I wanna be your girl

This manga about the complexities of gender, allyship, and adolescent romance follows high-schooler Hime as she fumbles through her childhood friend Akira's social transition to being out as a girl in their first year of high school. When Akira is treated terribly on their first day, Hime has an idea: she'll wear a boy's uniform. But rather than the show of solidarity she thinks it will be, the response from the girls' classmates is far from ideal, and Akira herself reacts negatively. Fumbling, awkward, and contemplative, this manga is honest about how hard it can be to get allyship right, especially when attraction is tangled with the good intentions of friendship. Hime's struggle isn't really with accepting that Akira is a girl but rather with accepting that she may have to share and let go of their intense bond so that Akira can be her full self. Meanwhile, Hime needs to figure out who exactly she is. Perfect for readers who connected with Boys Run the Riot and My Love Mix-Up!

Gr 7 Up--The bond of friendship between Hime and Akira has been strong for many years. Akira identifies as a girl. At first she kept it secret so that only Hime knew, but just as high school was starting, she transitioned to living openly as a girl. Hime loves and also wants to look after Akira, and when Akira dresses like a girl in school, Hime decides to dress like a boy in order to support her friend. But Hime's feelings are very complicated, and she will need to unravel her own emotions and motivations to understand why she really acts the way she does. As Hime and Akira meet new potential friends and love interests, Hime has to determine if she wants to be Akira's friend, protector, ally, or girlfriend. This is a compelling read for anyone interested in stories about challenging expectations of gender roles, one-sided love and devotion, and complicated friendships. This is a serious, emotional manga, but it is also filled with jokes and visual humor about traditional school uniforms for boys and girls, and about Hime's comical overreactions to just about everything. VERDICT This is for manga fans who love stories about LGBTQIA+ characters, the ups and downs of friendship, and secret crushes.--Andrea Lipinski

Best friends navigate life, love, and gender. Japanese teenagers Hime and Akira have been close for years. Until now, male-assigned Akira has "only openly been a girl" with Hime, but as they start high school, Akira has decided to live as her true self. As depicted in the artwork, Akira still has some traditionally masculine-presenting physical traits, and her classmates are quick to mock someone they perceive as a boy in a girls' school uniform. Hime has her hands full defending Akira (maybe, she realizes, more than she needs to) while struggling with her own identity. What does being in love with Akira mean for her? Is Hime's decision to wear a boys' uniform just a statement of solidarity, or something more? What is the right way to change people's minds? Takase explores gender identity, presentation, and acceptance in this gentle manga that feels comfortably grounded despite being fueled by big ideas and big feelings. The shōjo manga--style art is cute and expressive. The translation feels slightly unpolished, however, relying heavily on footnotes rather than conveying the original more loosely. At times, understanding the original Japanese vocabulary is critical, but elsewhere Procter uses the original Japanese, defined in a footnote (e.g., "a derogatory slang term for an effeminate male") when simply using an equivalent English term would have led to a smoother reading experience. But overall this series opener is an earnest and enjoyable beginning to Hime and Akira's story. Sweet and engaging.(Manga. 12-16) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.