Manga Maniac Cafe For the Geek in all of us

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Can a regular girl become a superstar celebrity? Kanon is an ordinary fourth grader who loves to sing more than anything else. When a magical fairy princess named Alto meets Kanon and decides to help start her singing career, their journey to fame takes off! Friendship and magic combine in this cute musical story!

Fairy Idol Kanon is a cheerful little series about three elementary school girls who want to become idols in order to save the fairy kingdom.  When the girls sing together, their harmonies send energy to the fairy world and make whoever hears them sing feel happy.   When Alto, a princess from the fairy kingdom who has been gravely injured, hears them sing, their voices heal her wounds.  She begs them to help her discover why magic in the kingdom is so weak, and to help restore the waning energy that is plaguing her world.  Getting the girls to work together turns out to be a major stumbling point, but once they accept the challenge, nothing is going to stop them from attaining their goal of stardom! 

This was another find from the library.  It’s a breezy read, with cute, expressive art and a perky cast of characters.  Kanon loves to sing, and when she does, people are overcome with happiness.  When she wins the solo in the class musical, classmate Marika is seething with jealousy.  Marika has been taking voice lessons, and she thinks that she is just too cool for words.  Getting her to cooperate and agree to be part of the singing group takes a lot of diplomacy, because she just knows that she is good enough to be a solo artist.  Kodama rounds out the group; she’s smart, very kind, and has a very soft and gentle voice. 

This was fun book.  The girls have very distinct personalities, and at the beginning of the book, they definitely have to learn how to put their egos aside and learn to work together.  Once they make up their minds to help Alto, nothing will stop them, though.  Well, nothing but Kanon’s overprotective mother!  The girls have to convince Kanon’s mom that the struggle to attain fame and fortune really won’t effect her grades all that much.  Yeah, her mom is so not buying that.  In addition, they have to try to outsmart a petty starlet and find out what is sucking all of the energy out of the fairy kingdom.  The story moves along at a rapid clip, and the tone is light and cheerful.  The art is clean and clearly communicates the girls emotions, tying together a pleasant blend of comedy, magic, and drama as Kanon, Marika, and Kodama start their climb up the ladder of fame.

For a quick read that will leave you smiling, give Fairy Idol Kanon a go.  Music and magical girls make for a winning combination.

Grade:  B

This book was rented from my local library.  Support your library!