Revenge of My Youth Vol.1

If you could do it all again, would you? For Niihama, the answer is a simple yes, as his present is a complete mess. Single, overworked, ill, having lost his mother and full of regret, when he collapses at work from a heart attack, his thoughts turn to high school and the girl who he never had the courage to approach, Haruka Shijoin. 

And just like that, he's 16 again.

Armed with full knowledge of how his future unfolds, he determines to fight his fate and break the chains of social awkwardness that doomed in the first run, and it's actually a lot of fun. Having endured years of abuse at work, the school bullies and social norms appear incredibly tame, and it's enjoyable to see Niihama draw on his own misery to give him strength.

It's not just the drama either - how many of us would like to visit our old childhood bedrooms again and experience our youth? The distant sensory familiarity of the smells, locations and furniture that were your entire world long since abandoned for adult life? The creative team behind the manga really sell the idea of mixed emotions, though I must say my absolute favourite was seeing Niihama's reaction to seeing his mother again after she died in his own timeline. 

Most of the character work in the book is between the leads, and while it's all innocent enough, there a few moments where being an adult in a child's body comes across as a bit creepy, no matter how the writers try to dress it up. I wouldn't be comfortable with a 30 year old hitting on my 16 year old daughter, though since we can see his interventions come from a good place, it's a forgivable necessity of the story that this 30-year-old virgin is hanging out with a school girl.

The first volume takes its time establishing the characters and Niihama's constant narration provides pacing and perspective that keep the book interesting - his changing relationships with those around him, especially his sister and Shijoin, ensure that the mundanity of high school life always feel like they're fresh becuase of the lends under which they're being viewed. We know that Shijoin has a dark future ahead of her, so it's easy to get behind Niihama's quest to save the high school girl and save his world. 

The book is a gentle read with a solid translation - everything flows naturally enough and keeps the focus where it's needed. As an adult reader, the book it hits a certain agreeable nostalgia for my own youth, making me think about the mistakes I'd like to rectify and even some of the people I'd want to rescue along the way having lost some friends way too early.

If, like me, you're an old romantic who occasionally daydreams about a turbulent youth, then I think you'll get a lot out of this book. One Peace Books has a habit of picking winners, and I think this might just be another one.