A delightful new series from Viz about the outcasts and unpopular kids. The premise is fun - even if it's been used before - and the characters are likable. Have purchased the first several volumes for my institution already.

A stunning first volume, introducing us to two characters brought together through their mutual struggle with insomnia, with building chemistry between them as they find a safe space and start to connect. I loved this beginning and the promise of more to come.

This was a 3.5 for me. I totally understand the “I can’t sleep” and actually trying to band with someone/anyone in High School. Makati can’t sleep, which makes him irritable and sadly more of an outsider than he was already. He’s looking for a place to just hang out away from the rest of his class and finds the “haunted observatory”. But finds it already inhabited….by Magari. A girl, not a ghost.

I have to admit with all the allusions to the observatory being haunted, I was expecting some supernatural events. Sadly, at this point there aren’t any. Just a lot of high school angsts and the “am I falling in love” scenario.

There are parts I like and are cute….the getting to know each other, the exploration of the stars, and a really cool hang out with the observatory. I’ll see how this progresses and whether I continue reading the series.

Ganta is a cranky student that no one likes, but on reason he is so cranky is he can't sleep. One day, he finds his way to the school observatory and finds a similar student in Isaki. Together, they find that they can sleep. They make their own club in the observatory until they're caught. Thus they resurrect the old Astronomy Club.

This is a sweet manga and it covers a little covered topic in literature: insomnia. The ability for them to only be able to sleep with each other might be a bit far fetched, but it provides a great story of friendship and potentially more. This odd couple is just perfect together.

This was really cute - seems like a slow burning love story and much less over the top than the typical high school romance manga. The cat is a great character and I like how the art is both clear but makes the main characters slightly less perfect than your typical manga protagonist. Insomnia is also an interesting condition to have the characters have as it both causes them to bond, to have intense adventures by themselves, and to give them the opportunity to conquer the condition together.

I received an eARC of this title through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I really liked the concept of this manga. Insomniacs After School follows two students who suffer from insomnia as they make their way through school. They find ways to cope by secretly sleeping or coming off as being agitated. The two characters end up coming together in an old astronomy tower where the rest of the students believe it is haunted, these two try to maintain that story so they can sleep in peace during school breaks.

This is a really interesting story of two people finding common ground, but also a story of how insomnia affects people differently. One character is popular and has quite a few friends while the other is known as being grumpy and agitated all the time. Following along, the reader gets a glimpse at what it is like for those with insomnia and how they have to find ways to cope with not being able to sleep or ways to try and get themselves to sleep.

The artwork was decent and consistent. The story through art flowed well together.

5/5

I was recommended this series by my brother so imagine my excitement when I saw the opportunity to read it via NetGalley!!!

And let me tell you, my brother didn't disappoint. By which I mean Makoto Ojiro didn’t disappoint!

The art? SO GOOD! I personally love this style so much. I love the 2 main characters so far. As well as the representation of insomnia! I adore the “romance” so far and can’t wait to read more.

The chapters are quite short so it’s really easy to read. The time passes quickly on the story so the pace doesn’t lag.

Overall I REALLY enjoyed this and am now going to read vol 2 and possibly watch the anime and the live-action.

I loved this. It was a cute quick read. I am an avid anime and manga lover so this was right up my alley. The illustrations were very beautiful and the characters were very well developed.

Thank you Netgalley and Viz media for this advanced copy.

This book was such a good book.
The pacing was slow but enjoyable, our two characters sharing the same trouble : insomnia and found out that the other person hear beat was so relaxing and made each of them felt comfy.

It was such a heartwarming story and relateable one.
I thought I am gonna watch the anime adaptation

A really touching story of teenagers coping with insomnia when it's not treated like a medical condition by the people around them! The friendship between the two leads is so sweet and given the genre, I'm assuming it'll open into a romance down the line. Both characters are engaging and fun to follow, I'll definitely continue reading to see how they grow.

“Insomniacs After School” was an ARC I requested after hearing such high reviews about it and it was being made into an anime! The reviews I heard definitely did not disappoint! The art style is drawing to the reader and compliments the characters and story so well. The relationship between the main character revolves around them both struggling to sleep yet when around each other they feel at ease and fall into a sleep. This happens after running in to each other in their schools abandoned observatory. I really enjoy this series and cannot wait for volume 2 and the anime!!

A beautiful start to a simple but meaningful story of two students with insomnia. Hints of romance and plenty of daily school life charm, mixed with beautiful art and astronomy, leaves me excited for the next chapters of the story. Like a breath of fresh air.

This book was delightful and surprising in ways I did not expect. Early on you're left to wonder if there will be a fantastical or magical element to the story, but there never is. It is very much a slice of life tale with the chance of romance just lingering in the distance. The characters are engaging and relatable, the setting is familiar and it all feels grounded. I haven't read anything like it in quite some time and I didn't expect to fall in love with it the way I have. I am recommending this to everyone because it really swept me up in the quietest, most peaceful way.

A slice-of-life manga with a deeper cut, Insomniacs After School tells a story of growing friendship founded on a shared struggle with sleep. Magari and Nakami live in different circles during the school day, but accidentally find each other in an abandoned astronomy tower when trying to find a secret place to nap. Their shared struggles with insomnia--and even addressing how common the issue is in Japan--was fresh for manga, and a topic many readers can likely relate to. I loved the soft artwork and how Ojiro was able to convey movement and the passing of time through their panels. I'm excited to see what happens with the two protagonists as their friendship grows, and if the Insomniacs After School Club gains any new members. Definitely purchasing for my library and looking forward to volume 2.

I absolutely loved this!! I breezed through it so quickly, and I am so charmed by the characters. I'm loving how Ojiro is telling this story, as everything feels so organic and authentic. I'll definitely be continuing this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and VIZ for the eGalley to review!

This was cute and the art is just absolutely gorgeous. I quite love the style of it all and how consistently detailed it is. The story follows two insomniacs that meet by happenstance when they both try to nap in their school's observatory that is now a storage room following a series of unfortunate events.

It's not quite a romance just yet but it has the makings of one. It's cute and fairly realistic, though the timeline of the events in this volume make it hard to tell just how much time they have actually spent with each other before (spoilers) Magari cuddles up to Nakami's back and says she prefers the sound of his heartbeat to the rain. Much earlier during their second interaction she tells him she can't sleep in the observatory without him. There is some obvious crushing here, but these two never interacted before meeting in the observatory (even considering each other no good) so it seems a bit contrived. Still, after the two have an outing together to spend their sleepless night, there is an easy friendship they have evolved into and thereafter I can see how they end up crushing.

My only other issue is these two don't know what the moon looks like when they look for it in the sky??? Even with all of Japan's lights, it's still easy to spot the moon (I can personally vouch since I lived there for two and a half years) so I don't know why they were asking each other if what they were seeing was it? Just strange.

Anyway, I can see our patrons getting into this one as they tend to check out these slice-of-life romance series. I'm definitely recommending it for the art alone, I can tell you that!

Book Review
Title: Insomniacs After School Vol. 1 by Makoto Ojiro
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Romance, Manga
Rating: 3.75 Stars
As an avid manga reader I am always on the lookout for new series to try and after seeing Insomniacs After School recommended a lot on TikTok and seeing the anime adaptation dropping I decided to give it a go. This series is following Nakami and Magari who both suffer from insomnia, and for anyone who has insomnia they will relate to the struggles the pair face from crankiness to headaches and much more.
The first volume opens with Nakami sneaking into the school disused astronomy room for a nap and finding Magari already sleeping there and they both learn that the other has insomnia and develop a connection over this shared condition. Magari suggests using the room as a hideout for them to nap in since no one uses the room and there are dark rumours of the former astronomy club members dying but this was all a rumour created by Magari to keep people out.
However, it isn’t long before the teachers find out about them using the room and can’t allow it to continue so they pair decide to reinstate the school astronomy club becoming the first members. This allows them to have a reason to use the room and they don’t have to skip or miss periods in school thanks to it being a club. While the first volume had some funny and romantic moments I was expecting a little more from it so I was a little disappointed. I will continue this series but I am not in any rush to do so since I want to read Sweat & Soap as well as Love is Hard for Otakus more than this right now.

A pleasant enough manga with good illustrations but I don't feel there was much happening as far as content goes. I guess that being volume 1 it might be just introducing us to the characters and setup and future volumes may be more interesting.

I received this arc from netgalley and VIZ Media in exchange for my honest review.

A great concept and love the bond between the main protagonist. This manga is now an anime so reading it and watching episode 1 was delight to see how these characters interact.

Full review for School Library Journal.

This was a very cute story of finding acceptance and a safe place. I'm very interested to see how the insomniacs club progresses and how these two teens can maybe find some healing and professional help.

Read more graphic novel reviews at The Graphic Library.