Confidential Confessions, Book 1 [Paperback]

Reiko Momochi (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: TokyoPop (July 8, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591823935
• ISBN-13: 978-1591823933
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #371,982 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Issues, May 29, 2005

By 

Rico "sweet_face777" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Confidential Confessions, Book 1 (Paperback)

Confidential Confessions is one of the greatest manga of all time because it deals with real issues. You wont find any magic, superheroes, or bishounen in this series. Instead you will read about girls who have to deal with tough issues such as bullying, rape, sexual harassment, drugs, prostitution, stalking, and suicide. I recommend that every teen read Confidential Confessions.

Vol. 1
A strong beginning to an amazing series. The first story in this volume deals with bulling, suicide, while the second story deals with prostitution.

Vol. 2
This entire volume deals sexual harassment and is an awesome follow up the first volume.

Vol. 3
The first story in this volume is great because it explores drugs and some of the reasons why kids take them, however the second story is forgettable and is overshadowed by its predecessors.

Vol. 4
The story in this volume deals with prostitution again but instead of having a protagonist go into prostitution because of bad circumstances, this girl goes into prostitution because she is very materialistic and wants money to buy brand name items. The next story revisits the issue of bullying but in more depth. Both of the stories are remarkable but the next story is (for lack of better terms) lame. It deals with lesbianism but the impact is not hard hitting because the main character seems like a stalker rather than someone who is hiding her true feelings for the same sex.

Vol. 5
This volume treads on the tender issues of rape and AIDS. This volume is magnificent and I believe it should have been the last because of the bittersweet ending.

Vol. 6
This is the weakest of all 6 volumes and is a pathetic and disappointing end to a great yet disturbing series. The first story is about stalking and the second story involves a girl who is transformed from a victim to a bully.

There you have it, the complete mini-guide to Confidential Confessions. Like I said before this is a great manga and should be read by all teens. My only complaint is that this story was meant for the Japanese and so some of the main characters actions wont make sense to Americans (you might say, "what the hell is the matter with them, why don't they speak up for themselves!?)" because the Japanese are much more reserved people who don't like to make trouble for their family of school.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The opposite of what I expected, July 23, 2003

By 

Augury (Maryland

Tokyo (I wish!)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Confidential Confessions, Book 1 (Paperback)

When I first heard about this manga, I have to confess it didn't sound too appealing. One's first impression is of an extremely dark, angsty series, (the "rape" "drug abuse" "suicide" and so forth on the cover is testimony to that!) and if you don't like that sort of thing, you definitely wouldn't be interested- or so I thought. As it turned out, once I read it i realized how wrong I was. The stories are very true to life and compelling, making you want to read more and more. CC deals with characters that may start out screwed up, but they grow and learn and eventually are able to put it behind them- which is very different from the typical angsty stories I've read in the past, which usually involve melodramatic, whiny main characters who come to a sticky (and most often self-inflicted) end.

Anyway, this really is a great book. You don't have to be 18 to read it, just make sure you know what kind of content you're getting into, and that whatever your age, you're mature enough to deal with it. ^_^ ciao!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful!, August 12, 2003

By 

galmanga (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Confidential Confessions, Book 1 (Paperback)

The way this book was advertised (including all the hype words on the cover) led me to think that it would be a soap-opera take on "troubled teens" much like the over-exaggerated "true story" magazines of another era. Overall, it's much better written than that.

While I find the endings of the two stories in the first book somehow unsatisfying, I think that the author creates a wealth of complex, dynamic characters worth caring about. She tackles tough topics, if a bit romantically, and I commend her for it. She writes to teens rather than down at them, which is a feat in and of itself. Her stories generally steer clear of preaching and instead try to find real motivations for the characters' internal struggles. Definitely for teens. Very young children aren't likely to understand stories about depression and prostitution.