Yotsuba&!

Title: Yotsuba&!
Author: Kiyohiko Azuma
Illustrated: Kiyohiko Azuma
Published:Media Works Inc, Tokyo, Japan
Date: 2003
Summary:Yotsuba's is in a new town-she could very well be new to the planet Earth-and with no knowledge of the world around her along with an unnatural fear of air conditioners, this green-haired gal has her neighborhood spinning out of control!
Age Level: Elementary and Upper Elementary (3-6)
Strengths: This is very different than an American comic. This is called a manga. It is the japanese version of a comic but it has different elements. Every manga is made for certain people. Shonen manga is made for young boys, and shojo is made for girls that deal with different types of things such as love, action, adventure. It depends who the manga was made for. In a manga, you read it from the back to the front and from right to left.
I thought this was a very cute manga. Everything is in dialogue. There is no narrator. It is as if the characters speak for themselves within the story (like a play or real life). I love the characters as well! Yotsuba is a very energetic girl who loves to learn about the world surrounding her. she loves to meet people, and she is just so cute!
Concerns: There are a lot of sound effects in the story, but most of them are in japanese, so the reader can't understand that it's a sound effect. Also, Yotsuba has green hair and I don't think anyone is that energetic. She practically speaks in exclamations!
Comments: This would be a great and positive story about moving to a new place and learning about your neighborhood and exploring. It is also a great example of something orignally made from another country. Students will love to learn more about different countries if they have something from it (in order to learn something about their culture).