SOS, Vol. 1 [Paperback]

Hinako Ashihara (Author, Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This collection offers up three love stories about sweet girls and the hot guys they fall for. Ashihara, creator of the popular Forbidden Dance series, distinguishes each of these formulaic romances with a unique narrative quirk. The dark side of the search for love is revealed in the title story, when high school matchmakers confront first a violent client and then a female stalker who has to learn to cope without the object of her obsession. "That Sweet Organ Song," set in Kobe at the time of the earthquake of 1922, is defined by its historical nostalgia, while the final story, "The Good Life," portrays the paradoxical love of a girl whose boyfriend treats her like a servant, or, as she complains, like she's his mom. Needless to say, love triumphs in the end, and readers in search of a solid love story will be rewarded. Ashihara draws the characters in typical shojo (girl's manga) style, with strong, clear lines delineating attractive young characters whose enormous eyes are ever trained on their objects of desire. The artist adds a personal touch to her work by sporadically including notes that explain the origins of the stories and open a window onto her creative process, drawing readers even further into the atmosphere of tender confession that these stories create. (Mar.)

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: VIZ Media LLC; 1 edition (March 8, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591167353
• ISBN-13: 978-1591167358
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,616,294 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short But Sweet Love Stories, March 26, 2005

By 

Lorelai Gilmore "Rory" (Stars Hollow, Conneticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SOS, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

Maybe I'm just a hopeless romantic, but I really enjoyed all three of these stories about being in love. They are stories about needing people, and stories about doing the right thing for the person you love. If you like a good romance story, this book is worth the money.

5.0 out of 5 stars Romantic manga with a little extra, September 20, 2009

By 

Rachel Helen Strain "Toki Doki" (Vienna, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: SOS, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

Sure, there are three stories of love in here. Nothing too crazy or complicated, but I really like Hinako Ashihara's work. She has a unique, simplistic style to her art and she is breath of fresh air to me. I love shojo, but it can all get a bit redundant...although Ashihara fits into the category, she manages to fit in a more "slice of life" type feel. You'll get love triangles, bitterness, and young-love confusion, but (in my opinion) she adds depth to it. S.O.S. is a great manga to add to the collection if you can find a used copy in nice condition. In these three stories she deals with ideas of not only thinking about everyone elses love life, but thinking about your own. She deals with love never fully bloomed and also accepting people faults. Nobody is perfect and Hinako Ashihara doesn't try to create these perfectly adorable guys who are just too good to be true and clumsy pretty girls...she's definitely worth a read!
I would really recommened her series "Sand Chronicles". I was apprehensive about reading it, but then I realized how great it is.