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Dolls, Vol. 1 (1) Paperback – November 9, 2004

by Yumiko Kawahara (Author, Illustrator)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
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Yumiko Kawahara's disturbing short stories explore the strange and codependent world of dolls and the people who own them.Both quirky and unsettling, these science-fiction morality fables question the dark side of love and pride.Fair warning: When you live inside a dollhouse, it's hard to tell who's the puppet and who's the master...
Previous page
  1. Print length
    200 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    VIZ Media LLC
  4. Publication date
    November 9, 2004
  5. Grade level
    7 - 9
  6. Dimensions
    5 x 0.75 x 7.5 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1591165083
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1591165088
  9. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ VIZ Media LLC; First Edition (November 9, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 200 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1591165083
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1591165088
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 7 - 9
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.75 x 7.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 15 ratings

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
15 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Jason Wheeler
5.0 out of 5 stars Old Manga that Still is Great
Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2022
Verified Purchase
Despite coming out nearly two decades ago, Dolls is a collection of manga short stories taking place in the same world highlighting the codependency of dolls and humans through obsession and high-maintenance care rituals. Beautiful artwork, and coherent translations help the story stand the test of time.
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E. N. Willis
5.0 out of 5 stars Just buy it
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2009
I'm a huge fan of manga and anime, and I have to say that this is hands-down my favorite manga I've ever read. I've read and reread the entire series multiple times, and I'm always hoping I'll find a new volume, even though I'm pretty sure I own all of them. If you're even considering checking this series out, do it.

However, I feel that I should mention this: Amazon seems to think that Dolls, by Yumiko Kawahara, is the same series as Doll, by Mitsukazu Mihara, and they are not even remotely similar. Buy Yumiko Kawahara's Dolls.
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Ellen W.
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Good
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2005
I started reading this manga at Borders, and I like it a lot.

It's about a shop in Chinatown that sells living plant dolls, but the owners must follow very specific instructions. Of course, they don't usually do too well. I can't remember too well, but I think most of the stories have happy endings.

The art is pretty, especially the dolls. It's keeps you interested.

This series reminds me a lot of "Pet Shop of Horrors". If you like that one, you'll probably like this too.
7 people found this helpful
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Sonic Le
3.0 out of 5 stars Cute and fluffy - don't confuse with Mihara's DOLL series!
Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2012
So I actually started reading Dolls (plural) by Kawahara after I had read DOLL (singular) by Mitsukazu Mihara. This was unfortunate. While the thesis is the same in both mangas (stories involving inanimate humanoid objects and how they affect the humans who "own" them and how the humans in their lives affect them in turn) the two authors/artists use VERY different approaches.

Dolls: stories revolving around almost plant-like humanoids (vs. DOLL where the dolls are basically highly sophisticated robots)
ART: The drawings are very lovely, Victorian almost, and nicely detailed. This is typical "arty" manga drawing - lovely and all, just, boring because it's been done before.
DIALOGUE: No awkward translations or confusing sentences. The dialogue is cute and tries sometimes to be melancholy or thought-provoking but the art and the stories just don't convey the sense of sadness that Kawahara sometimes seems to be striving for.
STORIES: So, this is probably where Dolls fails the most. These aren't BAD stories or anything - I can't find anything offensively stupid in them, but they're just cliched, predictable, and most unforgivably, boring. Kawahara wants us to...well actually, I have no idea what she wants us to do. Is it to think more deeply about the relationship between human and human-like? Is she trying to say that the dolls have a soul...? I don't know. It's hard to say - whereas in Mihara's manga, I would argue she is saying the dolls are our reflections - they are what we make them and what we are is primarily awful.
OVERALL: borrow for a quick summertime/weekend read, don't buy it

DOLL by Mihara, in comparison, has a stark, sometimes exaggerated, look which fits the violent and depressing theme. The stories are MUCH darker, more original overall (although some are predictable), and more thought-provoking and sad than Dolls. And at least for me, DOLL hit all the right emotional triggers.

It was really bad luck for Kawahara that I picked Mihara's manga up first. As it is, while I think it's an enjoyable read, I can't say Dolls is original or as powerful as DOLL.
One person found this helpful
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H. Chen
3.0 out of 5 stars Not particularly interesting.
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2005
I picked this up when I picked up the manga series "Doll" by Mihara. Interestingly enough, the two mangas have almost the exact same premise. However, Mihara's series treats the subject in much more interesting and thoughful ways. I found this manga to be rather boring.
4 people found this helpful
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