Ascendance of a Bookworm

Motosu Urano always loved books and reading and was looking forward to working as a librarian... then an earthquake strikes and she is buried under a pile of books. Her dying wish is to be reincarnated in a world where she can read as much as she wants. She then awakens in the body of Myne, a sickly five year old in a world where books are rare and can only be afforded by the nobility. She is undeterred... she will make her own books. She still has her memories from the previous life and decides to use that knowledge to make her own books... theory and practice are different though and early attempts aren't too successful; she perseveres, along with her friend Lutz. She also uses her knowledge to make other items unknown in this world so she can buy the things she needs. As the story progresses she learns why she is so sickly.

I really enjoyed this series. It moves at a gentle pace and manages to avoid the fan service and violence that feature in many series; especially those in alternate worlds. Myne is a fun protagonist and her attempts to make something to create books with is a joy to watch... and one even learns a bit about ancient writing materials as she works her way up to making more traditional paper. The characters are all fairly likable; I don't think there is anybody who be considered an antagonist. The final episode promised more to come; hopefully we won't have to wait too long for a second season. The character designs are good and the animation is solid. I'd certainly recommend this to anybody wanting a gentle anime series.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.