Chino wants to fall in love. Of course she’d also like a normal family with a father who wasn’t always running off to explore the wild corners of the world, but she’d be more than happy with a boyfriend. So far, though, she’s had no luck getting one. But when her father returns from his latest excursion, he brings back Hyo, a boy raised in the wild jungles of a lost island. Hyo’s wild manners are embarrassing, but Chino can’t help but notice how cute he is. Is Hyo boyfriend material or will Chino be loveless once more?
Ando, creator of the manga version of Del Rey’s popular Kitchen Princess series (which is based a scenario written by Miyuki Kobayashi), returns with an older series, bringing tween and teenage girls a story as fluffy and as sweet as cotton candy. She doesn’t waste a lot of time worrying about deep thoughts or the troubles of the world. Instead she focuses on the innocent desire for a boyfriend. Her characters are almost more in love with love than with each other, but that is common for this type of first romance and it is touching to see it portrayed in manga form. A secondary theme about parental acceptance will also be relevant to the intended audience and will make them identify with the characters even more.
There aren’t too many characters, which is good for a quick, easy read like this one….
This review was originally posted at Good Comics for Kids. Please visit the original post to see the rest of the review.
Wild @ Heart
Natsumi Ando
ISBN 978-0-345-51577-3
Del Rey Manga/Kodansha, October 2010
