Name - Uncanny: The Origins of Fear
Written by - Junji Ito
Translated by - Jocelyne Allen
Published by - Viz Media LLC
First things first, I got this book from Edelweiss as an ARC, so thank you Edelweiss and Viz Media LLC for this opportunity.
It really is a joy to get under the skin of a creative mind, getting to learn how that brain of their works, seeing what influenced to create their masterpieces, and most of learning about their life and knowing that they are as normal an individual as us in many aspects. 'Uncanny: The Origins of Fear' is such a deep dive into the mind of one of the greatest horror manga artists ever, and it is very enjoyable.
The book has a gorgeous layout with many drawings and layouts from the mangaka, as well as some interesting bits of his life, from his early childhood up to his struggles to make a living, then finally turning into a full-time creator of mangas. It is not an easy path being one of the best, especially when you also have to learn enough to make it all matter, and it is also amazing to see how Junji Ito's mind works in deciphering meaning and ideas out of his everyday experiences.
The author divided the whole thing into five carefully thought out chapters. The first two work like an autobiography, with details from his childhood, his initial work as a dental technician, all the whole trying to write and draw mangas, to finally his breakout into the manga world slowly through his sheer determination and creativity. The most interesting part about these first two chapters is the fact how Ito writes about his various influences and how these moulded him; I really loved this because I am not very learned in Japanese manga history. I gained lots of recommendations from this section to enrich my TBR pile.
Sadly for those who hadn't read much work of Junji Ito, the last three chapters delve into spoiler filled territory, as Ito delves deep into his creation process through numerous examples of his works. These three deal with his exploration of how he gets his ideas, to his points of view and inspiration about some iconic characters he created, ending the last chapter by going into a detailed glimpse into his drawing process with some delightful arts on display.
As a non-fiction book, this was quite enjoyable. This should cater especially to the taste of readers who are already his fans. But that doesn't mean there isn't enough to enjoy for casual readers of him or the people just starting to get into his work. The drawings throughout the book are honestly enough for any enthusiast of manga to collect this one.
A resounding 4.5 out of 5 stars from me.
