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よつばと! [Yotsuba&!] #1
Yotsuba&!, Vol. 1
From the nutty mind of Kyohiko Azuma, creator of the hit manga Azumanga Daioh comes the story of the new kid in town - little Yotsuba, a green-haired and wide-eyed girl who doesn't have a clue... about anything! With no knowledge of the world around her, and an unnatural fear of air conditioners, Yotsuba has her new neighbors' heads spinning. Join the hilarious exploits of an out-of-this-world schoolgirl as her befuddled friends attempt to uncover the secrets behind this strange child in Yotsubato!
232 pages, Paperback
First published August 27, 2003
About the author
Kiyohiko Azuma
52 books567 followersKiyohiko Azuma (東清彦 or あずま きよひこ Azuma Kiyohiko) is a Japanese manga author and artist. His most well-known work is Azumanga Daioh. His current series is Yotsuba&!, which is serialized monthly in Dengeki Daioh magazine.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,352 reviews
July 28, 2022
pls don't hate me
July 28, 2011
[This is a review of the whole series.]
We sometimes encounter things—moments, vistas, sounds, ideas—that wholly disarm us. Things that slide so neatly between our hope for the world and our experience of the world that our rational mind is sheared momentarily from the engine of our dreams, that part of us that fuels and crafts desires, longings, hopes, and wishes. We sometimes encounter things that divorce us from the corrupting coolness of reason and leave us in a state, however temporary, of unblemished joy. These things are treasures. These things give us a glimpse of What May Have Been and sometimes even What Could Someday Be. These things are rare and wonderful.
And sometimes these things are books.
Yotsuba&! is one of these sources of magic for me. And, I suspect, for a great number of others as well. Kiyohiko Azuma’s series is an unexpected pleasure. Even if one approaches the work with the knowledge that Yotsuba&! bubbles forth as a fountain of joyfulness, this little girl’s nature and adventures will still surprise in how purely they deliver one into this momentary Other Place.
Plainly put, Yotsuba&! is one of my favorite reading experiences of all time and the only one to so wholly transport me into a world of smiles and laughter.
Azuma’s story concerns a strange young girl—a five-year-old with green hair and pigtails—and the way she interacts with the world about her. (Her name, Yotsuba, means four-leaf and refers conveniently enough to the way she wears her green hair in four distinct pigtails.) While there is always some exploration of the outside world, the book primarily revolves around Yotsuba’s interactions with her father, Koiwai, and her next-door neighbours and their three daughters.
Plot descriptions, of course, cannot remotely approach conveying any sense of why these stories are such a joy. Really, they have to be experienced firsthand to fully apprehend their power to carve out so magical a world, but here: let me at least try.
Yotsuba’s sense of wonder in the way she approaches an environment with which she apparently has had no experience is astonishing in its guilelessness. Yotsuba brims with enthusiasm and the pleasure with which she takes on each new experience leaves us breathless as that enthusiasm spreads. Her father is consistently amused by her naïveté and her neighbours are never certain what exactly to make of her. And yet, she really does inspire affection in everyone she encounters.
Again, my descriptions can only serve as a diminishment to what pleasures are actually found in the book. I am entirely out of my depth to sound out Yotsuba&!'s charms, but perhaps we should just leave it at this: whenever a new volume arrives in the mail, I curl up comfortably with my wife, finding the best lighting possible under such snuggly conditions, and I read each chapter to her aloud, trying to muster in my own voice the clear enthusiasm in Yotsuba’s own.
And then we both smile a lot.
______________________
[review courtesy of Good Ok Bad]
We sometimes encounter things—moments, vistas, sounds, ideas—that wholly disarm us. Things that slide so neatly between our hope for the world and our experience of the world that our rational mind is sheared momentarily from the engine of our dreams, that part of us that fuels and crafts desires, longings, hopes, and wishes. We sometimes encounter things that divorce us from the corrupting coolness of reason and leave us in a state, however temporary, of unblemished joy. These things are treasures. These things give us a glimpse of What May Have Been and sometimes even What Could Someday Be. These things are rare and wonderful.
And sometimes these things are books.
Yotsuba&! is one of these sources of magic for me. And, I suspect, for a great number of others as well. Kiyohiko Azuma’s series is an unexpected pleasure. Even if one approaches the work with the knowledge that Yotsuba&! bubbles forth as a fountain of joyfulness, this little girl’s nature and adventures will still surprise in how purely they deliver one into this momentary Other Place.
Plainly put, Yotsuba&! is one of my favorite reading experiences of all time and the only one to so wholly transport me into a world of smiles and laughter.
Azuma’s story concerns a strange young girl—a five-year-old with green hair and pigtails—and the way she interacts with the world about her. (Her name, Yotsuba, means four-leaf and refers conveniently enough to the way she wears her green hair in four distinct pigtails.) While there is always some exploration of the outside world, the book primarily revolves around Yotsuba’s interactions with her father, Koiwai, and her next-door neighbours and their three daughters.
Plot descriptions, of course, cannot remotely approach conveying any sense of why these stories are such a joy. Really, they have to be experienced firsthand to fully apprehend their power to carve out so magical a world, but here: let me at least try.
Yotsuba’s sense of wonder in the way she approaches an environment with which she apparently has had no experience is astonishing in its guilelessness. Yotsuba brims with enthusiasm and the pleasure with which she takes on each new experience leaves us breathless as that enthusiasm spreads. Her father is consistently amused by her naïveté and her neighbours are never certain what exactly to make of her. And yet, she really does inspire affection in everyone she encounters.
Again, my descriptions can only serve as a diminishment to what pleasures are actually found in the book. I am entirely out of my depth to sound out Yotsuba&!'s charms, but perhaps we should just leave it at this: whenever a new volume arrives in the mail, I curl up comfortably with my wife, finding the best lighting possible under such snuggly conditions, and I read each chapter to her aloud, trying to muster in my own voice the clear enthusiasm in Yotsuba’s own.
And then we both smile a lot.
______________________
It should be noted that there are two English translations available. ADV Manga held the license for Yotsuba&! for a number of years but as the manga bubble burst due to over saturation and ADV experienced its own problems that from the outside simply looked like poor business management, the company let slip the license to publish the book in America. Yen Press thankfully picked it up and has been publishing ever since, both taking on the new volumes and republishing their own translations of the previously released volumes.
While I am very thankful that due to Yen Press’ work, Yotsuba&! is still available to readers today, I really did prefer ADV’s translation. While I don’t speak or read Japanese, it looks like Yen Press’ translation is probably more faithful to the original language, retaining honorifics such and -san and -chan. That’s good and I applaud their fidelity, but as a reader, ADV’s work just flows better and breathes more life into Yotsuba and her supporting cast. While the books are still greatly enjoyable, whenever I read the books out loud, I find myself translating from Yen Press’ English into ADV’s on the fly. It’s tiring, but it makes for an altogether better experience for readers/listeners.
[review courtesy of Good Ok Bad]
September 12, 2024
When you find yourself at the blood lacquered helm of the University Interscholastic League, with the two ripe boluses of your nourishing mother (i.e. Alma mater) positioned dangerously on the mantle of your undeveloped traps, so grossly engorged with the mana of erudition that no amount of hip hinges could’ve conditioned your flagging posterior chain to hold steady beneath the sanctified aegis of those sagacious teats, and no perforated plastic bulb could’ve instilled the oral habits necessary to tap the fleshy kegs for a volume of academic colostrum sufficient to redistribute the burden in a manner more flattering to your center of gravity, it behooves you to know just how much superficial characteristics and capricious temperamental whims govern the success or failure of your debating career. In my case: which of these two qualities proved most useful in building a massive constituency in favor of the motion that, Grendel, descendant of the Biblical Cain, was no more responsible for his murderous case of Mead-Hall Misophonia, than he was for the eldritch curse foisted upon his germ-line by a supremely petulant and vindictive God, and thus it was, at the very least, as incumbent upon the rotten louts who populated the bar, to not be such raucous, inconsiderate cockswaddles for twelve whole years, and in no way was justice served by the itinerate murder-hobo who took it upon himself to restore the dipsomaniacal northmen to their natural blood alcohol level by laying in wait for the wretched beast, falling upon him with the enormously powerful hands of a Tony Robbins, (another alleged instance of God’s unequally distributed largesses), which he uses to avulse, with shocking brutality, the arm of the hexed tinnitus sufferer, then later deploys these pickle jar torquing, Blessed Neanderthal mitts in the service of wrenching the defeated foe’s fucking head clean off his body with a zesty, jugular oxygenating, twist - so that he might immortalize the agonized, final moments of the defeated Grendel by keeping his grimacing head as a trophy (i.e. Beowulf).
A.) That, on every standardized test which involves the use of visuospatial sketchpad, central executive, phonological loop, and episodic buffer to reproduce immediately, after one presentation, a series of discrete stimuli in their original order, (i.e. Memory span) ostensibly to measure the number of these discrete units over which an individual can successively distribute their attention and still organize them into a working unit (i.e. Working Memory), I have astounded test administrators by recalling lists of innocuous items, sex toys, and digits, reciting them both backwards and forwards, far beyond the average (seven, plus or minus two) and into the approximate range of “balls deep.” (i.e. 69 [citation needed])
B.) Human height is positively related to interpersonal dominance in dyadic interactions, and I’m a very tall bitch.
A.) That, after discovering a book in my papaw’s study called: I, Asimov, featuring a peculiar pair of sentient mutton chops on the cover, I became (from Asimov’s description of the unsavory sorts who populate MENSA gatherings) obsessed with infiltrating exclusive clubs for the cognitively gifted so that I could undermine the self confidence of every socially maladroit, test-obsessed cultist who worshipped at the altar of their own CPU, by showing them what a red assed, null pointer they had allowed to terrorize their sacred functions with her terrible chess gambits, menthol chain smoking induced vocal fry, and the constant smuggling of illicit whisky onto the premises via increasingly fantastic means - and, as a consequence, have accrued devastating stockpiles of interdisciplinary munitions and a lamentable tendency towards horrendous, yet strangely persuasive, bouts of intellectual affectation which would make William F. Buckley Jr.’s preposterously mellifluous accent not appear as if he had brandy in the back of his mouth that he needed to evaluate before swallowing, but a genuine idiosyncrasy.
B.) I turn towards those who would judge the proceedings and bow deeply, while mangling a trifecta of Japanese, Norwegian, and Latin, in order to express, with an eye towards pluralism, the following gladiatorial dedication, as if soliciting the reprieve of The Emperor Claudius himself: Avē Imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant, which, roughly translated, means: “Oh God. I just did a FAT bong rip.” [Citation needed]
Today we are going to examine some common logical fallacies, proceeding from that which is axiomatic: Yotsuba is the cutest and bestest. If you wish to register some contention against this, the bedrock of sublunary existence upon the floral ass of the parthenogenic mother whose wide-bosoms feature prominently in Hesiod’s Theogony (eg. Gaia), then I encourage you to consult the Pythia in the temple of Apollo and allow her to witness unto you, an enigmatic prophecy, in which you are dressed down for being an absolute dumbass in dactylic hexameters of ever increasing vitriol, while continuing to stuff her mouth with Oleander and inhale what we now believe to have been either ethylene, benzene, or methane issuing prodigiously from a geologic chasm. Because you deserve it, idiot. And if, after being chastised by a prophet, you still insist on questioning the validity of this assertion, there is no hope but for you to fuck the fuck off, you unmitigated fucker.
Ad Hominem - Attacking a person’s character rather than engaging in good faith discussion.
“You have the temperament and attention span of a small child, it’s little wonder that you’d gravitate towards a cartoon book series about a strange, precocious brat.”
Notice that this is a triune attack. 1.) Against manga itself as a disreputable medium. 2.) Against myself as an alarmingly scatterbrained sass mouth hellbent. 3.) Against The Bestest Girl as a troublesome child. This is a graduated form of the Ad Hominem known to mattress actresses as ‘The Shocker’ a dubious rhetorical device whose origins lie in a heinous display of primate dexterity. (Colloquially: Two in the *redacted*. One in the *redacted*.) This is prohibited by law in many places, and I encourage you to consult with local authorities if you encounter this fallacy in its ugliest form. Don’t bother engaging their ideas, they have all the warmth and charm of a walleyed pike and the personality of a dead moth. How could it possibly be worth it? Speaking of which!
Straw Man (maybe some Ad Hominem too...) - Setting up a pathetic caricature of your opponent’s position.
“It’s just some dumb series with no overarching plot about a little girl who is surprised by literally the most mundane shit. Who makes a big deal out of trivial occurrences. She’s into everything and grows deliriously happy if given colorful beads or candy. She routinely causes her dad fits by making messes and putting herself in danger. She’s continually barging in on the neighbors, wanting to play stupid games that don’t make any sense or threatening them with a water pistol.”
Notice the total lack of redeeming qualities in this cynical sack of buzzard bollox. It is proper to affix them with the sign of the cross and drive them back to 4chan through whatever means necessary. Personal hygiene is anathema to these types, so a simple solution of soap and water will be enough to expedite the banishment. They’re only fit for using as a doormat or an ash tray. Speaking of which:
False Dichotomy (Ad Hominem again, maybe...) - Making something appear like a binary choice when many options exist.
“Look, you can either waste your time reading drivel which offers only juvenile appeals to your basic simian imperatives, or you can upgrade your software by engaging with the greatest minds of history.”
Imagine if you only had time in your life to inflict upon yourself grueling narratives which lacerate your soul and stuffy manuals which quantify endlessly. People would regard you curiously at first, as you cast your hospital fluorescence over social gatherings, but later they would come to revile your approach, having come to understand that your rictus grin is not a disfiguring case of Bell’s palsy, but instead a Skinnerian motor reflex brought on by secretly factoring prime numbers. Behind the facade of your humanity would rest an abacus of neurons. Bereft of humor or grace. Long division wrapped in flesh and ambulating around the punch bowl. Speaking of which:
Slippery Slope - Taking things to improbable extremes.
Alright, enough of that. You should really give this series a shot. Because it will fill you with laughter and love. In our confusing times, these commodities are more precious than ever. Yotsuba is the embodiment of the wonder most of us possess in spades as we’re growing up, but discard somewhere along the way for functional cynicism. She captures the world’s mundane glories in fresh perspectives, reminding those of us who have allowed these ubiquitous marvels to bleed into the periphery, that, while they may prove more difficult to discern through the web our rote behaviors, they are still there. And we can appreciate them with warmth and gratitude if we pause, just briefly, in our hurried agitations, and remember how strange it is to be alive.
Follow the adventures of The Bestest Girl. Don’t be a dumbass.
A.) That, on every standardized test which involves the use of visuospatial sketchpad, central executive, phonological loop, and episodic buffer to reproduce immediately, after one presentation, a series of discrete stimuli in their original order, (i.e. Memory span) ostensibly to measure the number of these discrete units over which an individual can successively distribute their attention and still organize them into a working unit (i.e. Working Memory), I have astounded test administrators by recalling lists of innocuous items, sex toys, and digits, reciting them both backwards and forwards, far beyond the average (seven, plus or minus two) and into the approximate range of “balls deep.” (i.e. 69 [citation needed])
B.) Human height is positively related to interpersonal dominance in dyadic interactions, and I’m a very tall bitch.
A.) That, after discovering a book in my papaw’s study called: I, Asimov, featuring a peculiar pair of sentient mutton chops on the cover, I became (from Asimov’s description of the unsavory sorts who populate MENSA gatherings) obsessed with infiltrating exclusive clubs for the cognitively gifted so that I could undermine the self confidence of every socially maladroit, test-obsessed cultist who worshipped at the altar of their own CPU, by showing them what a red assed, null pointer they had allowed to terrorize their sacred functions with her terrible chess gambits, menthol chain smoking induced vocal fry, and the constant smuggling of illicit whisky onto the premises via increasingly fantastic means - and, as a consequence, have accrued devastating stockpiles of interdisciplinary munitions and a lamentable tendency towards horrendous, yet strangely persuasive, bouts of intellectual affectation which would make William F. Buckley Jr.’s preposterously mellifluous accent not appear as if he had brandy in the back of his mouth that he needed to evaluate before swallowing, but a genuine idiosyncrasy.
B.) I turn towards those who would judge the proceedings and bow deeply, while mangling a trifecta of Japanese, Norwegian, and Latin, in order to express, with an eye towards pluralism, the following gladiatorial dedication, as if soliciting the reprieve of The Emperor Claudius himself: Avē Imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant, which, roughly translated, means: “Oh God. I just did a FAT bong rip.” [Citation needed]
Today we are going to examine some common logical fallacies, proceeding from that which is axiomatic: Yotsuba is the cutest and bestest. If you wish to register some contention against this, the bedrock of sublunary existence upon the floral ass of the parthenogenic mother whose wide-bosoms feature prominently in Hesiod’s Theogony (eg. Gaia), then I encourage you to consult the Pythia in the temple of Apollo and allow her to witness unto you, an enigmatic prophecy, in which you are dressed down for being an absolute dumbass in dactylic hexameters of ever increasing vitriol, while continuing to stuff her mouth with Oleander and inhale what we now believe to have been either ethylene, benzene, or methane issuing prodigiously from a geologic chasm. Because you deserve it, idiot. And if, after being chastised by a prophet, you still insist on questioning the validity of this assertion, there is no hope but for you to fuck the fuck off, you unmitigated fucker.
Ad Hominem - Attacking a person’s character rather than engaging in good faith discussion.
“You have the temperament and attention span of a small child, it’s little wonder that you’d gravitate towards a cartoon book series about a strange, precocious brat.”
Notice that this is a triune attack. 1.) Against manga itself as a disreputable medium. 2.) Against myself as an alarmingly scatterbrained sass mouth hellbent. 3.) Against The Bestest Girl as a troublesome child. This is a graduated form of the Ad Hominem known to mattress actresses as ‘The Shocker’ a dubious rhetorical device whose origins lie in a heinous display of primate dexterity. (Colloquially: Two in the *redacted*. One in the *redacted*.) This is prohibited by law in many places, and I encourage you to consult with local authorities if you encounter this fallacy in its ugliest form. Don’t bother engaging their ideas, they have all the warmth and charm of a walleyed pike and the personality of a dead moth. How could it possibly be worth it? Speaking of which!
Straw Man (maybe some Ad Hominem too...) - Setting up a pathetic caricature of your opponent’s position.
“It’s just some dumb series with no overarching plot about a little girl who is surprised by literally the most mundane shit. Who makes a big deal out of trivial occurrences. She’s into everything and grows deliriously happy if given colorful beads or candy. She routinely causes her dad fits by making messes and putting herself in danger. She’s continually barging in on the neighbors, wanting to play stupid games that don’t make any sense or threatening them with a water pistol.”
Notice the total lack of redeeming qualities in this cynical sack of buzzard bollox. It is proper to affix them with the sign of the cross and drive them back to 4chan through whatever means necessary. Personal hygiene is anathema to these types, so a simple solution of soap and water will be enough to expedite the banishment. They’re only fit for using as a doormat or an ash tray. Speaking of which:
False Dichotomy (Ad Hominem again, maybe...) - Making something appear like a binary choice when many options exist.
“Look, you can either waste your time reading drivel which offers only juvenile appeals to your basic simian imperatives, or you can upgrade your software by engaging with the greatest minds of history.”
Imagine if you only had time in your life to inflict upon yourself grueling narratives which lacerate your soul and stuffy manuals which quantify endlessly. People would regard you curiously at first, as you cast your hospital fluorescence over social gatherings, but later they would come to revile your approach, having come to understand that your rictus grin is not a disfiguring case of Bell’s palsy, but instead a Skinnerian motor reflex brought on by secretly factoring prime numbers. Behind the facade of your humanity would rest an abacus of neurons. Bereft of humor or grace. Long division wrapped in flesh and ambulating around the punch bowl. Speaking of which:
Slippery Slope - Taking things to improbable extremes.
Alright, enough of that. You should really give this series a shot. Because it will fill you with laughter and love. In our confusing times, these commodities are more precious than ever. Yotsuba is the embodiment of the wonder most of us possess in spades as we’re growing up, but discard somewhere along the way for functional cynicism. She captures the world’s mundane glories in fresh perspectives, reminding those of us who have allowed these ubiquitous marvels to bleed into the periphery, that, while they may prove more difficult to discern through the web our rote behaviors, they are still there. And we can appreciate them with warmth and gratitude if we pause, just briefly, in our hurried agitations, and remember how strange it is to be alive.
Follow the adventures of The Bestest Girl. Don’t be a dumbass.
May 27, 2024
A easy going perfect manga series with simple but cute and clean art with portraying some of the most cute and funny characters enjoying their life everyday and living to the fullest.
Yotsuba is one of kind girl, she understands and misunderstands things very easily and interpret things at her own pace with her own understanding which makes the simple everyday events so humorous.
Definitely looking forward to next volume. I am highly impressed...
Yotsuba is one of kind girl, she understands and misunderstands things very easily and interpret things at her own pace with her own understanding which makes the simple everyday events so humorous.
Definitely looking forward to next volume. I am highly impressed...
February 22, 2018
cute ❤️'
March 18, 2016
So this is one very joyful and adorable manga that will make you happy to be alive. This is my first encounter with this manga, and with this little green-haired girl with four pig-tails (Yotsuba means "four leaf clover") who doesn't seem to know how the world works, but is happy to explore it, in apparently randomly-occurring episodes about tv, shopping, cicadas, rain, manners, and global warming. There's an environmental theme, yes, running through it. It doesn't (at this point, anyway) appear to be about plot, but about her encounters with the world. Yeah!
April 27, 2017
طنزی عالی و شخصیتپردازی منحصر به فرد.
داستان دختر بچهای که شیطنتهای آدم رو از ته دل میخندونه.
داستان دختر بچهای که شیطنتهای آدم رو از ته دل میخندونه.
July 17, 2022
THIS IS SO SCARY. The first i marked this as read was 4 exact years ago. HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLY. anyways still love it.
March 23, 2008
All of the Yotsuba mangas are absolutely darling. There's no real overall plot, just the goings on of a cute little girl and her adoptive father and their friends. She's both an amusement and an irritant to her neighbors who are three girls ranging in age from just a bit older than Yotsuba to college aged. Everything in the world is seen by Yotsuba as new and strange and that's what is so great about these books. The cuteness is not treacly nor saccharine, it just is something that makes me giggle even when I'm reading one of the books on a crowded train. Sometimes, the funny is too much and I'm left red-faced with tears coming down my cheeks.
July 17, 2017
I just finished watching Azumanga Daioh anime, written by Kiyohiko Azuma, and I loved it to bits. Naturally, I wanted more of the same type of storytelling, so picking up Yotsuba & !, Azuma's celebrated manga, was a no-brainer for me. Unsurprisingly, I loved this book. It's a delightful collection of small slice of life stories set in modern Japan and centered around this peculiar small child, Yotsuba, and her family and neighbors. That's pretty much it, really — there's no huge overarching story here, not so far, anyway. But the humor, the light-hearted tone, and the cuteness of most of the characters makes for a very pleasant read. It's the kind of a warm blanket book for when you're feeling down, similar to comics like Giant Days or maybe even Peanuts, or some of the lighter Ghibli movies, like My Neighbor Totoro or Kiki's Delivery Service. So to anyone looking for something lighter to cheer you up, Keep Yotsuba in mind — it's great!
June 25, 2023
I have collected my thoughts on Yotsuba in a youtube video a youtube video, please have a look (only) if you understand Italian.
(I am not very active on goodreads right now, among many reasons, because I am working on spitting unrequested judgments on comics on youtube.)
8/10
A comic series about a six year old girl. A real six year old girl, one that behaves, thinks and reacts to everything she encounters just like you would expect a little girl to. (All filtered through the idealised lenses of cartooning comedy, of course.) All around, a bunch of adults who react to her funny behaviour in the way adults actually interact with kids. It may sound like an obvious idea, especially for a medium like comics that has among many the reputation of being 'for the youngest'. Yet, personally I have never seen that idea at work. We are used to infant protagonists on whom some features of adult psychology are projected: may that be the existentialist Peanuts or the dreamy Calvin from the American strips, the ironic Titeuf from France, the politically aware Mafalda from Argentina, and so on. Well, it is not the case for this cute series by Kiyohiko Azuma. Here we are really only reading slices of life of a smiling brat. And it works!
We follow the mini-adventures of little Yotsuba Koiwai, an orphan girl adopted by what I can only define as the best single dad in the world. The series has a simple episodic nature. In every episode, the green-haired protagonist discovers some aspect of the world around her, which is basically a peaceful portrait of the suburban Japan of the early 21st century. Her universe is composed of a small cast of well characterised family friends, neighbours and friends of neighbours.
In this first volume Yotsuba gets acquainted with her new neighbours, three sister girls. It would be more precise to say that they get to discover the absolute optimism, the infinite sense of wonder and the subtle weirdness of this hyperactive little girl.
The right word to describe the cartooning style of Azuma is gentle. A gentle humour flows panel after panel, leaving a constant smile on the face of the reader. Gentle is the pace of these short stories, and gentle is the inking touch of the artist. Azuma knows the abc of humorous cartooning and exploits it with apparent ease.
Yotsuba&! is a cute but dangerously addictive comics.
(I am not very active on goodreads right now, among many reasons, because I am working on spitting unrequested judgments on comics on youtube.)
8/10
A comic series about a six year old girl. A real six year old girl, one that behaves, thinks and reacts to everything she encounters just like you would expect a little girl to. (All filtered through the idealised lenses of cartooning comedy, of course.) All around, a bunch of adults who react to her funny behaviour in the way adults actually interact with kids. It may sound like an obvious idea, especially for a medium like comics that has among many the reputation of being 'for the youngest'. Yet, personally I have never seen that idea at work. We are used to infant protagonists on whom some features of adult psychology are projected: may that be the existentialist Peanuts or the dreamy Calvin from the American strips, the ironic Titeuf from France, the politically aware Mafalda from Argentina, and so on. Well, it is not the case for this cute series by Kiyohiko Azuma. Here we are really only reading slices of life of a smiling brat. And it works!
We follow the mini-adventures of little Yotsuba Koiwai, an orphan girl adopted by what I can only define as the best single dad in the world. The series has a simple episodic nature. In every episode, the green-haired protagonist discovers some aspect of the world around her, which is basically a peaceful portrait of the suburban Japan of the early 21st century. Her universe is composed of a small cast of well characterised family friends, neighbours and friends of neighbours.
In this first volume Yotsuba gets acquainted with her new neighbours, three sister girls. It would be more precise to say that they get to discover the absolute optimism, the infinite sense of wonder and the subtle weirdness of this hyperactive little girl.
The right word to describe the cartooning style of Azuma is gentle. A gentle humour flows panel after panel, leaving a constant smile on the face of the reader. Gentle is the pace of these short stories, and gentle is the inking touch of the artist. Azuma knows the abc of humorous cartooning and exploits it with apparent ease.
Yotsuba&! is a cute but dangerously addictive comics.
March 22, 2013
Yotsuba is a great manga to read in Japanese if you're a beginner-intermediate Japanese student. The dialogue is very simple (almost straight from Genki 1+2) and almost every kanji has hiragana next to it so you wont need a dictionary. Yotsuba speaks like a child, but that's what makes it so easy to understand. When Yotsuba doesnt understand something, the adults explain it to her in easy Japanese language. It's great! Also, if you get really stuck, having the pictures there is super helpful. Even if you skim past bits that you dont understand, the pictures will give you an idea of the story.
I recommend this manga to all Japanese language students! It's a fun way to practice your reading and inner translation skills.
I recommend this manga to all Japanese language students! It's a fun way to practice your reading and inner translation skills.
August 17, 2024
I read the second volume first. More amusing situations involving five-year old Yotsuba and those around her.
I may grow bored eventually but I will read volume 3. I understood most of this one. I may not grow bored. Am curious about what stays the same and what changes in subsequent volumes.
5 Years Later
I decided to read the volumes in this series that I hadn't read, but first I thought maybe I'd reread some or all of the first nine. (I can't believe it took me months to read it last time, so I guess my Japanese is improving some.) One thing I missed before, or understood so little that I forgot it, was the part about Yotsuba's missing mother. I wondered about her as I read the first nine and assumed I had missed it, but now I know... kinda!
I may grow bored eventually but I will read volume 3. I understood most of this one. I may not grow bored. Am curious about what stays the same and what changes in subsequent volumes.
5 Years Later
I decided to read the volumes in this series that I hadn't read, but first I thought maybe I'd reread some or all of the first nine. (I can't believe it took me months to read it last time, so I guess my Japanese is improving some.) One thing I missed before, or understood so little that I forgot it, was the part about Yotsuba's missing mother. I wondered about her as I read the first nine and assumed I had missed it, but now I know... kinda!
June 5, 2021
This was fucking adorable.
The series is just about a little girl on adventures every day with her dad, his friend, and their new neighbors. It's a bit weird, silly, and SO much fun to read. I challenge you not to crack a smile or laugh at this book. With father and daughter going shopping is too funny, to Boxers man, to hunting beetles, this volume was so much fun to read.
Sometimes you just need something laid back and cute like this to make the day better. A 5 out of 5.
The series is just about a little girl on adventures every day with her dad, his friend, and their new neighbors. It's a bit weird, silly, and SO much fun to read. I challenge you not to crack a smile or laugh at this book. With father and daughter going shopping is too funny, to Boxers man, to hunting beetles, this volume was so much fun to read.
Sometimes you just need something laid back and cute like this to make the day better. A 5 out of 5.
October 13, 2014
As soon as I find the exact perfect image, I'm getting a tattoo of Yotsuba, a small one, over my heart. Ok, maybe not over my heart, but I'm going to ink her onto my skin to remind me to "enjoy everything", to keep that childlike wonder as close to me as I can at all times.
Watching (literally; it's a graphic novel) Yotsuba (a pre-K kid from some other country - her name is synonymous with "four-leafed clover", thus her four-pigtailed, green hair) explore her world is a little like re-living my memories of my most favorite childhood dreams. She's so exuberant and delightful! Her neighbors are wonderful, her dad cracks me up and I adore their enormous friend, Jumbo. Most dear to my heart is Yotsuba's contention with the slackerly, no-good but quick-witted Yanda.
I recommend reading the ADV editions of Yotsuba&!,if you can get your hands on them. I think they only published up to Vol. 5? Yen Press later got the rights and have re-adapted and re-published them for the American audience, but Yen's version leaves something to be desired. With just a few little modifications, probably ones that are true to the translation but maybe not to the feeling of the series, Yen manages to simplify Yotsuba into an adult's idea of a child. She becomes almost babyish. They're still worth reading, but I find the ADV editions to be far more enjoyable.
Watching (literally; it's a graphic novel) Yotsuba (a pre-K kid from some other country - her name is synonymous with "four-leafed clover", thus her four-pigtailed, green hair) explore her world is a little like re-living my memories of my most favorite childhood dreams. She's so exuberant and delightful! Her neighbors are wonderful, her dad cracks me up and I adore their enormous friend, Jumbo. Most dear to my heart is Yotsuba's contention with the slackerly, no-good but quick-witted Yanda.
I recommend reading the ADV editions of Yotsuba&!,if you can get your hands on them. I think they only published up to Vol. 5? Yen Press later got the rights and have re-adapted and re-published them for the American audience, but Yen's version leaves something to be desired. With just a few little modifications, probably ones that are true to the translation but maybe not to the feeling of the series, Yen manages to simplify Yotsuba into an adult's idea of a child. She becomes almost babyish. They're still worth reading, but I find the ADV editions to be far more enjoyable.
May 21, 2020
برای بار دوم این مجموعه رو شروع کردم. این مانگا ماجراهای بامزهی یوتسوبا، دخترکیه که با باباش به شهر مهاجرت میکنن و اونجا با کنجکاویها و رفتارهای منحصر به فردش موقعیتهای طنز متعددی رو خلق میکنه. ترکیب شخصیتهای مانگا واقعا جالبه و چند جا از ته دل خندیدم باهاش.
September 2, 2020
This was such a treat!! Fans of “My Neighbor Totoro” should give this a shot.
It’s very similar to Totoro’s overall theme of “unfiltered childhood.” The things Yotsuba says actually seems like things I would hear young children say. She’s crazy but quite charming.
The humor in this was spot on. It was ridiculous but enjoyable. There were many spots where I burst out laughing and couldn’t stop because of how funny it was.
The story was mainly about her adventures with her dad and the neighbor girls and were fairly disconnected from each other. It’s more of a character driven story than anything else.
The art suited the story well. It was pleasing to look at and was correct from almost every angle. I didn’t really think about the art since it was good and the story really sucked me into it.
It’s very similar to Totoro’s overall theme of “unfiltered childhood.” The things Yotsuba says actually seems like things I would hear young children say. She’s crazy but quite charming.
The humor in this was spot on. It was ridiculous but enjoyable. There were many spots where I burst out laughing and couldn’t stop because of how funny it was.
The story was mainly about her adventures with her dad and the neighbor girls and were fairly disconnected from each other. It’s more of a character driven story than anything else.
The art suited the story well. It was pleasing to look at and was correct from almost every angle. I didn’t really think about the art since it was good and the story really sucked me into it.
May 20, 2018
I wasn't going to read beyond the first volume but gdi I have questions
September 3, 2022
A sweet and amusing manga with all the warmth you can expect from a young child, her hopeless dad, and their friendly neighbours.
Like any young child, Yotsuba showed excitement and enthusiasm purely through shouting. And whilst her overly abundant enthusiasm could be considered exasperating at first, after her backstory was revealed at the end of the vol such enthusiasm could only be viewed as a miracle. That revelation left a bittersweet taste in the mouth and added a whole new level of depth for what had only been a simplistic manga until the end.
Like any young child, Yotsuba showed excitement and enthusiasm purely through shouting. And whilst her overly abundant enthusiasm could be considered exasperating at first, after her backstory was revealed at the end of the vol such enthusiasm could only be viewed as a miracle. That revelation left a bittersweet taste in the mouth and added a whole new level of depth for what had only been a simplistic manga until the end.
February 27, 2022
Un manga maravilloso con una joven protagonista que te roba el corazón. Una verdadera delicia para pasar el rato, desconectar de la realidad y soltar un par de carcajadas con las ocurrencias de esta pequeña.
Me ha encantado.
Me ha encantado.
February 14, 2012
From the creator of Azumanga Daoih comes Yotsuba&!, a laugh-out-loud manga series for all ages. Yotsuba&! centers on a bright-eyed five-year-old girl named Yotsuba who is inquisitive, cheerful, naïve, and bounding with energy. Yotsuba brings excitement (and the occasional embarrassment) to the lives of her single father, Koiwai; the neighboring Ayase family; her father’s best friend, Jumbo; and others.
The humor – and appeal to all ages – in this 10-volume series stands comes from multiple character perspectives. In the “Yotsuba & Manners!” chapter of Vol. 2, for example, readers vividly feel Yotsuba’s father’s desperation as he tries to fix the bathroom door’s lock by climbing in through the window, as well as neighbor Fuka’s awkwardness as she passes her new neighbor breaking into his house and decides, “Just keep walking. . . ”
These juxtaposed perspectives – seeing a situation as one might handle it, and then seeing an onlooker’s perceptive – as well as Yotsuba’s lessons in social etiquette, make Yotsuba&! a laugh-out-loud series that can be read again and again.
The humor – and appeal to all ages – in this 10-volume series stands comes from multiple character perspectives. In the “Yotsuba & Manners!” chapter of Vol. 2, for example, readers vividly feel Yotsuba’s father’s desperation as he tries to fix the bathroom door’s lock by climbing in through the window, as well as neighbor Fuka’s awkwardness as she passes her new neighbor breaking into his house and decides, “Just keep walking. . . ”
These juxtaposed perspectives – seeing a situation as one might handle it, and then seeing an onlooker’s perceptive – as well as Yotsuba’s lessons in social etiquette, make Yotsuba&! a laugh-out-loud series that can be read again and again.
May 9, 2020
İlk manga okumam. genel olarak beğendim. eğlenceli. Her bölüm de farklı konular olması dinamik olmasını sağlamış. Sıkılmadan, kolayca okunabilirlik katmış. Çizimler de güzel. Yotsuba çocuğum olsa her gün kap krizi riski ile yaşardım ama işte başkasının çocuğu olunca sevimli geliyor.
September 10, 2021
This is a review of the entire series!
Yotsuba is an adventurous, green-haired and wide-eyed five-year-old girl moving into a new town with her father. Her energy is off the charts and her curiosity about anything and everything is never satisfied. The daily adventures of Yotsuba and her neighbors turned best pals tackle every subject imaginable from learning to ride bikes, selling flowers, racing at the beach and finding ways to battle against environmental pollution; all the while driving each other crazy and learning to love each others company.
I've been dealing with a lot of stress and depression in my personal life lately, so I thought it would be a nice change of pace to read something funny, cute and wholesome for a change. I went into this series expecting it to be corny or cringeworthy compared to what I'm used to, but was surprised by how genuinely charming, hilarious and heartwarming it is. You can tell the author has a lot of experience being a parent as he captures all the specific mannerisms, speech patterns and chaotic behavior of curious little kids better than most stories I've ever watched or read. Sometimes she's funny and sweet, sometimes she's bratty and annoying, sometimes she's an incoherent babbler that fascinates everyone around her with her insanely creative ideas and the unpredictably wacky shenanigans she constantly cooks up.
All the characters are lovable, each chapter is a fun self-contained story and it has the perfect balance of comedy, adventure and wholesome familial bonding. Yotsuba is a wonderful character. Her mischievous curiosity and her chaotic positive energy are dangerously infectious, both to the reader and to everyone's lives she becomes a part of. I definitely felt cheered up every time I read a chapter from this series and was surprised to find myself constantly smiling and laughing. I think it's impossible to read this manga and not feel uplifted in one way or another.
***
If you're looking for some nice ambient music that's perfect for listening to while reading books, comics and manga, look no further than my YouTube channel Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
Yotsuba is an adventurous, green-haired and wide-eyed five-year-old girl moving into a new town with her father. Her energy is off the charts and her curiosity about anything and everything is never satisfied. The daily adventures of Yotsuba and her neighbors turned best pals tackle every subject imaginable from learning to ride bikes, selling flowers, racing at the beach and finding ways to battle against environmental pollution; all the while driving each other crazy and learning to love each others company.
I've been dealing with a lot of stress and depression in my personal life lately, so I thought it would be a nice change of pace to read something funny, cute and wholesome for a change. I went into this series expecting it to be corny or cringeworthy compared to what I'm used to, but was surprised by how genuinely charming, hilarious and heartwarming it is. You can tell the author has a lot of experience being a parent as he captures all the specific mannerisms, speech patterns and chaotic behavior of curious little kids better than most stories I've ever watched or read. Sometimes she's funny and sweet, sometimes she's bratty and annoying, sometimes she's an incoherent babbler that fascinates everyone around her with her insanely creative ideas and the unpredictably wacky shenanigans she constantly cooks up.
All the characters are lovable, each chapter is a fun self-contained story and it has the perfect balance of comedy, adventure and wholesome familial bonding. Yotsuba is a wonderful character. Her mischievous curiosity and her chaotic positive energy are dangerously infectious, both to the reader and to everyone's lives she becomes a part of. I definitely felt cheered up every time I read a chapter from this series and was surprised to find myself constantly smiling and laughing. I think it's impossible to read this manga and not feel uplifted in one way or another.
***
If you're looking for some nice ambient music that's perfect for listening to while reading books, comics and manga, look no further than my YouTube channel Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
June 17, 2024
Yotsuba is the original Anya Forger
January 30, 2024
not for me but good if you like fun
September 26, 2011
First off, the title of the manga comes from the chapter titles – each one is labeled differently; “Yotsuba and Moving.” “Yotsuba and Global Warming” (no, I’m not kidding).
I picked up this manga because it’s by the same manga-ka as Azumanga Daioh, which just delighted me to read. Yotsuba is a young girl living with her father, Koiwai, and they have just moved to the neighborhood. Jumbo, a friend of Koiwai’s, helps Koiwai move things into the house but Yotsuba wanders off. Jumbo takes off to look for her and also to buy Koiwai some gifts to give to the neighbors while Koiwai starts unpacking. While he’s doing that, he meets up with one of his neighbors, a teenage girl named Fuka, who offers to also look for Yotsuba. Koiwai tells her that it’s okay, Yotsuba wanders off all the time, but if Fuka sees a really weird girl, “that’s probably Yotsuba.” Fuka obviously thinks this is a strange way for Koiwai to describe his daughter but goes out looking for Yotsuba anyway.
Yotsuba, meanwhile, has discovered a swingset…only she has no clue how to swing. Another girl, Ena, shows her how, only to realize that there’s something kind of peculiar about Yotsuba. We find out that Ena and Fuka are related when they meet and Ena tells Fuka about the odd girl in the park. Fuka takes off after Yotsuba and eventually, everyone gets together (except poor Jumbo), for an official introduction of the main characters of the story.
Yotsuba& is amazingly cute. While I’m not generally fond of cute stories, preferring action/adventure, Yotsuba with her incredibly quirky ways and reactions to things most people take for granted is a delight. Koiwai’s nonchalant attitude goes very well with his daughter’s weirdness and the neighbor girls, Fuka (the middle aged girl), Ena (the youngest) and their older sister, Asagi, are obviously there to react to Yotsuba’s peculiarities – but they seem very sweet, too. If you like sweet mixed with weird, Yotsuba& is definitely the manga for you.
I picked up this manga because it’s by the same manga-ka as Azumanga Daioh, which just delighted me to read. Yotsuba is a young girl living with her father, Koiwai, and they have just moved to the neighborhood. Jumbo, a friend of Koiwai’s, helps Koiwai move things into the house but Yotsuba wanders off. Jumbo takes off to look for her and also to buy Koiwai some gifts to give to the neighbors while Koiwai starts unpacking. While he’s doing that, he meets up with one of his neighbors, a teenage girl named Fuka, who offers to also look for Yotsuba. Koiwai tells her that it’s okay, Yotsuba wanders off all the time, but if Fuka sees a really weird girl, “that’s probably Yotsuba.” Fuka obviously thinks this is a strange way for Koiwai to describe his daughter but goes out looking for Yotsuba anyway.
Yotsuba, meanwhile, has discovered a swingset…only she has no clue how to swing. Another girl, Ena, shows her how, only to realize that there’s something kind of peculiar about Yotsuba. We find out that Ena and Fuka are related when they meet and Ena tells Fuka about the odd girl in the park. Fuka takes off after Yotsuba and eventually, everyone gets together (except poor Jumbo), for an official introduction of the main characters of the story.
Yotsuba& is amazingly cute. While I’m not generally fond of cute stories, preferring action/adventure, Yotsuba with her incredibly quirky ways and reactions to things most people take for granted is a delight. Koiwai’s nonchalant attitude goes very well with his daughter’s weirdness and the neighbor girls, Fuka (the middle aged girl), Ena (the youngest) and their older sister, Asagi, are obviously there to react to Yotsuba’s peculiarities – but they seem very sweet, too. If you like sweet mixed with weird, Yotsuba& is definitely the manga for you.
July 6, 2011
A charming slice of life story that takes place in a small cheerful Japanese neighbourhood, Yotsuba is a relaxing delight for any reader. That said, it reads like the newspaaper comic it is, and occasionally falls into the all fluff, no substance category. This is, of course, fine - but while I enjoyed it, I would not say I loved it.
The story revolves around five or six year old Yotsuba, a sweet little girl living with her father. In this volume, Yotsuba and her Dad move in and meet the neighbours. Yotsuba, like many young kids, lacks anunderstanding of privacy or self censorship - leading to some pretty funny situations. It is also a cool way to see more of an idyllic everyday Japan if you are interested in other cultures.
A fun, harmless comic.
The story revolves around five or six year old Yotsuba, a sweet little girl living with her father. In this volume, Yotsuba and her Dad move in and meet the neighbours. Yotsuba, like many young kids, lacks anunderstanding of privacy or self censorship - leading to some pretty funny situations. It is also a cool way to see more of an idyllic everyday Japan if you are interested in other cultures.
A fun, harmless comic.
April 27, 2017
How to begin describing this?
Yotsuba is about a five year old girl with green hair and four pigtails, hence the name "Yotsuba" (meaning clover, I think.)
This was one of those manga that I just could not get enough of.
First off, it's HILARIOUS!
Most probably the funniest thing I've ever read!
It's also really sweet, and as the story goes on, you get more and more attached to Yotsuba and her friends.
This manga has made me laugh more times than I can count, so loud that from my room my mom and aunt would get disturbed by it.
The story doesn't really have a story, and it honestly doesn't need one. It's just one of those feel good, everyday life sorta things.
Definitely recommend for people who need/want a good laugh.
Yotsuba is about a five year old girl with green hair and four pigtails, hence the name "Yotsuba" (meaning clover, I think.)
This was one of those manga that I just could not get enough of.
First off, it's HILARIOUS!
Most probably the funniest thing I've ever read!
It's also really sweet, and as the story goes on, you get more and more attached to Yotsuba and her friends.
This manga has made me laugh more times than I can count, so loud that from my room my mom and aunt would get disturbed by it.
The story doesn't really have a story, and it honestly doesn't need one. It's just one of those feel good, everyday life sorta things.
Definitely recommend for people who need/want a good laugh.
February 9, 2015
Quick thoughts: Can't help but smile at Yotsuba's antics. Her bluntness and mischief should border on the annoying, but there's an innocence and wonder behind everything she does that makes it mostly endearing and amusing. Very light, slice-of-life stories, especially here at the beginning where all the characters are being introduced. Have read these early volumes several times and enjoy them just as much each pass through.
October 15, 2014
This manga is absolutely hilarious and cute!
I'll definitely continue with reading it, because it makes me laugh out loud and I need it right now (well, and always, actually). :D
Yotsuba is soooo funny! And I liked how this little girl confuses everyone around her. And their facial expressions... Oh my Glob! Comic!:)
As I've said, I'll definitely be reading next volume soon. Maybe even today. Or now.
DFTBA!
I'll definitely continue with reading it, because it makes me laugh out loud and I need it right now (well, and always, actually). :D
Yotsuba is soooo funny! And I liked how this little girl confuses everyone around her. And their facial expressions... Oh my Glob! Comic!:)
As I've said, I'll definitely be reading next volume soon. Maybe even today. Or now.
DFTBA!
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