Weekly reads round-up 26th June

Unfortunately this week’s read round-up is more of a ‘planning to read round-up’. I just have not had the time to sit and read at all. That’s for two reasons: the first being losing my days off to work, and the second being that my usual reading times – my morning commute and my evenings – have both been disrupted.

I usually have a fifteen minute tram ride twice a day, which is just enough time to dip into a fic or a manga. But rail works mean the trams aren’t running to my stop, so I’m forced to walk halfway and settle for a seven-minute tram ride, which just doesn’t feel the same. (My other option is a bus, but the buses are way too crowded in the mornings for my liking.)

As for my evenings? I’ve been writing. As well as picking up an old ‘Yuri On Ice’ WIP I’ve been poking at for the past year (!!!), I dipped my toe into ‘Sarazanmai’ fic, and I think I’m pleased with the results.

But you came here for the reading, not the moaning or the shameless self-promotion, right?

This week I finally got my hands on a copy of ‘Whenever Our Eyes Meet’, an anthology of yuri stories focused on women in the workplace. So far I’ve only skimmed through about three of the (generally very short) stories, but I very much like what I’ve read so far.

I want to say it’s everything I’ve been asking for in terms of wlw stories – actual adult women, generally secure in their orientation, rather than schoolgirl-lesbian-panic. As with most manga, the majority of the women are still drawn to look young, but so far I’m pleased that none of the characters seem overly sexualised and I haven’t encountered any dub-con scenes or anything troubling. There’s even a short-but-sweet story with a character who looks to be over 40 – she’s not the central character, but she is the love-interest.

Hopefully I’ll be able to give a better review of the book by this time next week. I literally have a stack of manga waiting to be read, just as soon as I have some spare time – I have a couple of new-to-me BL stories, and some old BL I’ve been picking up from charity shops and ebay with the intention of writing a more in-depth exploration of how the genre is changing lately. I want to say that’s my plan for next week, but don’t hold me to it (next week is staff meetings and reviews and I know for certain I don’t have a day off).

How do adults ever find time for fun stuff? I don’t even have kids or pets.

Maybe I watch too much anime. Should I cut down on viewing time to read more?

Nah. Don’t be silly.