An amazing translated collection of kisaeng poems over 500 years old from the Joseon dynasty. The introduction gives a good overview over the identity of the kisaeng and why their poetry is relevant today.

Many of the poems cover themes like love and longing, identity and feeling of entrapment. Some even bitter and wishing for a better life. The simplicity of the sijo structure and the word choices makes their poems even more beautiful.

I wish the collection wasn't that small and that there are many more surviving examples. Thankfully my copy has references and I'll gather them all together on my book list im interesting in reading.

I'm glad I read this after my high school "no princesses, no love story" phase (a response to my Disney princess phase as a kid), so I can truly enjoy the whimsical and reconnect with the inner child.

This is something I would've enjoyed back in my princess phase around 5 years old and it's so fascinating to read how the Sailor Guardians posit themselves as strong girls who support and stand up for each other. I think I definitely might have change my reading or watching preferences if I was introduced to Sailor Moon so early in my life (the series sadly did not air on the cable channels we subscribed to and finding manga in the 2000s in my hometown and surrounding cities are impossible).

The art is gorgeous, especially with the fashion that the characters are wearing. Also the details in each panel take me a minute to appreciate because there are so many.

I love how the angst is escalated in this second novel, now with the main villain introduced and we get to the true motive behind the assembling of the Sailor Guardians. It's surprisingly dark at time with graphic depictions of corpses, with ino gives the Sailor Guardians more credibility and portrays the villains as a proper threat. I know the girls are supposed to be 14 years old at least, but the story does not shy away to take their transformations and duties as Sailor Guardians seriously.

If anyone hasn't read a manga at all and is interested to delve into it, this is the perfect start. We get introduced to the classic tropes of magical girls, the artstyle, and a healthy dose of queer depictions (both sapphic AND gay) sprinkled throughout. It definitely gives gender euphoria for female-associated folks (I need to reiterate how I adore the healthy female friendships or at least cordial relationships between women/girls).