Adachi and Shimamura, Vol. 11

Light Novel

SNAPSHOTS OF SUN AND SWEAT

First there were summers full of smiles, followed by summers full of stress. And then there were summers full of Adachi... For Shimamura, this year's vacation is a reminder of all the pivotal summer moments from her past!

©2022 Hitoma Iruma (P)2022 Hitoma Iruma

lowkey crossover episode

You might not even realize it, since their names are conspicuously absent from every scene they're in, but two side characters in this volume are two of the three main characters (or one protagonist and one antagonist, depending on your outlook lol) from Hitoma Iruma's light novel trilogy "My First Love's Kiss". They take up a pretty considerable amount of the run time, but I don't think it's absolutely necessary to read those books in order to enjoy this volume.

Our two title characters are still the main focus even if those two side characters have so much spotlight. This volume is full of love and one of the sweetest ending lines in the series. One more volume until we're caught up! ...Though I'm also hoping and praying they make audiobooks for 99.9 and Short Stories 1 + 2 because all 3 of those books have some gold in them too.

(For anyone curious about "My First Love's Kiss", just know it is a pretty significant tonal departure from AdaShima and maybe check reviews before you jump in unprepared)

Beauty in the Mundane

Adachi to Shimamura is a slice of life of the highest order. Yes there is Yachi, but the ethos of this series is in convincing the reader to fall in love with the ordinary and the every day. It's the slowest of slow burns, but rather than in an agonizing way it is in a very human way. The blooming of life and love, from teenage angst to affection and eventually love for each other. It's something I've always appreciated about the series - that it doesn't take absurd situations or extraordinary events to push the relationship forward. They do it all on their own, in their flawed and imperfect way. It's such a quintessential human experience to stumble your your way through your feelings for another person - exacerbated in this series because it is GL/Yuri/WLW/sapphic and the trials & tribulations of coming to realize they're queer adds layers to the story. We've only got the one book left but I'm thankful to the authors, producers, and Analise Scarpaci for bringing this story to life in audiobook format. It is as worthwhile an endeavor as anything, to tell a story so plain and yet so beautiful.