Isabella Bird: discovering nineteenth-century Japan!

The new Kizuna collection from Ki-oon editions is growing with the release of a new title! After Queen of Egypt and Hanada the Garnement, here comes Isabella Bird – woman explorer. A title that makes us travel and that does not promise to be easy for Isabella! The first one was released in October, so we give you our opinion on it!

Isabella Bird – female explorer

Original title : ふしぎの国のバード – Fushigi no Kuni no Bird

Alternative title : Isabelle Bird – Woman Explorer

Author : SASSA Taiga

French publisher : Ki-oon

Original publisher : Enterbrain in Japan

Release date : 12/10/2017

Number of volumes : 3 volumes in Japan, 1 volume in France

Status : Current series

Price : 7,90 €

Synopsis

At the end of the^nineteenth century, Japan opened up to the world and westernized at a forced march. But the country remains a real mystery to most Europeans, making it a destination of choice for the famous English explorer Isabella Bird! Despite her young age, she is already known for her writings on the wildest lands. Isabella never chooses the easiest paths and, once again, she surprises those around her with her incongruous objective: Ezo, the territory of the Ainu, a land still almost unexplored on the borders of the archipelago… The journey promises to be long and difficult, but nothing stops the bubbly young woman!
 
Accompanied by her interpreter-guide, the stoic Mr. Ito, the young woman travels through a country in turmoil. In her daily letters to her sister, she narrates with sincerity and great detail the series of culture shocks she experiences. She wants to see everything, try everything, even if it means enduring heat, fatigue, illness and the sarcasm of her peers!

Source: Ki-oon

The third title in Ki-oon's Kizuna collection , Isabella Bird is like Queen of Egypt, a title based on a female historical figure. A true explorer of the nineteenth century, Isabella Lucy Bird is a daughter of a British pastor. Not feeling at home in the society of her country of origin, she will go on an adventure and describe her travels in books that will be known throughout the world. She knew America, Morocco, Australia, before landing in Japan. This manga begins its plot when the young woman arrives in Yokohama in the year 1878. Freshly opened to foreigners since the end of the Edo period, Japan represents a real challenge for the explorer who intends to cross the Japanese lands up and down to reach the Ainu peoples. 

Isabelle Bird aims to be an inter-generational title. This title is an ode to the discovery of nineteenth-century Japan very little represented in Japanese works. Where titles usually focus on the Edo period or the current era, here we are presented with a period of transition. The country is beginning to open up to the international, which is reflected in its borders, however, foreigners can not move wherever they want. Our heroine will learn it the hard way when she tries to make her passport. In addition to this, Isabella will have to find an interpreter worthy of the name in order to communicate with the peoples present. In short, his journey does not promise to be easy.

In this first volume, the development of the characters is done in a rather unusual way. Two characters are really at the center of the story: Isabella Bird and her interpreter. However, they are not described, but used as a reflection of the Japanese culture on display. Our explorer discovers this culture quite far from her habits, while her interpreter lives scenes of everyday life. We learn a lot about the way of life of the time, the cultures and traditions and also the vision of foreigners from the point of view of the Japanese people. 

SASSA Taiga's drawings are very good. We feel a great work of investigation to transcribe the culture of the time, both on the side of infrastructure, tools, or food. The characters are also drawn in such a way as to make their expressions transparent to the eyes of the readers.

Very captivating and interesting, this first volume of Isabella Bird – Woman Explorer is a real success. It is a real dive into Japan at the end of the nineteenth century that begins brilliantly. Between tourist and cultural discovery, SASSA Taiga offers us a title that we do not want to win. And yet, it will take patience for the reader to wait for the release of the second volume which will appear in December 2017.