Common Sense Media Review
Sweet slice-of-life fantasy hypes books, hard work, family.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Ascendance of a Bookworm
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
ASCENDANCE OF A BOOKWORM follows Myne (voiced in English by Reba Buhr), a 5-year-old girl in a medieval fantasy world, who's actually a Urano Motosu, a grad school student from modern Japan. When Urano tragically dies during an earthquake, she wishes to be surrounded by books forever. She wakes up to find herself reincarnated as Myne in a world where books are rare and expensive. She decides she'll do whatever it takes to get her wish—even if it means making the books herself.
Is It Any Good?
This charming historical fantasy captures young imaginations with a story of achieving your dreams against the odds. Ascendance of a Bookworm's best trait is its lovable characters. Its second best trait is that it doesn't shy away from hard topics. Conflict is nuanced but still appropriate for younger viewers. Plus, it has a basic but positive representation of disability. The show is realistic about the challenges of being chronically ill without turning Myne into either a sob story or an inspirational saint. She's just a person with a dream doing her best by learning from her mistakes and relying on her community. As a slice-of-life anime, it's pretty light on drama, but it's engaging enough to leave lots to talk about.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the isekai anime. What are normal tropes and themes in the isekai genre? How does Ascendance of a Bookworm conform to or challenge those tropes?
Which characters play into stereotypes, and which push against them? Why is positive representation important?
Which characters, if any, do you consider role models? Why?
TV Details
- Premiere date : October 3, 2019
- Cast : Reba Buhr , Armen Taylor , Lisa Reimold
- Network : Crunchyroll
- Genre : Anime
- Topics : Family Stories , Fantasy ( Magic , Time Travel )
- Character Strengths : Curiosity , Perseverance
- TV rating :
- Last updated : July 22, 2026
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