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Aventura #1
Aventura, Volume 1
NEVER STOP BELIEVING
Since ancient days, the Gaius School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has trained the fiercest swordsmen and the most powerful wizards. Now one boy could become the greatest of them all. If he studies hard. If he is true to his friends. If he believes. And if he survives. . . .
Since ancient days, the Gaius School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has trained the fiercest swordsmen and the most powerful wizards. Now one boy could become the greatest of them all. If he studies hard. If he is true to his friends. If he believes. And if he survives. . . .
192 pages, Paperback
First published April 21, 2006
37 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 28, 2011
I got this one 'cause the art on the cover looked absolutely gorgeous. I was right, it is gorgeous. Sadly, the art is so pretty, it almost detracts from the story, since there are times I'm not sure which character is which.
The storyline is such: Lewin Randit is a young boy attending Gaius School, which is a school for magic users (and swordfighters with magic abilities). He is something of a loner; has no real friends in his class, though his teachers seem to like him. He's known for having a rusty sword that is the point of ridicule amongst his classmates (from what I'm gleaning in the commentary of the characters, the swords are cleaned by magic because they are magical items but I'm supposing here). By sheer mistake, Lewin runs into a pair of kids who are in the wizarding part of the school (and the wizards-in-training and the swordsmen-in-training do not train together or even see one another, though it isn't really explained why). Their names are Chris Gottenburg and Soela Evenport. Soela is our token girl and she acts it; she's very timid and soft spoken. She has a little winged egg named "Wotts" that travels around with her. Chris is a high elf, and his ears are almost as mobile as a puppy's. These trio start hanging out together when Lewin helps them solve a problem for one of their classes.
As they cannot meet anywhere else, they meet in hidden places - the library; an enchanter's ready room. The kids, in defiance of the school rules, decide to take Lewin to a wizard's first year class, and that's when things really start happening. Two of the professors find someone has destroyed the enchanter's ready room and there are animated skeletons loose in the school. The skeletons go after the closest living beings - which happens to be the class that Lewin, Chris and Soela are in. Chris and Lewin manage to keep the skeletons from hurting any of their classmates or the teacher by bundling them out the window, but things go downhill from there.
We're left in a cliffhanger, with our heroes and one of Lewin's swordfighting rivals at the bottom of a ravine and the skeletons coming to get them.
The story moves a little slowly and, as I said, the art, while pretty, actually detracts from the story for me. There's so much swirling hair and clothing, it's hard to figure out who's who and what's what. I think this would really be lovely to read in a larger format than what is available for manga (I imagine it would be gorgeous in it's original size) but as it is, I found it difficult to read. The sound effects were superimposed on the page, which I didn't have a problem with, and some of the names of the wizardly creatures were explained in the back of the book.
I'll probably continue reading, just to see what happens next.
The storyline is such: Lewin Randit is a young boy attending Gaius School, which is a school for magic users (and swordfighters with magic abilities). He is something of a loner; has no real friends in his class, though his teachers seem to like him. He's known for having a rusty sword that is the point of ridicule amongst his classmates (from what I'm gleaning in the commentary of the characters, the swords are cleaned by magic because they are magical items but I'm supposing here). By sheer mistake, Lewin runs into a pair of kids who are in the wizarding part of the school (and the wizards-in-training and the swordsmen-in-training do not train together or even see one another, though it isn't really explained why). Their names are Chris Gottenburg and Soela Evenport. Soela is our token girl and she acts it; she's very timid and soft spoken. She has a little winged egg named "Wotts" that travels around with her. Chris is a high elf, and his ears are almost as mobile as a puppy's. These trio start hanging out together when Lewin helps them solve a problem for one of their classes.
As they cannot meet anywhere else, they meet in hidden places - the library; an enchanter's ready room. The kids, in defiance of the school rules, decide to take Lewin to a wizard's first year class, and that's when things really start happening. Two of the professors find someone has destroyed the enchanter's ready room and there are animated skeletons loose in the school. The skeletons go after the closest living beings - which happens to be the class that Lewin, Chris and Soela are in. Chris and Lewin manage to keep the skeletons from hurting any of their classmates or the teacher by bundling them out the window, but things go downhill from there.
We're left in a cliffhanger, with our heroes and one of Lewin's swordfighting rivals at the bottom of a ravine and the skeletons coming to get them.
The story moves a little slowly and, as I said, the art, while pretty, actually detracts from the story for me. There's so much swirling hair and clothing, it's hard to figure out who's who and what's what. I think this would really be lovely to read in a larger format than what is available for manga (I imagine it would be gorgeous in it's original size) but as it is, I found it difficult to read. The sound effects were superimposed on the page, which I didn't have a problem with, and some of the names of the wizardly creatures were explained in the back of the book.
I'll probably continue reading, just to see what happens next.
November 9, 2014
The graphics are very beautiful! I'm surprised this doesn't have many fans. Lewin has a great personality, and so does all the others! I recommend you read this!
November 19, 2015
Aventura: Volume 1 is a fantasy manga book about the training of wizards and warriors. Personally, fantasy is my favorite genre, so I was quite excited to read this manga book. I found that I really liked all three of the main characters and could not wait to learn more about Lewin. Obviously, he can do magic, but what type of magic is it? And what is his old, rusty sword all about? Is it a famous sword from history, or is it just a piece of junk that needs to be cleaned?
The story is well written and a lot of fun. As for the artwork by Shin Midorikawa, it is extremely detailed . . . almost too detailed. The action scenes are a little hard to follow and understand because everything is inked so lightly. Also, there are little white spots on everything; in everyone's hair, in their clothes, on the background. etc. That is a little weird and I wonder why Shin Midorikawa did that. I would have been happier with some thicker inking to help things stand out a little. Don't get me wrong, the art is beautiful, there are just a few things I would have changed to make it a little easier on the reader.
The translation and adaptation is very good and the story flows in English well. The storyline has a lot of promise and I had a blast reading this manga book.
Overall, Aventura: Volume 1 is a great start to a series and I hope things go just as well in Aventura: Volume 2. But to tell the truth, I am not worried at all. I bet the next book will be awesome. I can't wait to read it.
I rated this book an 8½ out of 10.
The story is well written and a lot of fun. As for the artwork by Shin Midorikawa, it is extremely detailed . . . almost too detailed. The action scenes are a little hard to follow and understand because everything is inked so lightly. Also, there are little white spots on everything; in everyone's hair, in their clothes, on the background. etc. That is a little weird and I wonder why Shin Midorikawa did that. I would have been happier with some thicker inking to help things stand out a little. Don't get me wrong, the art is beautiful, there are just a few things I would have changed to make it a little easier on the reader.
The translation and adaptation is very good and the story flows in English well. The storyline has a lot of promise and I had a blast reading this manga book.
Overall, Aventura: Volume 1 is a great start to a series and I hope things go just as well in Aventura: Volume 2. But to tell the truth, I am not worried at all. I bet the next book will be awesome. I can't wait to read it.
I rated this book an 8½ out of 10.
November 26, 2022
This was actually pretty good, though I don’t know how likely I am to continue. But I can’t pin that on the story itself, since with publishing issues and such, it looks like I may never get to read the ending. This is one of many Del Rey manga (though Bandai publishing had similar issues) which fell into a stream of purgatory, never to see past a certain number of volumes, despite it being finished in Japan.
Also, an interesting note. This story seems to associate the color green with wind, as does the popular online game Genshin Impact. Is there some correlation between wind and green much like water and blue and red and pyro which I’ve missed my whole life? Interesting.
Okay, on to the story itself. The art is really beautiful, and the sincere note in the back of the book from the mangaka tenderizes my heart. This story is a heartfelt one, and I respect it greatly. I feel that there is childhood wonder seeping from it, and that it takes heavy inspiration from Harry Potter but also simple RPG elements as well. It makes me wonder if the author might’ve merely blended many of their fondest childhood influences alongside their story ideas to make something they felt was substantial. (Harry Potter is extremely popular in Japan and considering the elements the author uses, especially in the library and school atmosphere and just the dynamics and aesthetics the teachers and students, there’s no doubt about the heavy influence it had on the author’s hand.)
Overall, a very pleasant story so far with artful storytelling and truly beautiful old school illustrations and I would genuinely like to see more. I only wish it had been finished in English.
Also, an interesting note. This story seems to associate the color green with wind, as does the popular online game Genshin Impact. Is there some correlation between wind and green much like water and blue and red and pyro which I’ve missed my whole life? Interesting.
Okay, on to the story itself. The art is really beautiful, and the sincere note in the back of the book from the mangaka tenderizes my heart. This story is a heartfelt one, and I respect it greatly. I feel that there is childhood wonder seeping from it, and that it takes heavy inspiration from Harry Potter but also simple RPG elements as well. It makes me wonder if the author might’ve merely blended many of their fondest childhood influences alongside their story ideas to make something they felt was substantial. (Harry Potter is extremely popular in Japan and considering the elements the author uses, especially in the library and school atmosphere and just the dynamics and aesthetics the teachers and students, there’s no doubt about the heavy influence it had on the author’s hand.)
Overall, a very pleasant story so far with artful storytelling and truly beautiful old school illustrations and I would genuinely like to see more. I only wish it had been finished in English.
October 27, 2022
This is so stinkin adorable.
I have this obsession with collecting obscure manga, and when I found all 3 of these hidden away at my local recycled bookstore, the little creature in me came out and made me buy them. But it's so cute!! It's so worth it. The art goes ridiculously hard (the skeleton fight oml) and the characters are just so silly. I love the imagination in this series, which is what bumped an otherwise simplistic tale up a notch for me.
I also really dig the magical worldbuilding. It's more of a subtle strength, but the way they reason that they need both magic and nature is endlessly fascinating. I just want to eat all of these whole and store them in my little obscure manga tree hollow.
I have this obsession with collecting obscure manga, and when I found all 3 of these hidden away at my local recycled bookstore, the little creature in me came out and made me buy them. But it's so cute!! It's so worth it. The art goes ridiculously hard (the skeleton fight oml) and the characters are just so silly. I love the imagination in this series, which is what bumped an otherwise simplistic tale up a notch for me.
I also really dig the magical worldbuilding. It's more of a subtle strength, but the way they reason that they need both magic and nature is endlessly fascinating. I just want to eat all of these whole and store them in my little obscure manga tree hollow.
April 23, 2025
I read this whole volume in one sitting and that's become rare for me. I was drawn in by the whimsical artwork and setting. Unfortunately as this was published in English by Del Rey, I will be importing the rest of this manga and reading it in Japanese as best I can.
June 26, 2016
I'd say that this is a 3.5 instead of a 3 star rating.
I enjoy the story, it's a little all over the place but the ideas behind it are rather fun and interesting to read about. I think the difficulty that I'm having reading this is that it's online and the scans for each page are not well done, at all. It looks as though those who uploaded them pressed each page of the book in a scanner to get the page, so it's all tiny and blurred.
The art is nice, but could use a little more variety between each of the characters. Again, this might be part of the scanning problem, but all the characters look very similar to each other.
I really like this, but it has it's flaws.
I enjoy the story, it's a little all over the place but the ideas behind it are rather fun and interesting to read about. I think the difficulty that I'm having reading this is that it's online and the scans for each page are not well done, at all. It looks as though those who uploaded them pressed each page of the book in a scanner to get the page, so it's all tiny and blurred.
The art is nice, but could use a little more variety between each of the characters. Again, this might be part of the scanning problem, but all the characters look very similar to each other.
I really like this, but it has it's flaws.
November 29, 2007
This manga series is kind of a cross between Harry Potter and your more usual manga fantasy-fare -- three students at Wizarding school, discovering their talents and their destinies. Great background art, though the characters could use a little more development -- but of course, this is a first volume, so...I'm sure everything will start to unfold as the series progresses.
November 23, 2008
A harry potterish story about the school of witchcraft with an interesting but a bit chaotic artwork. The first volume is not bad but also not outstanding. It's hard to judge this series from the first volume but I won't probably be continuing reading it.
July 23, 2011
This book has a few high points, the attractive artwork being one of them, but unfortunately, all of its originalities are struck down by its too-familiar storyline. Still, fans of 'Harry Potter' and other magic school stories are likely to enjoy it.
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June 17, 2010F MID
aventura
v. 1
aventura
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June 25, 2013
this was pretty good. I will have to check out more in the series.
July 7, 2013
Wonderful. Much better than I expected.
July 19, 2014
A cute tale of a boy in a magic academy who can't use magic.
I liked the characters, I liked the story, and I loved the whimsical art.
My only complaint is the text-wall-info-dump.
I liked the characters, I liked the story, and I loved the whimsical art.
My only complaint is the text-wall-info-dump.
July 6, 2015
Wow , it was nice I loved it .
August 12, 2015
Magic, possible confusion, amusing characters. I can see myself reading more of this. It's so light and fluffy so far.
January 7, 2011
A little confusing to read sometimes
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews