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May 16, 2014MichelleCDlibrary rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
I don't particularly like sports stories -- never have. This is very likely because I'm not much of a sports person anymore, and even when I was younger and into sports, I was more about playing them, not spectating. Therefore, reading about sports (which in my mind was even worse than spectating) rarely happens. However, this title came highly recommended by the wonderful Seth Hahnes, comic-reviewer from Good OK Bad (goodokbad.com), so I picked it up. I was still convinced I wouldn't like it, but I had to check it out due to Hahnes' enthusiasm for the work. Well, colour me surprised. This is one of the best things I've read in 2014. Yes, this book is about baseball and young high-schoolers partaking in the sport, but their reasons for doing so literally made me cry. CROSS GAME is very much about how we keep our promises and honour those who have left us behind. The emotion and passion these kids possess moved me, but the drama always feels quiet and understated. Adachi's art is soft and round (kind of reminiscent of manga/anime from the 80s), but the level of detail--in the scenery, in the characters' facial expressions--is deft and masterful. His ability to convey the action of a baseball game was actually able to make me CARE and to feel riveted. Quite a feat, given my previous declarations at the beginning of this review. So please, even if sports stories aren't your thing, or if manga/comics aren't, I implore you to give this title a shot. I docked half a star for the cliched and rather flat depiction of the EEVVIILL baseball coach in the second half of the volume, but other than that, CROSS GAME is a solid and emotional work that deserves more attention that it has received.