Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Maid Machinegun by Aaliyah

This book was set in Japan and the Japanese world of manga and anime fans. Manga is a style of Japanese graphic novel, and anime is a style of animated shows and movies with a drawing style similar to manga. The main character is a clumsy but excitable girl named Aaliyah. She is earnest in her desire to become the best maid there is. A maid is a waitress dressed as a maid in a restaurant for manga and anime fans. Aaliyah makes friends with her coworkers, but one of them, a new male employee, says he is in love with her. He is a jerk, so this just makes her life complicated. Everywhere she goes, weird things happen, and the other maids become suspicious. This novel is short and written like an online diary, complete with comments by other people.

I disliked this novel. I felt the plot was confusing, jumpy, and underdeveloped. The main character, Aaliyah, and her past made very little sense. When I learned Aaliyah's secrets, I felt that they were suddenly inserted in the story, rather than being developed. I did not even like Aaliyah; I found her annoying. The ending was confusing and did not make sense with the rest of the story. In addition this story should probably only be read by someone interested in the different categories of anime or manga. There is a glossary with terms, but anyone who reads this book should be interested in these genres and have prior knowledge. That being said, I enjoy both anime and manga, but I did not like this story.

There is no real violence, but there is discussion of homosexual and adult mangas and animes. It is not very bad, but, if this offends you, do not read it.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Royersford, PA United States