I spent a large part of my childhood watching and reading all sorts of fairytales kids books you name it. Regardless if they were local folk tales or something from a distant country Ive barely heard of as a kid Ive always liked them. So it comes off as no surprise that I ended up fascinated with the way they differ from country to country from culture to culture but also how are they similar to each other and how many things we consider obvious nowadays stem from exactly that stories written for children both to entertain and teach as well as folk tales told hundreds of years ago before we had any sort of more elaborate forms of entertainment to inform to amuse or to warn. Philosophical babble aside Chinese Fantasy is pretty much what the title suggests a short collection of the authors manga adaptations of various Chinese folk tales. The author has a clear fascination with the relationships humans form with the decidedly nonhuman be it animals or natural phenomena and the way they stimulate our imagination as such all of them focus on tales that deal with the way we connect to them regardless if its the titular tale of a monstergirl princess a fascinating exaggerated description of what a terrifying animal an elephant is or a short story about an old man who hangs out with a whole bevy of otters. On top of that its all told in this mesmerizing almost vague dreamy style leaving just enough room for your imagination to fill in the blanks without making it unsatisfying and needlessly abstract. I think Yen Samejimas artstyle contributes to that greatly it has this strange finesse to it as if each line was the result of an artisan brush stroke. Basically it reminds me of Japanese or Chinese calligraphy but in illustration form further highlighting the exotic flair of this anthology. I cant quite put my finger on what I could call this strange feeling that this sort of storytelling and visuals make me experience its like deep down I know these are just fairytales and stories told hundreds of years ago to pass the time and yet I cant help but think maybe just maybe in some distant land this is what happened.... Obviously nowadays we have all sorts of ways to know just how big our world really is and where specific countries and lands lay be it via maps or GPS devices and yet its fun to just forget that for a moment and let ourselves feel like even a neighboring country is some magical unexplored land full of mythical creatures strange items and traditions that researchers struggle to fully describe let alone one far away. One more thing I consider unforgettable about this collection is how realistically the characters struggles dialogues and thoughts are portrayed of course at times theyre comedic and exaggerated shoutouts to the Dragon Kings funny little fish minions as weve come to expect from all sorts of comics but when theyre emotional nothing feels forced or schematic. I genuinely find myself tearing up at the sight of the titular princess saying she just wants to go home everytime I revisit this manga and I revisit it a lot and the strange mix of pride and sadness that the falconer feels training his hunting companion is something that you had to experience to truly relate to and yet its told and drawn in such a way that I felt as if I had genuinely raised a falcon from a chick in the middle of some Chinese plains myself and experienced all the ups and downs that come with it. As a side note I find it a bit funny how the falcon in one of the tales is a bit humanized making her look like Shoebill from Kemono Friends. 250https://files.catbox.moe/1toqzm.png 300https://files.catbox.moe/girv8w.png Additionally given that the first volume of this anthology series is very SFW dreamy and reminds me of things Id watch as a kid I can easily recommend it to those of you who are parents or otherwise have some young relatives if they like comics and enjoy fairytales I think the physical English edition released not too long ago by Seven Seas will make for a great gift. In summary Chinese Fantasy is a thoroughly enjoyable and lighthearted yet a surprisingly emotional read. Something I can recommend regardless of whether you are fascinated by mythology and folktales looking for monstergirl romance a melancholic tale of keeping a pet that needs to be let go eventually or a hilariously exaggerated description of what a scary creature an elephant is according to elephant hunters from a few hundred years ago.