(Synopsis from the back cover):
«Takasu Ryuuji might look like a thug, but he’s actually a nice guy. Making friends when you’ve got an unintentionally scary face is tough--and don’t even get him started on girlfriends. But with his secret crush in his class, the start of his second year of high school is off to a good start...until he crosses paths with Aisaka Taiga. Beautiful, frightening, and not quite five feet tall, the girl known as the palmtop tiger is the one person in school even scarier than Ryuuji himself—and he’s just made the mistake of making her very, very angry.»
A Japanese light novel for young adults, a romantic comedy set in a school environment, with typical elements of the genre.
The plot revolves around two students who help each other with their respective crushes.
It is aimed at a young audience and presents features typical of the contemporary teen genre: idealization of falling in love, a primarily sentimental approach to love, and some lighthearted jokes of a sexual nature. There are no explicit scenes or detailed descriptions; the tone is more comedic than sensual.
It includes cartoonish aggression treated humorously, without realistic or serious violence. There is also no explicit obscenity or repeated vulgar language.
It is set in a secular Japanese cultural context, without religious references.
The work stood out within the Japanese school romance genre and had a successful anime adaptation. It is notable for giving a certain psychological depth to characters who could have been simple archetypes.
It's a very funny novel, although it's best not to get stuck on a superficial view of teenage love and to read it with a certain maturity.