It was Saturday and I had two options, stay at home and do laundry and not get any reading done, or take an hour or two at the library and try and get some reading done. Besides, I had to pick up some interlibrary loans anyway. I picked the library (now, you need to understand that I work at an independent bookstore, where I have access to free books, usually brand new, never touched reader copies, not like that library version of Nimona that had REALLY seen better days). But I needed a change of scenery and I thought, read a short book there, then take the rest home. After telling a few non-PC jokes to the staff (all because I also needed photocopies of a death certificate and one staff person asked what my “death humor” level was), I found a spot to sit. It was near the adult graphic novels, so I browsed and picked up Sensor by Junji Ito. It was a bit of an accident, as I am not a huge horror fan, but I was interested in it. Well,
there was my short read.
I hate and love this book. I hate that everything and nothing is answered. And while this has “magic” and fantasy, things are believable and feel as if most things that occur could actually happen. Honestly though, I am not a horror fan, but there is something that draws me to Ito and their work. It is a clever thriller and horror. There is a mindscrew to things that makes you say “thank you” afterwards. As said above, things are believable, even when they should not be and that, I think, is what makes me appreciate the work. However, I know I need to be careful, as there will be a line I will find accidentally that I never should have crossed. But until then, I will just enjoy the ride. However, some color to the illustrations would have helped flesh a few things out (there is talk of golden thread, that if you saw it might make a few things more of a “Hey wait a minute! You’re a character that knows something!”as it is connected to the person. So I only give this a 4.5 rating.
I will only say the subject is about faith, power, control, even free will versus fate. It is a complicated story that should be read pure, without a lot of preconceived notions or opinions of others. The artwork is horror based. If you do not like icky, don’t read Ito. They have a lot of icky imagery (okay it is downright GROSS). They also have some interesting sexual and sensual images. Things are mature and if this was a movie, it would be at least PG-13 or a low R. As a manga it is VM for VERY Mature.
