Discussion Manga Club - Collective Reading- #06 - Reading/sharing Phase

[Copy Panda]

omo

 

[Erinyes]

Reading Phase

​

Thanks guys End of the voting phase !
the winner is Bibliomania with 6 votes. A very interesting pick !
Now we will be entering the reading/sharing phase. So now you have till March 16th to read at your own pace and share thoughts. Spoiler tags are required until the end of the phase. Normally, when joining, you commit into reading at least 1 volume, this manga is only one volume.

- Bibliomania by Orval Link

By Orval Macchiro (Drama, Fantasy,Supernatural)

Alice had woken up in Room 431 of a mysterious manor.
"You must not leave this room," warned the Serpent, but she paid it no heed and her body began to rot…
Will she be able to escape the cursed manor?
Was nominated for the 2019 Japan Media Arts Festival Awards - Manga Category.​

Note that Bibliomana has no Mal section, I will write one Asap.There's though an anime seemingly.

Countdown​

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 4, 2025, Original Post Date: Mar 2, 2025 ---

I wrote an entry for it on Mal this weekend but it was denied because its a webmanga .

 

[Faust]

I wrote an entry for it on Mal this weekend but it was denied because its a webmanga .

Dafuq's wrong with you MAL.

It has a page on AniList

 

[Erinyes]

I wrote the page but they denied the entry : "

"Manga Submission Denied
Your submission for the manga: Bibliomania has been denied by a moderator. Reason: Your submission was denied because it is an ineligible web comic. Please read the Manga Database Guidelines. "and i was published in a mag too but oh well

BUUUUUUT from what i get it was serialized in both magazines
Manga Hack
Kai-You
Manga hack is where Ousama ranking is published I believe Kai you is a platform or something like this ?

 

[Marmalade]

Oh I forgot to vote! But Bibliomania was my top pick anyway haha~ Will start reading asap

 

[HereNThere]

That was an enjoyable read! Definitely up my alley. I'll write down my further thoughts later.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2025, Original Post Date: Mar 7, 2025 ---

Alright, my thoughts. I don't even know where to really begin.

Spoiler

Bibliomania. An apt name. To be quite honest, it felt like I should've been wearing a dunce cap after reading through this because everything the series is about is in the title itself. And I didn't put it together until, maybe, halfway through my read. Which has me feeling some kind of way because everything is kinda spelled out in the first couple of chapters. I immediately did a reread after I finished initially and was amazed at how well things were set up and paid off in hindsight.

The art? Magnificent. I love when a graphic novel or comic plays with composition and this comes out of the gate with it. Alice and Serpent's initial dialogue is so dynamic and fun. Admittedly, the first chapter didn't truly grab me, but I couldn't deny that the art was on point. I also like the general roughness of the art style.

But the storytelling is the highlight of this read. A tight 12 chapters and not one page is wasted. From the vignettes of the manor's occupents, to the history of Alice, this is a tale of intrigue that continues to ramp up to a crazy finale that I truly enjoyed. I like monsters and I love me some existential/eldritch horror, so Alice's true form was, for lack of a better term, epic. Reminds me of the Awakened Beings in Claymore. What I love most, however, is the build up/hints that were thrown to us regarding her true nature.

My favorite chapter is probably the penultimate one, chapter 11. The page of Alice's silhouette towering over the burning city and the following up page of the airships flying through the sky to deliver the Biblioclastic Rounds were some amazing spreads.

All in all, I had a good time with this and I think I'll be coming back to this for quite some time for a quick reread.

 

[Demonspeed]

Read 3 chapters. The rooms are like someone's paradise, but the manor will be complete once they get 666 rooms...

I find Alice's behavior rather strange for a child. She doesn't seem very troubled by what she is experiencing. There wasn't much to learn about her from her room too. She just ate a little a left. You would expect someone to consider staying for some time before leaving but she didn't. Maybe it's because it's a 12 chapters story?

 

[Erinyes]

The art is so impressive , that panel

Spoiler

--- Double Post Merged, Tuesday at 8:02 PM, Original Post Date: Tuesday at 8:02 PM ---

I will write something about it Asap.

 

[Demonspeed]

Completed it.

Spoiler

Considering her behavior, I wasn't really that surprised by the reveal about Alice. The moment when she asked the clones who was the original stood out. I thought "She is bad news".

I learned that bibliomania was a real word after completing the story .

In the end, Alice wasn't really different from the people of the book. She ate everything. So, was the author trying to say that humans are slaves to their greed?

I agree that the page with her true form was the best.

 

[Copy Panda]

Since I'm not super productive rn w work I might as well post something here

Spoiler

First, obligatory praise for the wonderful art style. Very immersive.

The message of the story is, I believe, some kind of take on how overindulgence and its variations (greed, addiction, etc.) can and will first stagnate and then erode humans and/or humanity. I'm not quite sure what the point was of "431", I did a (very) brief search but didn't find any consistent accounts on the deeper meaning of the number. The initial host entity wasn't quite as fleshed out or interesting as I'd have hoped, though I did like the particular moment he emerged from the book only to encounter an already emptied-out world. I think given the "plot twist" about Alice in the end, it'd have been more interesting if her very first wish (in this case, food) somewhat reflected that end state but it is what it is.

Overall, nice art, somewhat rushed story (imo), but clean and good read. I liked it

 

[HereNThere]

In the end, Alice wasn't really different from the people of the book. She ate everything. So, was the author trying to say that humans are slaves to their greed?

Less greed, more desire I'd say. I don't think that aspect is supposed to be the negative as everyone has a desire or want. The "issue" was that those within Serpent's book were presented as choosing to live within a lie rather than accept the reality of their actual lives (nevermind the fate that awaited them in said reality in the form of Alice, but that's besides the point).

Alice is no different than those people in that she has a desire, but her desire is firmly rooted in wanting to know more about reality or the "truth". She in direct opposition to Serpent and those within the book on that basis alone. Alice repeatedly mentioned she hates lies and the fact those within the book weren't truly living, so I believe that is where the book's theme is leaning. I'd say Chapter 4 gives us the most direct "thesis" regarding this.

Spoiler

I'm not quite sure what the point was of "431", I did a (very) brief search but didn't find any consistent accounts on the deeper meaning of the number.

I think that was just the number Alice had. It in itself isn't important, just one among the 666, which is the more thematic number.

 

[Copy Panda]

wasted opportunity given how little rooms we see and how short the series is overall

 

[Juviii]

Bibliomania

The art is good but

Spoiler

it is short and the finale is anticlimatic. It makes you think "so that's all? What is the point?" It does not explain many things either, it would be good to expand on the brother and provide some kind of closure. Even the last sentence is unfinished. In the end she did not manage to experience the real world with people in it, she still just has the knowledge ot it. All of it but still no real world experience.

 

[HereNThere]

In the end she did not manage to experience the real world with people in it, she still just has the knowledge ot it. All of it but still no real world experience.

I think that's the irony of it. She never actually expressed any interest in making experiences for herself. Even though she's no longer bedridden, she still views things through the lenses of books and words. She was after freedom and knowledge and she got them to a T. She's free to see the world and she is the ultimate resource book.

 

[Farfalla]

Ughhh I'm behind cause I'm missing alerts in here, but I'll do some reading during the remaining 2 days and come back here to comment!