Stop, Drop, and Read!: Alice in the Country of Hearts by Soumei Hoshino & Quinrose

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I receive review requests weekly. However, my personal schedule is hectic and I no longer review actively. (I also manage another blog called The Toronto Cafe and Food Blog). I do read every request sent but I apologize in advance that I do not reply to them all.

If I do take on a request, I will forewarn that it may take some time before I can review it. I am now looking to review adult fiction and self-help books instead of young adult fiction because I have grown out of it. If you are to request a review for either adult fiction or self-help, I will more likely to give it a shot.

In the meantime, Stop, Drop, and Read! serves as an archive book review blog. When I have the time, I may post a review. Thank you for understanding.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Alice in the Country of Hearts by Soumei Hoshino & Quinrose

Title: Alice in the Country of Hearts

Mangaka: Quinrose (Story) & Soumei Hoshino (Art)

Age Group: Older Teens

Series is: Ongoing with 5 volumes

Volume(s) Reviewing: 1

My Rating: 4/5

Alice Liddell is randomly kidnapped one day by a rabbit in a suit who claims to be in love with her! He takes her to the world called Wonderland where she must play a game in order to escape. She meets some pretty odd characters there and apparently, parts of Wonderland are at war with each other. Being caught up in this crazy realm, Alice must try to keep her head together and get out quickly!

So as you can see, this manga is based off the classical tale that I'm sure everyone knows of. Characters from the original Alice in Wonderland is used and as well as the broad concept of the world. But at the same time, the mangakas definitely recreated for their own plot. There is definitely intrigue for this series, from what is presented in the first volume. It seems like there would be a lot of mysteries involved and the series might stretch out since it is still ongoing.

I really like the art and definitely the characters' designs. The clothes are really pretty and to be able to reproduce the same thing in real life would take a lot of time and skill. I like all of the character designs, except for Blood (aka the Mad Hatter). His hair is just not working with his face and sometimes that bothers me when all the other characters are better looking.

There is one flaw that I noticed while reading the first volume. The Cheshire Cat or in the manga called Boris, is dressed up like a punk. The thing is, Alice pointed this out and I found it very out of place. The reason is because she lives in an era where punks were not yet to exist. So how in the heck's world would she be able to define Boris as punk when there was no such thing in her time?

I recommend this series for manga fans. Those into mangas where characters get to fall into a parallel world should enjoy Alice in the Country of Hearts delightfully.

Review copy provided by HarperCollins Canada.

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