The Acrobat of Ashgabat (~ Faisal Dialdin, Octavio Córdova)

art: 5/5 pacing: 3/5 characters: 4/5 writing style: 2.5/5 originality: 3/5

See the full review on Pending Plays: https://pendingplays.co.uk/2026/07/05/the-acrobat-of-ashgabat-book-review/

-Ayxan Solongo, 27.03.26

Illustrations: 4/5 stars. It’s a sweet and unique artstyle, that go well with the writing. Some minimalistic pages that fit the message top-notch. I just really dislike the very binary heteronormative traditional aspects (pink for girls, blue for boys, mom wearing an apron, dad being outside, etc).

Writing: 3/5. Typical children’s book poems, nothing unique about the style. But the message is an important one, especially in today’s maximum-core lifestyle.

Recommended for the message.

~

Thank you to David Farkas on BookSirens for an eRC. The book was released on May 22, 2025. Written by David Farkas and illustrated by Brittany Farkas. -Ayxan Solongo, 06.03.26

It’s a sweet little book about a missing puzzle piece used as an analogy for adopting a baby into a big family.

I can’t say much else about it. Very short, and very straightforward. More like a letter to the baby in the future, so it can look back and see why they adopted it. (Whether that’s good or bad is very subjective. Personally, I found it a little boring, but it’s not bad.)

The rhymes weren’t always as smooth, but the book mainly lives from its illustrations. And those are clean, I like the semi-realistic style.

~

Thank you to Megan K Palmer on BookSirens for an eARC. The book is set to be released on Mar 13, 2026. Written by Megan K Palmer and illustrated by Emily Hurst Pritchett. -Ayxan Solongo, 04.03.26

Mud, Bugs & Other Tales (~Sue Marasciulo, Mangoyu)

art: 5/5 pacing: 3/5 characters: 4/5 writing style: 3/5 originality: 3/5

See the full review on Pending Plays: https://pendingplays.co.uk/2026/07/02/mud-bugs-other-tales-book-review/

-Ayxan Solongo, 03.03.2026

Cate and the Garden Bandits (~Betsy Coffeen, Ginger Seehafer)

art: 5/5 pacing: 3/5 characters: 3/5 writing style: 3/5 originality: 3/5

See the full review on Pending Plays: https://pendingplays.co.uk/2026/06/28/cate-and-the-garden-bandits-book-review/

-Ayxan Solongo, 10.02.26

I’m swept away by the whimsical illustrations!! Erin Brown did a phenomenal job! The amount of details with characters partially blending in / camouflaging with or hiding in-between the nature around them … it’s like a Wimmelbild! So much artistic love and passion. Making me want to pick up my paint brush.

My only issue is that only male characters were helpers. All female characters are side characters and barely contributed except talking … (but hey, at least it’s written and illustrated by two women). Wouldn’t have hurt to make the brave fairy female or at least use she/her pronouns. That’s why half a star less.

But other than that, I can really recommend it!

I like the bits of explanation about the flowers/plants too, especially the mini encyclopedia at the end!

Thank you to The Collective Book Studio on Netgalley for an eARC. The book is set to be released on April 7th 2026. -Ayxan Solongo, 29.01.26

After reading an excerpt, I thought this was going to be a financial self-help book. While it is about finances, it’s more of a guide/introduction book to the value of money and its energy.

I found myself very annoyed at first that it went to Bitcoin. (Though I see now how it's hinted in the title, heh.) Thinking, “oof, don’t tell me this is an ad for Bitcoin!”. In the last years Bitcoin has become popular, all I got from it, is that scamming and losing the coins is far easier than with traditional money. Though I continued reading, and glad I did. Especially when they mentioned it’s open-source and decentralized, it got me hooked. Recently, I joined the Fediverse, a decentralized social media and also open-source. I’ve only been there for a month, but like it far better than the exclusive/centralized network, such as Instagram, TikTok, etc. The author also mentioned it’s better for the environment. I also appreciate that they talked about the state of our ocean, albeit it was short. As an environmentalist, I technically should be in favor of nature-friendly money*, especially since traditional paper and coin money totally isn’t good. Yet, I’ve always found digital currencies very icky … Well, with all I’ve learned today through this short book, I’ll definitely go and research more about the topic.

(*personally, though, I’m much more in favor of trading items. I’ve always believed that to be the best solution, both for the environment and consumerism.)

I also liked the illustrations. They’re quite simple-ish, but the abstraction fits the topic. And the colored speech bubbles are a good idea.

~

Thank you to Fara Dei on BookSirens for a digital review copy. The book was released on October 13th 2025. -Ayxan Solongo, 27.01.26

A Very Puggy Christmas (Paula the Pug 2) (~Janina Kelly, Tommy Hardman)

art: 5/5 pacing: 3/5 characters: 3/5 writing style: 3/5 originality: 2/5

See the full review on Pending Plays: https://pendingplays.co.uk/2026/06/14/a-very-puggy-christmas-book-review/

-Ayxan Solongo, 26.01.26

The illustrations are a bit scarce, but given its sort of like a guide book, it’s fine.

As someone who struggles with anxiety themself, I’ve known about most of these tips for a while now, though some of the names are different (like, “three, three, three” or “cupcake breathing”). So, ended up learning something new, too!

My only ick is that YouTube Kids was recommended, cause that app is so not for kids. I know kids these days will find their way there sooner than later anyways, but that doesn’t mean you should recommend it. A better resource should’ve been named.

But other than that very little issue, I did enjoy it, and the illustrations are very cute.

Thank you to Sarah Hodgson on BookSirens for a digital review copy. The book was released on January 1st 2025. -Ayxan Solongo, 26.01.26

calming bed time story

Writing: It’s been a while since I read a mirror poem, especially in a children’s book. Nice nostalgia! The idea with the sounds is also so good and helps with relaxing for sure! It says there’s an audio file that comes free with the book, though I’m not sure whether it’s with the ebook too – wasn’t in my copy. Which is not that bad tho, I could imagine the sounds just fine and personally didn’t need an audiotape. The inspiration of taking a walk in nature and listening to the sounds myself is, in my opinion, far better than having them being played from a (digital) recorder!

Illustrations: Didn’t always make sense – one time, the dog was leaning on a fence in the grass, but in the next image where it showed the entire house, there was no fence. Or the bird’s nest was on the grass, then in another image up in a tree. And the human was holding onto a metal bar in one panel, though there was no matching object of it in another image. Apart from the logistics, they are wonderfully drawn. I do love the pencil style; has a nostalgic feel to old picture books that I grew up with.

I can totally recommend this as a bed time story!

~

Thank you to Karen Brough on BookSirens for a digital review copy. The book was released on October 3rd 2025. -Ayxan Solongo, 25.01.26

When it was said that Yabumi is “an old man”, I expected him to be around 50, not 34. They only have an 11 years difference, too. Not that important anyways, but I kinda hoped to see a gay older (40+) man, as those are rare in BLs (especially as a main character).

Still, I was quite surprised. I went in with the expectation of yet another countryside BL, perhaps similar to “Umibe no Étranger (Seaside stranger)”, where it’s basically just porn without or with minimal plot. Yes, it does play in a countryside and it is BL, however, it has actual consent. And romance. It doesn’t start with sex between them, they also take a while until they kiss. Going on dates first, getting to know one another and communicating. Communicating that they’re both gay (yes, they actually said “gay” and “homosexual”, not just “swing that way” and “into men”), for example. Albeit closeted from the rest of the world. The sex scene too wasn’t the typical penetration type; more like mutual masturbation and fingering. Haven’t seen that before in a BL! At least not as their first time. And there was consent throughout the whole time!!

It had funny bits, too. And I could relate to him having no driver’s license cause of living in a big city! X’D

Reminded me a lot more of GL romance Mangas, which is a good thing. I’d love to see more of that slow-pace, consensual and dating-first romance in BLs!

In that regards, i find the book cover a little misleading. They totally look like gangsters, sort of, on the cover; perhaps also the reason why I expected what I expected. They’re neither gangsters nor any of that personality type; actually sweet guys and rather introverted, too. Although driving is part of the plot and they spend quite some time in the car, i feel like them in the library or so would’ve been a better location/background for the cover.

Side note: I always read the translation notes at the end, and learned something new here! Didn’t know that about business cards or handing things over with two hands in Japan.

~

Thank you to Kodansha on Netgalley for a digital review copy. The book was first published in 2022 with the English translation released on 16th December 2025. Written and illustrated by Mame Ohtako. -Ayxan Solongo, 24.01.26

“A curtain call for you”, volume 1, or “The day I remembered how to breathe” was quite something. 4.5 stars. Loud and performative like Tsubame, and poetic like Akutsu. And very wholesome!

“There’s no correct way to enjoy the world.”

I loved Tsubame from the first page on – especially her “normal is boring” attitude. And she has peak advice. Quite an awesome person to look up to; I can totally see why Akutsu is so awe-struck about her. But even though she’s idol-material and just seems like she’s got the perfect life, there’s more to her story she doesn’t want anyone to know … which was already hinted at the way she interpreted Akutsu’s cat story. (Surprised me a bit when it’s revealed later on what it may be (only showing snippets), ngl. But it does make sense, and when you read the first chapters again, you can totally see it.)

Akutsu took a bit to warm up to me, but thanks to Tsubame’s sweet patience, I got there soon! She’s a writing genius, too.

I can very much see myself in both of them. Shy and introverted to the point of having trouble talking and finding words, while at the same time doing whatever I want because life’s too short to go after people’s expectations of you.

Not sure whether that’s gonna be a romance or will stay (queer-)platonic, but either way, I ship them! The fist bump and head lean was especially adorable. u3u I just love how they support each other, so it doesn’t really matter how intimate they are physically, as they’ve already got quite the connection mentally! That’s pretty rare too, and I’d love if it could stay like that for a while, before they go further, IF it’s a romance.

Excited for volume 2!

If you liked the theatre storyline from “Bloom into you”, and the manga series “A tropical fish yearns for snow”, I can definitely recommend this! It’s still very different from these, but it did remind me of them from time to time. (In a good way!)

Ps. It’s interesting how my keyboard is auto-correcting Tsubame (her name) into “tsunami”. When Akutsu at first described her life as a murky torrent. 👀 Even my phone sees they’re meant to be for each other! Or, as Tsubame puts it, fate brought them together!

Also, the manga was a first time for both the illustrator and writer? No way! Felt so professional and experienced tho! Although some panels reminded me more of caricatures, while still being within manga/chibi comedy, but it’s exactly that charm that I loved!

PPS. That Peter Pan theatre adaptation was cool. Especially the humor with the taxes! XD Also got pretty dark/sad in there, would’ve liked to see more of the play. But was a good introduction to the new character, an actress. They just know how to do introductions in this.

Thank you to Kodansha on Netgalley for a digital review copy. The book was released on 25th Nov 2025. -Ayxan Solongo, 23.01.26