Thanks to barnesandnoble.com for the image.

NANA, VOL. 9

VIZ MEDIA
CARTOONIST: Ai Yazawa
TRANSLATION: Tomo Matsumoto
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Allison Wolfe
ISBN: 978-1-4215-1745-2; paperback; Rated “M” for “Mature”
280 pp., B&W, $8.99

Nana, the shojo manga (girls’ comics) from Ai Yazawa, is a tale of two young women named “Nana.”  Nana “Hachi” Komatsu moves to Tokyo to start her life over and leave her unpredictable former love life behind.  Nana Osaki moves to the big city to work on her goal of being a rock star.  Chance unites them, and together they navigate a world of fashion, gossip, music, sex, and all-night parties.

As Nana, Vol. 9 opens, Takumi has claimed Nana “Hachi’s” unborn baby as his own, and wants to marry her, leaving Hachi’s boyfriend, Nobu, out in the cold.  Takumi movies Hachi out of the apartment she shares with Nana Osaki.  Now, everyone and everything is thrown into chaos as two bands try to take that next step in their musical destinies.

THE LOWDOWN:  If the American television network, The CW’s target audience is women 18 to 34, this demographic group, whether they read comics or not, would just love this ensemble drama.  Relentlessly character driven and rich in strong individual personalities, Nana is the kind of reading experience for people who enjoy fictional characters acting like real people.  The melodrama, the soap opera theatrics, and the love and friendship will keep the reader turning the pages just like a good thriller will have an action junkie tearing through a book.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  With its realistic character drawings and superb illustrations of sets, backgrounds, and environments, it’s easy to see why Nana is supposed to be the all-time best-selling shojo in the world.  It is a straight drama that speaks to a broad audience.

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