What did you eat yesterday?

Yoshinaga (Ooku; Antique Bakery) is known for manga about gender drama and foodie culture, themes combined in this lighthearted, slice-of-life series. Top-ranked lawyer Shiro is buttoned up at the office, while colleagues speculate about his private life and age-defying good looks. Actually but less publicly, Shiro shares life, love, and his superb cooking skills with Kenji, a carefree hairdresser. Each episode introduces a situation Kenji gets jealous of Shiro's clients, or Shiro helps a domestic abuse victim intercut with Shiro's plans for making dinner. As the issue is resolved, a delicious meal is prepared, and the middle-aged couple rebonds happily. Yoshinaga draws characters with simple, clean realism, exaggerating faces amusingly for emotional moments. Yet the images of food are crafted in fine-line detail, making the ingredients and textures amazingly appetizing. Between episodes, the author provides brief recipes and cooking tips. However, cultural details lack explanatory notes. VERDICT While the recipes would be most useful to aficionados of Japanese cuisine, the story might appeal to anyone who enjoys food writing. Gay concerns surface but not much about sexuality. Up to seven volumes in Japan, the series has garnered award nominations. M.C. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.