About the Mangaka

Sadly, despite looking everywhere (english sites that is) I can’t find anything else on Tobe Keiko. If anyone knows anything about her, please drop me a line through the contact page.

About the Manga

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This already amazing series reaches all new heights with this volume, and once again I found myself both getting teary eyes and cracked ribs from laughing.

Tobe’s story is truly amazing and goes beyond being a manga series. I’ve only read a few series that were able to get true emotion from me, where I was genuinely feeling for the characters. Of those, none are on the level of With the Light.

This triple volume focuses on Hikaru’s elementary years, the difficulties that the Azuma family face, as well as the blessings they receive.

I’m constantly surprised at the depth of research that Tobe-sensei most have put into creating this master piece of a story. What’s more is that all of the characters, both support and main have been extensively developed, this is a very rare thing in manga.

This volume’s story introduces the problems of autistic children in mainstream education, and I think Tobe handles it perfectly. The pacing of the story is perfect, and the way the focus shifts from Hikaru to other characters is done flawlessly.

One of the aspects I’ve especially grown to love is that Tobe-sensei doesn’t change the characters personalities, just to progress the story. For example, Sachiko’s mother in law, initially she’s a bitch of the first order, but this is slowly changed. However in this volume the true depths of her personality are revealed, and I loved how it played out, I can’t wait to see what she does next.

I’m also hoping we get to see more of the new support teacher that was introduced in this volume, Kuribayashi. He’s the complete opposite of the teacher that Hikaru has now, and I’m hoping to see the contrasts between the two all the more.

Another element is slowly being introduced in this volume, and once again Tobe-sensei handles it perfectly. That’s puberty, love, and just how evil young girls can be to each other. Story wise, this is by far the most perfect series I’ve ever encountered.

Art wise, I’m not so sure anymore. Initially I felt the shojo styled art was perfect for the story. However in this volume I found myself questioning the style. It’s not bad, and doesn’t exactly do anything wrong, but to me it felt a bit off. There were however some truly amazing panels that really take the breath away.

However, something I noticed slightly in the second volume is shown all the more in this volume. The character designs have changed, and in this volume the changes are drastic. While it’s true that people grow, the time between volumes isn’t supposed to be that long, and I found the sudden change in this volume a bit over the top. though I will admit that I got used to the changes fairly quickly.

The final point of note is that like the previous volumes this one is chocked full of information and stories from real life autism sufferers, carer and parents. This I feel is one of the strongest points of the series, since it reinforces that while this is certainly a manga, it’s not a generic kiddies manga. It’s teaching about something that’s on the rise across the world, and is still sadly not understood in many countries.

Yen’s double volume is a great way of promoting this series even more, since each twin volume arc covers a set time frame, and is concluded in those two volumes. It works really well in my opinion, and many people I’ve spoken to since it’s initial release, have said the same. Many who slammed the original release are now saying the opposite, which is great to see.

Yen also included information on books that can give more information on autism, which I think is a nice touch, and a good way to round out the volume. Of course there’s the usual translation notes as well, which is also appreciated.

With the Light sits easily at the top of my all time favourite Josei series, and naturally fits easily on my Essential Read list.

Where to Buy

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