Shimanami Tasogare

(Our Dreams at Dusk - by Kamatani Yuhki)

TW: This is a treasure trove of difficulties faced by the LGTBQ+ community. Also, there is harsh language, including slurs (internalized bias is a thing people).

Rating: PG-13

Length: 4 volumes

Vibe: All the feels

Star rating: 4.5/5

This story primarily centers around the self-discovery/coming of age of a young boy, Tasuku Kaname, who is in love with one of his schoolmates but has also been outed as gay.

At his wit's end due to being teased at school, he looks for a means to escape on a walk and comes across a mysterious figure, Anonymous, who introduces him to her cafe full of people from all walks of life.

In the end, each character represents a facet of the queer community, and while it feels a little tropey/overdone, we have to remember this story takes place in a country where the subject of sexual orientation and gender are still wildly taboo. Also, here for the GL love story here as well!

Overall, I enjoyed this read and would recommend it as something insightful for those who need it - looking at you, Florida.

More thoughts after the jump!

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This one has all the feels - as each character goes through so much. What I like most about this one is that each character feels like they were handled with care, though none of the portrayals or actions of those characters are perfect - and I think that's part of the point.

A LESSON:

As someone who has spent a long time in the community, at first, it would be easy to grimace at the seemingly after-school special of the challenges faced by the community - however, put simply this doesn't feel like it was written with me as the target demographic in mind. Obviously, that's great and a-OK! This work is still very much additive to the discussion of a very taboo topic in Japan (and elsewhere!). I wish something like this had been read by some of my relatives who struggle with understanding anything outside of the cis-hetero norm, but also, I really wish this had found its way into the hands of some of my beloved people who spend decades struggling with what it means to be gay.

WE DON'T ALWAYS UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER:

Also, I really LOVED that this story delved into the complexities of the queer community and the established hierarchy - much of which is built on misunderstanding. To put it plainly, as a bi-sexual woman, I do not understand the experience of trans women, or just because you're gay, doesn't mean you know all there is about people who identify as asexual.

THE WRAP-UP

I think there are some really important moments in this story from a well-meaning cis-woman trying to support her trans friend, as well as the exploration of gender identity at such a young age.

I really loved reading this and cannot recommend it enough. It didn't end the way I wanted it to, but it ended the way it needed to.