Customer Reviews

Natsume's Book of Friends, Vol. 2 (Natsumi's Book of Friends)

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Natsume's grandmother certainly handed him plenty of trouble -- not only does he have the "book of friends" and all the trouble that comes with it, but he finds himself trying to solve the various problems of the spirits he encounters. "Natsume's Book of Friends Volume 2" is a little darker and sadder than the first volume, but Yuki Midorikawa still has the same uplifting endings and elegant art.

Natsume reluctantly joins in a test of courage with his classmates, at a local house said to be haunted -- and a sinister local ghost starts kidnapping all of his classmates, except for the one girl who wants to see it. And after Natsume is chased by a bizarre rocklike spirit, he finds a strange curse marking on his arm, and a shadow with a gaping mouth starts following him wherever he goes. If he and an old friend of his grandmother's can't stop it, he'll be eaten alive...

Then Natsume encounters a famous young actor named Natori, who turns out to have some magical powers of his own -- he can create shikigami paper dolls, and exorcises spirits as a side-job. But Natsume is increasingly uncomfortable with Natori's way of handling spirits, especially when he learns of a captive spirit's connection to him. And a spirit tries to claim Natsume's body for his friend Asagi, who has become too sick to play her koto -- and before she dies, he's determined to let her play for her beloved Lord Mibu.

"Natsume's Book of Friends Volume 2" doesn't spend as much time as the first volume focusing on the Book of Friends itself. Instead, the focus here is on the personal problems of/with the supernatural populace, whether they're trying to eat him or enlist his help (and occasionally a lesbian spirit pounces on him because she mistakes him for his grandmother).

Midorikawa's stories mostly have a bittersweet flavor, exploring the bittersweet love of "Mary" for the dying Asagi or the loneliness of the spirit in the haunted house. But the stories always end on an optimistic note, with reflections on how love and kindness can fill a person's life. And there are some lighter moments woven into the story, such as when a rather dim kappa ends up waiting for Natsume until his little head dries out (forcing Natsume to hydrate him for the second time), or when the cat keeps getting shrunk or expanded.

The artwork is also exquisite and delicate, with lots of flowing clouds, fluttering petals, magical circles ringed with lightning and blasts of light and shadow. But there are actually some creepy moments here, like that toothy-mouthed armless shadow-thing. Ew.

Midorikawa also adds in some more information on Natsume's past; through some flashback dreams, we see some glimpses of his past and why people thought he was so creepy. And she introduces us to Natori, who's kind of hard to pin down -- it's not quite clear if he's being nasty and callous to the spirits, or whether he's exercising his own brand of kindness. Either way, he's an interesting character.

Yuki Midorikawa mingled bittersweet supernatural stuff with some gentle humor in "Natsume's Book of Friends Volume 2," as well as introducing a new guy that might make for some interesting future stories.