Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
RaoulVDBIG
How can I project myself and empathize with a little girl like the MC? Well, if I was suddenly dropped in that place, completely powerless in a sickly body, in a 'primitive' environment, I would also get upset.
So yeah, it's an isekai story. But its universe if really well built and deeply original, largely inspired from Medieval Europe settings with nobility, church and commoners living in quite separate ways of life.
It's not the typical fantasy world where the MC starts with insane power or ultra fast level-ups to fight powerful monsters! Nope. She has to conquer herself first and fight against her health, her poor family condition, basically struggling to survive... and also her frustration not having anything to read.
Also, this anime story mostly respects the novel story, thanks f…
Read at the sourceNormalesEinhorn
Could have easily been a 10/10, but disregarded genre standards by having MC die to an earthquake instead of Truck-kun.
There's plausible and credible character and world building for the MC and their acquaintances.
The story pace is well chosen and deliberately slow to leave time for abovementioned worldbuilding as well as lore droplets to be delivered in time for the viewer to settle in.
This is a fun take on the isekai genre, were the MC isn't overpowered nor in pursuit of world domination, rather than the need to hold, breathe in and read books, books and... what was it again...? Ah, yes...! Books!
Read at the sourceBricePatties
If Dr. Stone and Slime/Jobless recognized the joy in the progression.
TL:DR; If you thought Apathecary Diaries was good, you're in for a real treat. We've got at least half a dozen solid subplots all moving along nicely by the 3rd season, and we can barely see the horizon. Very sweet, satisfying struggle to invent books and teach the populace to read, all while balancing nobility - and that's just face value.
Seriously, from the animation, composition, voice acting, and beyond, Ascendance of a Bookworm is an absolute treat that I can't believe slipped by me for years. This is an anime I'll share with my daughter someday. This is also an anime that I'll recommend to my buddies who love Slime and Dr. Stone.
When we talk about progression, a lot of anime just skip the foundational knowledg…
Read at the sourceSaternates
Im bound to almost give this not recommended because of how slow-paced the anime is, but the execution is really what takes me inside the world of fantasy. It is the usual trope of the fantasy, it is the usual isekai genre you've met. But as the story progresses, it makes me think that there is depth into this world. As if I'm living at the same pace as Myne herself. As a booklover and someone who likes to imagine but couldn't serialize that Idea, this is what happens if a nerd tries to revolutionize a world that hasnt been touched by modern technology. And the scale of what Myne could create was basically zero-hero. Its like what would happen if Lawrence from Spice and Wolf had a child that is less aware like him and practically couldn't be as smart as he is be an innovator. And instead o…
Read at the sourcetitty_bear
A short summary for this anime will be:
A grown ass woman(reincarnated in a child's body) behaves and throws tantrums just like a child and actual children around her are more mature than her. Grown ass woman got so angry on mere children when they trampled on her clay tablets, her magic activated. Grown ass woman crying because her clay tablets got destroyed in rain. So immature.
I don't think the author even knows what a "bookworm" is. She must have asked a self proclaimed bookworm how much they love books, they must've replied with "Books are like drugs to me" and she went on and gave the protagonist Myne the exact same behaviour andd symptoms a coke addict has, just with books instead.
Animation is nice, storyline is actually good. But the protagonist's weird, almost "kink" like obs…
Read at the sourcelushimacorn
Ascendance of a Bookworm stands out in the isakai genre by rejecting the usual power-fantasy formula and instead presenting a grounded, socially complex world. The story follows Myne, a modern girl reincarnated into a frail body of child in a medieval society where books are rare, expensive, and tightly controlled by the elite. Her determination to access knowledge becomes the emotional and thematic core of the series.
Unlike typical isekai protagonists who arrive overpowered and reshape the world aournd them, Myne is physically weak and socially powerless. This contrast highlights the anime`s commitment to realism: thw world is governed by a rigid caste system that separates nobles and commoners, with mana functioning as both magical and political capital. Nobles are treated as untouchabl…
Read at the sourceRemanTheArchean
This series is *highly* reminiscent of Apothecary Diaries. Both stories feature a female protagonist that has more knowledge than those around them, and they use this knowledge to solve problems and achieve their goals. They also both have an authoritative male figure watching out for the protagonist while trying to act somewhat reserved, with the High Priest filling in for Master Jinshi here. The vibes in both shows are fairly lighthearted for the most part, and while both series begin with the protagonist just trying to solve simple tasks right in front of them, they eventually get caught up in larger power struggles.
Finally, both shows share the trait of being quite fun to watch.
The focus is on a competent protagonist solving problems in creative ways. This show has a bit of magic…
Read at the sourceSkyBlue1012
Ascendance of a Bookworm is a unique take in an anime industry filled with poorly written Isekai stories. It's a heartwarming slice-of-life series about a six year old girl whose dream is to own a library or a bookshop. I really like the premise of Myne having the “Devouring,” which is ultimately the cause of her death and the reason why her body is taken over by another woman, an adult and a passionate bookworm.
As typical in the Isekai genre, the protagonist stands out far too much from those around her and becomes drastically different from the original Myne. One thing that puzzled me was how her family didn’t question the huge shift in her personality. That said, the dialogue between Myne and her family feels realistic, there are no exaggerated reactions or over-the-top anime tropes.…
Read at the sourcesuryoghurt
This anime is so boring that it makes me feel like doing homework is more fun, which is exactly what I am doing whenever I boot up an episode and get bored, so I suppose it does it's job. 7/10
I cant realy imagine being very excited for the next episode whenever I finish one but the series still manages to be mildly amusing. each episode is just the main character walking around then falling asleep whenever she gets tired.
I suppose you might like it if you just want a chill isekai with slice of life vibes.
And I suppose it isn't trying to be the most eventful series and even though the main character definetily stand out in the world, the series is still a cut above all the complete garbage isekai pawerfantasies that come out every season.
Maybe slower paced series like this one might…
Read at the sourceandylaode
My Thoughts on This Anime:
The world-building is impressively believable – the cities, customs, trade systems, and religious elements are all well-explained. The characters also feel authentic, especially how the story revolves around the main character (MC).
However, the core premise strains credibility. While book lovers exist, the MC's extreme obsession with books feels unrealistic. Books are just others' writings – why worship them? But I understand this obsession drives the plot.
Power balance is another issue:
Overpowered MC = Good Realistic MC = Better
Pathetically weak MC = Bad
Final Verdict:
🗳️ Characters: 6 (would be 7 without the book obsession)
📖 Story: 7
🎨 Art: 8
🎧 Audio: 6
🎞️ Animation: 6
Score: 6/10
Recommendation? Hard pass – but it’s decent time-killer filler i…
Read at the sourceBooBoozBelly
The best way to know a show is good when it is rated so highly is to skim the small dissenting reviews. Then, when you see their confused complaints are bad takes from people who don't like a certain type of show, you know it's going to be good. Like watching an action show and complaining there are too many explosions or a rom com and whine there isn't any action.
This show is fabulous provided you are looking for a slice of life, cute, technology driven show in a world with a harsh life hierarchy.
The original VA's are wonderful, the animation is mostly spot on and the art itself is quite good. The MC is eminently likeable and the premise is interesting. Most side characters are given some room to breath and do what they are supposed to do.
Pacing is only affected because the source no…
Read at the sourceRigga
If you are thrown off by the strong concept-oriented nature of this show, I suggest you give it a chance before dismissing it.
The summary of the show doesn't really speak for what the purpose of this show is. To keep the pitch simple, I contend that this show is a much healthier examination of family dynamics, and has a more realistic take on the Isekai rebirth trope. This show is one of the few shows that takes the time to show you the interpersonal issues that come with something like being reborn as a child into a less-developed world; trying to hide your knoweldge and utilize it. Because of her rebirth, Myne is more mature than most of her nearby adults when it comes to pragmatic issues. This does not stop her from being immature and childish as she should be, since she is definitely…
Read at the sourceBadDecisionFan
I really wanted to like this show. It's well written for the most part, the characters are fun, and the worldbuilding is interesting. Unfortunately none of that matters because it annihilated it's own pacing by committing one the of the greatest sins a fantasy story can.
Magic exists, but it barely is shown.
I've seriously never seen someone make magic boring until this show. It was cool how they wrote it in as almost a disease, but the solution isn't the MC learning to use it in any sort of interesting way.
This would've have legitimately been a better story of they nixed the whole magic system and made it low fantasy with the MC introducing cheap books to the world. Instead we get poorly written political intrigue.
Read at the sourceC__C
Straight to the point: Go read the light novel! Don't like to read just want to watch anime? go ahead it is a great watch!! ---- by me (who bench watched all 3 seasons then caught up to Vol.3 in novel)
Now lets break down the anime...
Art style: Not a huge fan, but true to LN illustration... kinda. Still a huge turn down for me (that is one reason why I'm so late to the party).
Animation: Bad, not good. I thought I was watching a 5 out of 10 early 2010 forgotten budget anime with budget 90's art style, it is bearable and it gets better in later seasons but not much really not much.
Pacing/ story telling: As a LN enjoyer it is actually not bad, of course some plots got sacrificed for the overall cohesion and limited run time, but the delivery of this anime is quit good smooth and captured a…
Read at the sourceSiegfriedcel
I genuinely wish I liked this series, but it never seems to find its footing throughout the first season. (It might later, but I will not watch season two or three.) What amounts to a business in another world isekai starts as a girl's quest to read books. This might be a general issue I have with this character trope, but it holds true with our titular book worm, reading books is not interesting. When a character reads a book its short hand for "this person is smart, a voice of reason, or (in the case of classic literature) a stand in for the author," but it says nothing about how that character can actually function inside of a show. Our MC is not interested in any singular type of literature. She doesn't care if its instruction manuals or Tolstoy, she just wants to read, so the entire s…
Read at the sourcemaxlagomorph
Never felt like writing a review but seeing this anime score so high compelled me to write this one.
The premise is very bland, the script is awful and full of plotholes, main character is annoying, extremely childish (she's in the body of a child, but was supposed be an adult), episodes dwell on the most trivial, boring and mundane details and characters. Many praise it's world building but it's all very flat and basic, and the way things work is always conveniently suited to the Myne's objectives. Like the world building, the magic system serves purely as deus ex machina plot device.
One of the earlier plots is she's worrying people might discover she's not the child bc of all the knowledge from earth, but at some point they completely ignore this and everyone simply glosses over when…
Read at the sourceanafantasia
This anime is amazing! If you like great storys, with well developed hero's journey, and SPECIALLY BOOKS you probably is going to like Honzuki no Gekokujou.
I love books, so i just felt the heroine's pain when she saw herself in a place without books to read and talk about!
The animations are not the best of all, but this dosn't metter when you have a great story behind.
Each of the characters have a unique style, not only visual, but especially in the way they express and talk with others.
The protagonist is kind and fun, so you're not going to be tired watching it. I'm ansious to watch season 2, and hoping that animation will get a little better.
Read at the sourcejoemaamah
Have to admit, I was not convinced by this series at first. This season got off to kind of a slow start and I was not that impressed by the first episode. But I put it in the watchlist for the 3 eps test, and it kept getting better. And better. And better. And better...
Wonderful artwork; the characters are kind of simple in design, but pleasing enough. Delightful color pallette was used. Don't usually mention it, but there is some fine background work. The animation might not be shonen mind-bending, physics defying stuff, but it is rendered professionally, and consistently good. So much better than expected for an isekai. I got the impression there was a lot of love put into this by the production crew.
Myne is my #3 character of all-time, after 50+ years of watching anime. She is so w…
Read at the sourceRim_Harada
This is real "Anime". I am surprised to have found this masterpiece after so much time of starting to watch anime, it is certainly not something normal that you would see, and it is not at all what we are used to seeing in current works.
Each episode of this play makes you want more, in some, it makes you cry and in others it makes you excited and excited because that is what will happen.
This is not a review, nor is it a recommendation, it is a call from the universe for you to see this masterpiece.
This is Anime.
Read at the source7barbieringz
No spoilers:
I recommend this if youre okay with slow pace and slice of life. The world building is wonderful and I really enjoy watching the MC overcome her hurdles as she gets closer to her dream of reading more books.
Its not all about books though, the overall story is pretty interesting but like I said before its slow, theres not a lot of fighting or anything like that.
I teared up a few times watching it, its not your typical isekai, but it does have common isekai elements like magic and knights. But i say gice it a try, if you want to drop it by the end os season 1 its prob not for you.
Read at the source
