Yotsuba&!

Yotsuba&! (Yotsuba to!) Is an ongoing comedic slice of life manga by Kiyohiko Azuma who also created Azumanga Daioh.  The series began in 2003 and is published in ASCII Media Works.

    Five year old Yotsuba Koiwa and her father moved from the countryside to a city.  The interesting and unique Yotsuba is about to experience a world she is unfamiliar with. She quickly becomes friends with the family living next door who have 3 daughters of varying ages.  Yotsuba's father works at home as a translator but the curious girl continues to invite herself to her neighbors home, much to their delight.  The series shows the daily adventures of the odd girl and those around her as she explores the world and learns new things, many of which someone her age would already be familiar with.

    This is a really entertaining manga.  Very innocent, enjoyable and funny.  I have kids, so I can completely relate to the dumb shit Yotsuba does and the thought processes she uses.  Her father adopted her and they hint at her origins being from a foreign country, but so far have not explained how he ended up adopting her and where shes from.  The cast of characters are entertaining and memorable, especially the rivalry between Yotsuba and one of her dads friends.  This is very slice of life and the characters are larger than life just like in Azumanga Daoih.  Unfortunately it is released monthly and Azuma-sensei refuses to allow it to be animated.  Fortunately most of the tankobon are available in North America, licensed by Yen Press.  If you loved Azumanga Daioh this is a must, if you are a fan of funny slice of life stories add this to your list as well!