Emma: Volume 1

by Kaoru Mori

Book Overview

Cute story of romanace between social classes in Victorian England. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1401211321
• ISBN13: 9781401211325
• Release Date: September 2006
• Publisher: CMX
• Length: 183 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 4.8" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

A Historical Journey Back in Time

Emma is a masterpiece: It is one of the most original mangas I've ever read in a long time. A breath of fresh air from the shonen fight-to-the-death battles and the shoujo bubble-head romances I've seen and read all too many. It's fresh and simple, romantic yet innocent and incredibly realistic. A Romeo and Juliet from a less dramatic, slice-of-life, point of view. The art is superb beyond words. It's obvious that Mori has toiled and toiled in the illustration of the book. Every building stands out with detailed windows and rooftops, and the streets are drawn as like photographs of daily Victorian-era life. The characters are brought to life with Mori's gentle touches. Speaking of character, the character development is incredible. I feel as if I know Emma personally and Edward's situations and strife come alive. Mori has woven an amazing story; with diverse scenarios and believable content. Victorian England has come alive, convincing readers to relish every moment of the rich tapestry of history. Do not miss this historical masterpiece!

Elegant and classy

Emma is maid to a retired governess; her beauty and grace have attracted many suitors, some beyond her station in life. The story line follows both sides of the romance, giving insights into the vast class differences of the times and setting up what are sure to be difficult social hurtles for Emma and Mr Jones. If you're a fan of quiet heroins of Jane Austin and the graphic styles of Japanese Manga, I think you'll find this first book appealing.

Heartwarming and amazingly accurate!

As a Literature major, I have been force-fed Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and other famous English authors. I didn't really enjoy them (although I love Great Expectations) but that was due to immaturity and being forced to read 100 pages a week along with other piles of homework. When I saw Emma sitting quietly on the shelf, it was calling to the part of me who is a Lit nerd. Emma is amazingly accurate and it grabs your heart and refuses to let go! It should be a boring manga, but it's NOT. You sympathize with the characters and want them to be happy (and together). As a manga freak who's growing tired of the romance mangas that feature 100 hot girls after a boring guy (known as harem manga/anime), the sappy high school romance manga that has misunderstandings galore with the girl running away crying every 10 pages, and the popular guy/girl meeting an unpopular girl/guy, Emma is a huge breath of fresh air! I normally prefer action/fantasy over romance, but, once again, Emma has me more interested in her struggles with society over a magical girl's struggle with an evil queen. Buy it. Please. The other reviewer put it perfectly: Emma is a winner. Thanks to it, I feel more interested in Jane Austen and the rest of the English authors I will be reading throughout my education in Literature. I hope they release the touching and heartbreaking 'Emma' anime as well....

an excellent period drama on the delicate side...

Emma, as you might have guessed, tells the story of a young Victorian/Edwardian maid and her forbidden romance with a gentleman from a large merchant house whose family has aims for him that are much higher than she. Volume one of the series contains the first seven chapters of the eventual fifty-two and focuses on basic introductions. We meet the shy, but kind and intellegent, Emma, the exotic Hakim, prim Mrs.Stowner, the somewhat daft and dashing Young Master Jones... the list goes on. Pretty much every character we see, be they the main focus or the bit part side characters, will show up many times throughout the series, and not just as filler. Every single character has a point to them, whether it be to show some side of Victorian Society or to help a more important character (or even just the reader) figure something out about the story at large. I really must applaud Mori for this. The art is superb, with a strict attention to details and architecture. There's something about the way Mori draws that lends elegance to her character's features. Despite the fact that Emma and Eleanor are considered beautiful, they're not drawn in the typical manner associated with beauty in manga... in fact, they're quite atypical if you compare them to other manga... but, in the spirit, mood, and fasion in which they ARE drawn, you cannot help but see them as so. The pacing is just right for this sort of quiet courtship... slow and delicate, with an emphasis on subtlety that makes you feel like you're sharing a well reasoned secret with Kelly as she watches the two grow closer. In the translator's/author's notes/bio at the end of the volume, a point was made that CMX has decided to bring over the series untouched. I assume that means it will be unedited, and am glad and hopeful that my guess is right. FAIR WARNING; in the later volumes there will be some female nudity as there are two, perhaps three bath scenes with several characters that have yet to be introduced. Parents should know of those, though I consider it to be quite tasteful. There are only two things I didn't like about the release... one, was a choice the author made in the creation. There's a scene late in this volume where the reality breaks down a little and several characters, in typical fashion, have animals hovering near them that represent their current moods. It's generally a good emotive tool, but in a title that strives to portray a reality fairly strictly, this seems out of place. It's a fairly MINOR beef, and hardly noticeable, but I thought I'd mention it. The other issue was a production one... in particular, the paper stock that CMX used. Perhaps it was done for affect, to make it seem aged (as it is a period piece), but the texture and color of the pages are off... too rough and off-white. It kind of washes out the art and makes it lose crispness. The cover too, is off odd consistency. I just recieved my copy yesterday and already it is starting to bow seriously, in spite