A Sign of Affection, Vol. 1

ゆびさきと恋々 [Yubisaki to Renren] #1

by Suu Morishita, Alice Settembrini (Translator)

Un giorno, in un momento di difficoltà, una studentessa universitaria di nome Yuki viene aiutata da Itsuomi, un senpai che frequenta il suo stesso istituto. Il giovane la tratta con grande naturalezza e non si scompone minimamente quando capisce che la ragazza è sorda. Ben presto, Yuki scoprirà di provare qualcosa per quel ragazzo, grazie al quale ha cominciato a percepire la realtà in maniera del tutto nuova...

Genres: Manga, Romance, Graphic Novels, Contemporary, Comics, Shojo, Young Adult

174 pages, Paperback

First published December 13, 2019

About the author

MORISHITA Suu
Name (in native language): 森下ｓｕｕ

Blood type: A
Zodiac: Taurus

Mangaka duo: Story: Makiro (マキロ）, Illustration: Nachiyan (なちやん）

Favourite food: chicken nanban

Assistant: Aizawa Yuki-mei

Reviews

[Bookishrealm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so happy that I picked this one up! It's been on my list after I've heard so many great things from Izzy and it didn't disappont.

A Sign of Affection is a shojo manga that follows college student Yuki who is deaf. While on the train she meets fellow student Itsuomi who she seemingly grows an attraction towards. Yuki is one of the most charming and sweet characters that I've read in a manga. There is this shyness about her, but also a level of boldness that I enjoyed. The two also get along very well even if Itsuomi travels quite a bit. I like that there is also a contrast between their two personalities. It creates the perfect balance for a great read. There is sign language that is woven into the story and I'm happy that Suu Morishita takes the time to explain the different types of sign language that is used in Japan. Apparently there was a consultant on this use of sign language in this novel which is great to know. I immediately put volume two on hold at my library once I finished this volume because I enjoyed it so much. This might end up being one that I end up collecting. I'm excited to see where the relationship goes between Yuki and Itsuomi. Definitely give this one a read.

[aly ☆彡 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been wanting to read this one & in the mood for some shojo, so I surely find myself enjoying this. There weren't many things going on yet but I love how the story builds up. The first book was an excellent start to the series and I can't wait to see how the story unfolds in the next volume.

A Sign of Affection conveyed a story of Yuki who was born deaf and Itsuomi who could speak multiple languages (except sign languages being one of them). In the manga, we can see the creator strove to express Yuki's manner of conversing using both graphics and words, including the struggle to communicate using sign language, which I had a whale of a time reading. I believe this manga does a good job of defying the norm since Morishita conducted a great deal of research in making sure the portrayal was properly done.

I love Yuki's personality and find her naivety is quite adorable (despite living the definition of air-headed). She's sweet and caring, reminding me of Tohru from Fruits Basket who is utterly my favourite female manga character of all time. I take no criticism. Itsuomi has yet to impress me since I don't well click with his personality but would love to see how the relationship between the two progresses. Having to insert Oushi, Yuki's childhood friend in the equation also certainly added to the entertainment.

The art style too is another huge draw. This manga is an excellent illustration of art that seeks to enhance and build on the sentiments and message of the story it is attempting to portray. I'm overall loving this manga!

Starting Volume 2 now as I speak.

[Dilushani Jayalath · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tell myself all the time that I am done with YA novels of any style but cute stories such as this always catches my attention. I have been thinking over why I am more attracted to stories that have such green-flag characters and I think I have somewhat come to the understanding that it is mainly due to the fact that it is so hard to find such people in real life anymore. Book are after all to escape real life, so might as well use this to do so.

[rae ✿ · Rating 3 out of 5]

i am forever a victim of second lead syndrome

[Laura A. Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

VIDEO REVIEW HERE: https://youtu.be/89knqGbRJts

Updated Review 6/18/25: I still love this volume just as much as first time! I honestly forgot how soft, delicate, and squeal inducing it is because the story is so precious! VERY excited to be rereading because goodness, how has it been four years since I read it the first time?!

Original Review 3/1/21: Just finished rereading this again not even two weeks later and IT IS *STILL* SO GOOD!!!!

*flails and squeals in excitement*

Is it too early to call this as one of my favorite manga titles for 2021?!

SO. VERY. GOOD!!!

Like WOW! I absolutely love the realness of Yuki and how relatable she is. No, I'm not deaf, but Yuki's feelings are such a reflective of my own when I met my husband. (Maybe this goes to show that we are all the same inside…) She is the kind of heroine that you want to cheer for because she's kind and shy, but yet bold in sharing her thoughts and feelings. It is incredible and makes me wish I could have been braver like her. <3

I LOVE Rin, her best friend!! She is SO cool! I love her friendship with Yuki and just so thankful she is on this journey with her. I'm also pretty invested in Rin's story too!

For our hero, Itsuomi, he's so cool! He is super chill and I feel makes a nice contrast from Yuki's more excited nature. (They balance each other so well!)

And this romance!! GAH! It is 1000% shippable and one that is a slow burn, but like in the sweetest of ways! I am definitely cheering for them and can't wait to see where their relationship goes!

HIGHLY (and I mean HIGGHHLLLYYY) recommend A Sign of Affection! It's such a sweet, clean, and gripping soon-to-be love story that I can't wait to see what will happen next!!

[Dani · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
*4 stars*

Aww, this was precious 🥺
The male MC was so-so, he was cute but I didn't feel any particular attachment to him.
But I loved the heroine so much! She reminds me a lot of Nishimiya from Koe no Katachi/A Silent Voice (who is also a deaf female MC), one of my favorite anime movies of all time.

I actually also liked female MC's meddling-childhood-friend and kinda wanted to see a bit of her friend's side romance, too, which was too cute.

Loved the representation of the disability and the use of sign language here (though keep in mind I am not OwnVoices).

[ʚ Aileen ɞ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one made me cry. Honestly, the story is so beautiful. It shows just how important communication is, even if you don't use words.

I think this is going to be one of my new favorites 🧡

[moonlight ☾ [semi-hiatus] · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO CUTE, i loved this so much! <3

[Zala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Placeholder for volumes 1-2

Adorable and unproblematic romances ftw.

[Lauren Lanz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been seeing this anime everywhere lately; over the past month or two I kept getting YouTube ads for it, and my twitter feed was full of people posting clips of the main characters. With how great the animation looked, it was inevitable that I’d check out the source material!

It’s only the beginning, but A Sign of Affection is already proving to be incredibly sweet. The premise of a deaf girl teaching one of her travel/language-obsessed college classmates to sign entailed major levels of wholesomeness, which are definitely being delivered. The art is clean and refined—a style I tend to prefer in manga—and the romance seems like it’s going to be really cute.

My only complaint is the pacing. Things seem to be going just a little fast in terms of Yuki and Itsuomi’s relationship, considering they only just met and are already borderline about to confess. On Yuki’s side, she’s even acknowledging her feelings as love. I know there are a decent amount of volumes to go, so I’m curious how this will be stretched out. Will they get together early, spending most of the series as a couple? Or is there plenty more pining to come? We’ll see!

[nikki | ཐི༏ཋྀ​​݁ ₊ ݁ . · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5★

this was so cute and sweet omg. it's really cool to see how the writers worked in sign language into a manga, and there's just a certain vibe to it all that feels very hopeful and "toutoi" (japanese: too pure and should be treasured).

i'm definitely going to give the anime a watch after i read all the manga volumes 🌸

[vin .ᐟ (hiatus)]

I GET THE HYPE 😭😭💕💞💕

[Mrukbooki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jeju, ale to jest słodkie!💕

[Valentina Ghetti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Premessa n.1
Ho iniziato a leggere manga da circa un mese e quindi non mi sento assolutamente in grado di fare una recensione completa e soddisfacente (non che con i libri mi riesca, ma in quel caso l'esperienza mi aiuta a illudermi di poter mantenere una parvenza di professionalità).
Premessa n.2
Tranne rare eccezioni segno un manga come letto quando sono in pari con tutte le uscite in italiano, quindi i seguenti pensieri sono spoiler free ma si riferiscono ai volumi 1-6.
Fatte le dovute premesse e per non limitarmi a dire "mi è piaciuto/non mi è piaciuto" mi aiuterò con il cawpile review system (rivisto) valutando a parte varie le categorie.

Personaggi: 4/5, particolari, interessanti e ben caratterizzati. Itsuomi è un golden boy, di una dolcezza unica mentre Yuki è delicata m anche intraprendente, mi piacciono entrambi moltissimo.
Atmosfera/ambientazione: 4/5 molto quotidiana, tra l'università, l'appartamento di Itsuomi e il locale dove lavora. Belli gli spaccati dei viaggi di lui.
Stile: 4.5/5 tavole stupende, i personaggi, come dicevo, sono particolari anche nell'aspetto fisico. Bella la rappresentazione della lingua dei segni.
Trama: 4/5 molto lineare e dolcissima, già dal sesto volume cominciano a ritagliarsi il loro spazio i co-protagonisti e questa cosa l'ho apprezzata tanto.
Intrattenimento: 4/5 non crea dipendenza ma intrattiene e scorre molto bene.

Delicato e dolce!

[jo ୨୧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

chronically single thanks for the reminder 🤌

[Jessica Velasco · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can someone teach me how to sign "do NOT read this book"?!

No. Just no.

Don't get me wrong, I love how the author incorporated a main character who is deaf. It is not something that is seen very often in books. In fact, this is the first time I read about a deaf main character.

In addition, you can tell that the author/ illustrator educated themselves in Japanese Sign Language to execute the illustrations found in the manga effectively.

However, the lack of depth and plot in this manga overshadows it in my opinion, because although the representation is beautiful to read and see, it is not enough and shouldn't be enough to make a book excellent. It just sets a good foundation. But, the plot that was built upon it is weak, disappointing, and just falls flat.

For instance, tell me five facts about Itsuomi, the main love interest, that aren't about him being a traveler who is trilingual. For a manga that is 192 pages and filled with constant thoughts about Itsuomi, you would think the reader would know a little more about the character. In addition, I don't understand why Yuki, the main character, or any of the other girls for that matter, are so obsessed with him.

I think in Yuki's case, her hormones are flaring because she finds him very attractive-

" When Itsuomi-San signs, it's strong. It's as if the hand's making the signs could wrap around ANYTHING "

and her constant romanticization of Itsuomi's life play a huge factor in her "love" for him, which in a way is understandable. She is someone who has never been able to experience the world the same way that most people do, and she just entered college, so it is not surprising that she would be infatuated with his life. However, even if those might be the reasons, it doesn't mean that it's unquestionable.

The story surrounding Yuki is very disappointing for multiple reasons. Although I really love the incorporation of a deaf main character, I hate that the author made it 30% of her personality. When she wasn't obsessively organizing and thinking about Itsuomi 70% of the time, the story was about her being deaf. Correct me if I am wrong, but you don't need to constantly mention it to make the reader understand that she is deaf, especially in a manga where there are illustrations of her signing different words. For instance, the summary of this book speaks about how she loves fashion. WHERE DOES IT SAY THAT IN THE PLOT?! It would have been nice and more interesting to see what motivates and drives Yuki. Why is she in college? A girl can existent and have presence without needing to have a man in her life.

For that reason, it would've been nice to see who Yuki was, her individuality, and her struggles growing up. I wanted to see a better reflection of someone who has been deaf since a child and has had to live in a ableist society.

Moreover, Yuki and Itsuomi's relationship is incredibly boring and extremely fast paced for no reason. I don't understand why they like each other so much when they haven't done anything particularly special that makes me, as a reader, want to root for their relationship. As a matter of fact, I think there is more chemistry between Yuki and her friend with black hair who learned sign language just to communicate with her.

All the other characters are irrelevant and are very clearly used as plot devices to make the story progress. They don't have a personality and they are characters I will never remember about.

In the end, I really loved the language barrier concept; however, it was poorly executed, and it left me feeling unimpressed and bored about this manga.

I give this manga 1 star because I like the illustrations and representation found in this book. That's it.

For a more in depth review, check out my Youtube channel!
Here is the video link:

[Kate♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5stars

Good start!

[Lyss ꨄ · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I wonder… if you can fall in love as silently as this snow is falling. Falling out of the cloudy sky, changing the color of the world below."

⋆꙳•❅*°⋆❆.ೃ࿔*:･*❆ ₊⋆

“I wish my thoughts… could drift over to him… and melt straight through like snow.”

𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺
Yuki is an ordinary college student who has a hearing impairment. By chance on a train, she meets Itsuomi, a fellow student who travels abroad often. As she spends time with him, she can't help but wonder how a life with him could possibly broaden her sense of the world.

𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 & 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴
This was wholesome, sweet, and lighthearted fun. Yuki was adorable, and Itsuomi was intriguing. I enjoyed their dynamic; it was fun. If I hadn’t already planned to start a series tomorrow, I would binge these. This was so cute, and I love these covers; they're gorgeous.

𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘳𝘦𝘴
​​❄️ shōjo manga
❄️ contemporary romance

𝘛𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴
❄️ college
❄️ friends to lovers (ish)
❄️ hearing disability rep
(not many tropes to list) 🫠

[kay! ☾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I wish my thoughts could drift over to him and melt straight through like snow.”

the amount of serotonin yuki and itsuomi gives me is ridiculous. decided to reread so i can get caught up with the newer volumes/chapters and i still feel the same way i did the first time around. the characters are adorable, the artwork is cute, and the romance makes me want to fjwjdjss every time they have a scene together


_________________

4.5/5 stars

oh gosh this manga is absolutely adorable. i thought it was going to be full of tropes but it’s actually not. Yuki and Itsuomi are very lovable and sweet together—fingers crossed this manga stays consistent throughout

[a · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

This was really cute! It's so interesting to see a manga have a deaf heroine and to see that depicted in the pictures. I felt like the romance aspect was kinda rushed and I'm not really too sure about Itsuomi, our love interest but I definitely cannot wait to read the next volume. The art is so pretty!!

[Anja Karenjina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ubeđena sam da bi neko pomislio da sam za mentalnu ustanovu kada bi video moje reakcije na čitanje ovoga. Nisam ovakve reakcije imala od The Kiss bet i sad ne znam šta ću sa sobom i kako da mi se ceo život ne vrti oko ove mange

[Jan Agaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

so much cuter than I expected!

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yuki, a young woman who is deaf, develops her first real crush during her freshman year of college on a young man who is intriguing to her in part because he is a polyglot who travels the world at every opportunity. With the help of her friend, she starts making some cute but fumbling attempts to draw his attention. It's a little vague for her and this reader if he is interested in her romantically or if he simply welcomes the chance to add Japanese Sign Language and Signed Japanese to his catalog of languages.

Neither of the creators has a hearing impairment (suu Morishita is a collective pseudonym used by writer Makiro and artist Nachiyan), but they work in consultation with Yuki Miyazaki, a deaf woman who supervises the sign language in the art, shares details from her life, and obviously inspired the name of the lead character.

I quickly engaged with the story and characters and have put holds on all the volumes my library currently has.

[Fiebre Lectora · Rating 4 out of 5]

La vida de Yuki, una universitaria con sordera, se vuelve mucho más emocionante cuando conoce a Itsuomi, un joven con mucho mundo y que sabe idiomas, pero que no conoce la lengua de signos japonesa. Él se interesa rápidamente por Yuki, le pide ayuda para comprenderla, y entrar en su mundo.

¡Menuda monada! Es la segunda historia que leo sobre alguien con sordera, contando A silente voice, que me dejó destrozadísima... pero ¡no tienen nada que ver! Tratan temas completamente distintos, más allá de la similitud entre las protagonistas: aquí nos encontramos con una historia más ligera, sobre el amor, la necesidad de la comunicación las diferencias que no tienen por qué resultar una brecha entre las personas, y la empatía.

Reseña completa: http://fiebrelectora.blogspot.com/202...

[Becky (romantic_pursuing_feels) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread 4/19/24: still so freaking adorable. I love it.

Original read 5/11/22: I adored this one so so much! Yuki is deaf and meets Itsuomi-san, who is very interested in travel and languages. This book was a great set up for their background and relationship building. Super, super sweet. Just starting to get some tension budding.

Steam: zero, but good tension building!

I'm definitely continuing with this series - my library has the first 4 books so I have the next 3 on their way to me.

[Simone · Rating 5 out of 5]

the way they communicate in sign language!!! sign me up

[Omnia " · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awwww that was sooo cuuuute🥹😭💘💘💘
I've read this manga after TWINKLING WATERMELON kdrama and now I'm full of emotions😭😭💘💘💘💘

[Milo (if lost, return to hot fictional character) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m learning sign language myself, so it’s very interesting to see written media transform a very visual language into something on paper.

The mc love interest was meh, so far i like the meddling friend a lot more.

I’m for sure going to resume :)

[Coco · Rating 5 out of 5]

¡KAWAI!

[⊹ ࣪ ˖ ꒰ঌ mimi ໒꒱ ⊹ ࣪ ˖ [im back] · Rating 3 out of 5]

THIS WAS SO CUTE!!! 🥰

What’s the rest of the world like? Is it… big?
It’s gigantic.
Let me into Yuki’s world?

🥹🥹🥹