of committing that sin appears in their mind. Many go mad by the process. Although Taj is only 17, he is the most talented of all aki. Cocky and desperate to provide for his family, Taj takes a job to eat the sin of a royal; and is thrust into the center of a conspiracy to destroy Kos.

I’m really intrigued by this story. It reminds me of Smoke by Dan Vyleta. In that book anytime someone commits a sin or breaks a law or even has a ‘wicked’ thought, smoke comes from their bodies. Letting everyone around them know they’ve done something wrong. Although sometimes what would cause one person to smoke would not make another who did the same thing. Sometimes for the same action one person would have darker smoke or more come out than what came out of someone else. I saw the sin part as a retrospective (is that the right word?) look at what someone would consider to be bad may not be considered bad to someone else. But back to Beasts Made of Night. It sounds great. It really makes me think of Smoke and I’m really curious to see what all themes it might explore.

--Devilman Grimoire Volume 1 by Go Nagai, illustrated by Rui Takatou “When demons begin taking over the bodies of humans, only the strongest survive. When a practicing young witch named Miki Makimura asks her friend Akira Fudo for help with a ritual, the spell is interrupted and Akira is left on the brink of death. His body is overtaken by a powerful being named Amon. Now torn between his humanity and the demon within him, Akira uses his abilities to fight in the war between demons and humans for the future of the world itself!”

I would like to try out this new series of Devilman. I’ve been wanting to try out the anime for a while now and I’ve never been able to read any of the previous series.

--Erased Volume 3 by Kei Sanbe “With Yashiro and Sachiko's cooperation, Hinazuki was taken in by her grandmother. Even though Hinazuki is out of danger, Satoru has no time to rest--the serial abduction slayings are not over. But if he prevents the crimes from happening, will he be able to return to the present?”

I haven’t had time to read the other two volumes yet but based on the description it appears that the anime followed the series well. After this volume there is one more remaining (I finally found out the the US release are omnibus volumes).

--The Girl from the Other Side: Siuil, a Run Volume 3 by Nagabe “In a world split between the Inside and the Outside, those living in both realms are told never to cross over to the other side, lest they be cursed. A young girl named Shiva lives on the other side, in a vacant village with a demonic guardian known only as “Teacher.” Although the two are forbidden to touch, they seem to share a bond that transcends their disparate appearances. But when Shiva leaves Teacher’s care to seek out her grandmother, the secret behind her mysterious living arrangement comes to light.”

I love this series. 

At the end of volume 2 Shiva’s grandmother appeared in the forest and started to take Shiva back to their village. Which was quite a cliffhanger as I assumed her grandmother was dead. And if I remember right, Teacher thought she was dead as well. I have read this volume already but without spoilers I will just say this was a great volume. If you haven’t checked out this series yet I would highly recommend it.

--To Your Eternity Volume 1 by Yoshitoki Oima “A lonely boy wandering the Arctic regions of North America meets a wolf, and the two become fast friends, depending on each other to survive the harsh environment. But the boy has a history, and the wolf is more than meets the eye as well…To Your Eternity is a totally unique and moving manga about death, life, reincarnation, and the nature of love.”

By the author of A Silent Voice.

I’ve been eagerly waiting for this series since its announcement earlier this year. Though at the time I was just basing that on what the cover looked like. I didn’t know the plot till much later. And I was not disappointed. Along with The Girl from the Other Side this one arrived early. It has an unusual start. I tried to describe it to a friend and she didn’t see the appeal but it was a really good volume. I can’t wait for volume two.

--The Wicker King by K. Ancrum “August has learned that his best friend, Jack, has a degenerative hallucinatory disorder. Jack has very vivid and long-term visions of a fantasy world that’s layered over our own. Determined to help Jack cope, August will follow Jack as he leads them on a quest to fulfill a dark prophecy in this alternate world that is ruled by The Wicker King. Over time even August starts to question what is real and what is fantasy. They struggle to stay afloat as they teeter between fantasy and reality. In the end, they must choose their own truth.”

I really like the possibilities of this book. Will the fantasy world end up being real or will it all be because of their imaginations taking over. To Jack it will appear real the whole time because of his hallucinatory disorder. As for August, at first it won’t be real but the more time he spends helping Jack the more he’ll start to think it is real. Or maybe they both are. They’ll have to decide which world is the real one.

In Movies/TV Shows --The Adventures of the Little Prince “The Little Prince lives on the distant asteroid B-612. There he cleans his volcanoes and cares for his magical rose. One day, a space bird named Swifty visits his tiny planet and shows him how he can hitch rides on passing comets and visit far off galaxies. Meeting new friends at every stop, the Little Prince travels across the universe and learns valuable lessons about honesty, bravery, and kindness.”

An anime series based off The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. 

I’ve still been in a mood to start picking up some older titles; which has been really nice lately because a lot are either getting rereleased or released here for the first time just this year alone.

--Anohana: The Flower We Saw that Day “Jinta Yadomi and his group of childhood friends had become estranged after a tragic incident split them apart. Now in their high school years, an unexpected surprise forces each of them to confront their guilt over what happened that day. They must overcome the burdens of their past, and come to terms with years of shame, hard feelings, and heartaches.”

I cried the first time I saw this anime. It was really good. I still can’t listen to the main song without getting teary eyed. This release by Aniplex is pretty similar to the release that NIS did when they released it back in 2013. But it’s about twice as much. I still really want this edition because I would like to have it in English as well as in Japanese. 

--Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind  Wave two of Studio Ghibli rereleases done by Shout Factory and GKids. Out of these two I only own Nausicaa through the Disney releases. Which is my favorite, followed by Princess Mononoke. Those were the first two I saw.

--The Dragon Dentist “Going into war against a dragon takes incredible courage, but even that danger pales in comparison to the hazards of young Nonoko's job. As a Dragon Dentist, she's charged with venturing into the jaws of the country's dragon protector to keep its pearly canines free of plaque, decay, and other debris. One day, Nonoko discovers an unconscious soldier between her dragon's teeth instead of a cavity, and she finds herself caught up in a series of events that have been foretold to bring disaster to her people! Get ready for an incredible brush with destiny that leads two young people through the mouth of hell and towards certain doom as the creators of the new EVANGELION feature films unleash an epic unlike anything you've seen before in THE DRAGON DENTIST!”

@bibliophilicwitch Tomes and Tea 3/15/20: