Slam Dunk (スラムダンク）
Summary
Taken from MAL:
Hanamichi Sakuragi, infamous for his temper, massive height, and fire-red hair, enrolls in Shohoku High, hoping to finally get a girlfriend and break his record of being rejected 50 consecutive times in middle school. His notoriety precedes him, however, leading to him being avoided by most students. Soon, after certain events, Hanamichi is left with two unwavering thoughts: “I hate basketball,” and “I desperately need a girlfriend.”
One day, a girl named Haruko Akagi approaches him without any knowledge of his troublemaking ways and asks him if he likes basketball. Hanamichi immediately falls head over heels in love with her, blurting out a fervent affirmative. She then leads him to the gymnasium, where she asks him if he can do a slam dunk. In an attempt to impress Haruko, he makes the leap, but overshoots, instead slamming his head straight into the blackboard. When Haruko informs the basketball team’s captain of Hanamichi’s near-inhuman physical capabilities, he slowly finds himself drawn into the camaraderie and competition of the sport he had previously held resentment for.
Personal Opinion
The first few volumes are limited furigana wise, but is very readable for new learners. The dialogue is fun and the vocab is easy enough. You can enjoy it in it’s entirety without being a Japanese expert and the pacing feels good. Its level 23 on Natively but I think its a good fit for ABBC because if you do keep with the series they add furigana and it gets easier to read with time. Its also one of the greatest manga of all time by one of the best mangaka of all time… So a great motivator to keep reading and find high quality content with a low bar for entry.
Pros
- Limited furigana but easy to read kanji.
- Easy grammar and words.
- Good pacing and encouraging if you feel you’re a slow reader.
- Excellent characters that feel like real people.
Cons
- Limited furigana in the first couple volumes.
- Some slang can be hard to understand but good to know.
- Text heavy in some areas in the beginning.
Difficulty Poll
How much effort would you need to read this book?
- No effort at all
- Minimal effort
- Moderate effort
- Substantial effort
- So much effort my head might explode
- I don’t know
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