Books like Yotsuba

The first new volume of Yotsuba in 3 years is a cause for celebration. Needless to say, I was very happy when this volume was released and was saving it for a special occasion. To me, Yotsuba is just one of the best, most precious things in the world, and I was so glad to be able to hang out with these characters once again. Yotsuba is still the cutest little thing, her dad is wonderful, her neighbours and friends are adorable and their collective adventures are as fun, funny and relatable as always. My personal favourite chapter was about Yotsuba, Fuuka and Hiwatari (better known as Miss Stake) going to a free yoga class. I adored how Yotsuba got everything right from the very first try but her friends struggled with every pose — my personal experience with yoga, which I've been practicing for a full year now (with mixed results), has definitely been closer to Yotsuba's older friends!The main adventure of the book though was Yotsuba and her dad taking a trip to Tokyo to pick up their new car and hang out with Yotsuba's aunt Koharuko. I just got back from my first ever trip to Japan (which was absolutely amazing) and am longing to go back there again, so thanks to Kiyohiko Azuma's authentic depiction of Japan and Tokyo in particular he managed to transport me back there, in a way. And that's what Yotsuba&! as a series has always been about for me — the feeling of spending your time with the nicest people in one of the most amazing countries on Earth. That's a great feeling, and not an easy one to capture. Hats off to Mr. Azuma for pulling that off, I could not be more thankful to him for the existence of this wonderful series (and Azumanga Daioh, for that matter). I hope that volume 15 won't take as long to release, but if that's what it takes to create such a beautiful and lovely manga, I am ready to wait.