Reading Natsume Yuujinchou feels like crossing into a mushroom circle. There's magic and mystery, and charm in the natural feel. The story has been going on for about eighteen years now, and it's nice seeing how themes and details will build on each other in small ways. If you love slice of life, especially the kind that makes you feel like your sitting in a forest on a sunny day, enjoying time as it passes, this is a great manga! It's also fun because it dances amongst many different feelings. It balances light comedy with darker moods, energetic scenes and calming scenery.

Oh! And I love the watercolor style covers that are being released recently. Although the story is about spirits, it also follows human elements, especially its reoccuring theme of loneliness.

And it's odd, but I love learning about the mysterious Reiko. She isn't really a main character, and she is really more like a memory in the story, yet she is so intruiging.

Yeah I don't know. I've read a lot of manga over the years. As time has gone on, I read less and less. There are very few I still keep up with. Something about Natsume Yuujinchou keeps me coming back. It's not like the plot is especially compelling. It's the opposite! It's very episodic. But, maybe its because its a comforting manga, something consistent and warm. I'll leave for six months and come back to binge it. Yeah, I think comforting is the right word. That's my favorite part of the slice-of-life genre. It's comforting in a peaceful sort of way. Natsume Yuujinchou has its silly and dramatic moments too, but overall, its a soothing story. I'm really grateful it exists. I read it and I feel like I belong somewhere.