よつばと！
Yotsuba&! Volume 4 Review

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Ah, Yotsuba. ^_^

Things start out with the fun Yotsuba’s father has with her by changing the rules of the game they are playing so that he always gets the win. I had to laugh because I remember how my Dad did similar things to us when we were young. *lol* Parent’s don’t lose. Things continue to be fun when Jumbo comes over and the two grownups act like kids over a badminton game.

The next story is fun as Jumbo and Koiwai take Yotsuba, Miura, and Ena on their first fishing trip. It made me remember my first fishing trip with my grandfather when I was five. Of course, I didn’t have the easy time that the girls have in the manga as we fished in a regular, large pond. I’ve never heard or using farm-raised fish and putting them into a segregated section of a large stream so that they can easily be caught. It is a nifty idea though to take kids to a place to where they can easily catch fish though.

The trip to go shopping is my favorite of the manga because Koiwai forgets his wallet after they get there. Yotsuba mistakes the look on her father’s face to be that he either needs to take a dump or has had a little accident in his pants. *LOL* Then Kotsuba does what only a kid can do — ask a complete stranger to borrow money. *lol*

With the next story, Fuuka has heartbreak which gives Yotsuba something new to learn about. It also gives Fuuka’s older sister Asagi a chance to have some fun with the moment by using Yotsuba’s innocence to make Fuuka feel worse. Older siblings are evil like that at times. ^_^

The next story having Ena and Yotsuba go to an exercise class before Yotsuba has breakfast at the Ayase household. The aftermath of Fuuka’s heartbreak comes to light here when Yotsuba decides to make a newspaper to report the truth.

The final story has Yotsuba wanting to end summer by being her interpretation of Tsukutsuku Boushi (a bug in Japan but which Yotsuba envisions as a summer fairy).

While this volume may not have been as funny, the charm of the manga is such that even as I wrote this review, I found myself just rereading the stories multiple times and enjoying myself immensely. Azuma-sensei is so gifted at both capturing the joys and wonders of being a child but also the fun of adults with children. As such, I always end up smiling a great deal even if the laughs weren’t there. That’s why I recommend this manga greatly.