Life doesn’t always go the way you plan it. In Light of My Life, Aki and Minagi are high school friends who had big dreams for themselves in school. One was on the path to a pro-soccer career while the other was about to follow in his family’s footsteps and become a doctor. When an accident happens, everything changes for Aki and Minagi. Years later, they are living completely different lives, struggling to come to terms with what really happened between them.
About Light of My Life
Light of My Life is a boy’s love manga by Tabika, featuring an original story by Fuuko Minami. It is being published in English by Kodansha. It centers on two friends, Aki and Minagi, who, along with a third friend, have all been close since high school. In high school, they each had different passions: Aki was on the path to becoming a professional soccer player, and Minagi was on track to become a doctor. Now in the present, they are both working far from those passions. Aki manages a hair salon that he inherited from his grandfather, while Minagi works at a host club.
With these changes in career paths, there are growing tensions between the two. Aki feels like Minagi is throwing his life away by not becoming a doctor. Meanwhile, Minagi is elusive and is avoiding discussing why he decided not to be a doctor. As the two start messing around, blurring the lines between friends and more, things start boiling over, forcing them to confront the past they’ve been running away from.
My Thoughts
The things we leave unsaid can turn into burdens we unknowingly carry for years. Light of My Life is the perfect example of this. Minagi is going through life carrying the weight of what happened in high school. He doesn’t tell Aki about this and ends up making a life-changing decision all on his own, suffering from his own guilt. As time goes on, Minagi’s sudden career change is killing Aki, because he can’t fathom why Minagi is throwing his life away.
As hard as it was to read, I appreciated reading through Aki and Minagi’s conflict. It’s so easy to yell at the book, “Just talk it out!” but when you’ve been carrying this tremendous guilt like Minagi has for years, words feel like knives. The depiction of Minagi’s guilt is so painful and real. Not to mention how Aki’s struggles are depicted, too, being in love with his best friend in secret. Although it’s a one-shot, Light of My Life cuts deep. It’s a beautiful story about love and regrets that I’ll be thinking about for a time to come.
Where to Buy Light of My Life
Light of My Life
Manga by: Tabika
Story by: Fuuko Minami
Translator: Leo McDonagh
Bonus Manga Translator: Jacqueline Fung
Letterer: Nicole Rodrick
Editor: Tiff Joshua TJ Ferentini
Publisher: Kodansha
Light of My Life is available now.
Thank you to Kodansha and NetGalley for the ARC!
Wow the cover art for this one is really beautiful! Though it sounds like a kind of sad story. I think I’ll wait until after the holiday season to look this one up. With all the stress of the holidays coming soon, I tend to get a little blue starting at about this time of year and I always try to read happier stories to pick up my spirits.