Tegami Bachi Volume 2 cover image is courtesy of barnesandnoble.com.

Rated “T” for “Teen”

The country of Amberground is locked in darkness.  Only a man-made star casts a dim light over the land.  Travel to the various cities of Amberground is dangerous because Gaichuu, giant insects with metal exoskeletons, infest the forests.  There is, however, a brave corps of messengers, called Letter Bees, who risk their lives delivering letters and packages to the cities and keeping Amberground connected.  Sometimes, the letters are actual people…

As Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee, Vol. 2 (The Letter to Jiggy Pepper) begins, Lag Seeing is on his way to Yuusari to take the Letter Bee exam, with his wannabe dingo, Niche (and her doggie thing, Steak), at his side.  The trio stops in the “Dead End” town of Kyrie, where Lag meets a very helpful girl named Nelli.  Nelli is so helpful that Lag doesn’t notice that Nelli has stolen his bag and crossing past, which will allow her to leave Kyrie and deliver a letter to Jiggy Pepper.

THE LOWDOWN:  Readers should not be put off by the back story for Tegami Bachi, because it isn’t really dense; besides, there is an easy-to-read synopsis at the beginning of this volume.  All the characters are interesting, especially the leads.   Lag Seeing’s sense of wonder is so deep and well-expressed in the narrative that it could power a city, and Niche is an absolute darling in a stab-you-with-my-hair kind of way.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  Although Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee is geared toward teen readers, any manga fan will enjoy this series.

A-