QUOTE The series centers around a girl named Hikage who describes herself as "plain". She is a very shy and insecure child. Because of her unassertive attitude and unappreciated beauty, she finds herself constantly ignored by her classmates and has a difficult time making friends at school.
Hikage begins middle school, vowing to overcome her loneliness and find companionship. Then Hinata starts to notice her. She is supported in her ambitions by two online friends who read her blog, Black Rabbit and MegaPIG.
Source: Wikipedia - Koko ni iru yo!!
Koko Ni Iru Yo! (I’m Right Here!) is a very sweet manga. The main character, Hikage Sumino, is a bit clichéd but she discovers enough determination to make up for her isolated, fairly helpless, often teary persona. The main male characters, Hinata MutŠand Teru Mikami, have just enough depth to act as effective foils. I really liked the concept of the blog and her conversations with her online friends Black Rabbit and MegaPIG and how they care for and support each other.
It's not the best manga I've ever read (in my brief history of reading manga) but it left me feeling all "sunshiney" and "sunflowery".
Details about my conversion to manga for any of the curious: Having found myself with less time at my disposal for recreational pursuits, I have been soundly bitten by the manga bug (with no small help from various friends who whispered of its delights). It's a pest to be constantly forced to pause anime (when did a 20 minute stretch become so difficult to find?) but manga is easy enough to set aside as needed. I have surrendered ... even some sleep has been sacrificed. WARNING: Manga can be addictive!
