This may be odd to say about a manga that is steeped in the supernatural and Japanese mythology, but this latest volume of Natsume Yuujinchou could be summed up in one word: human. It is achingly human in its focus and its stories, especially when it focuses on the life and history of Takashi Natsume, a boy who has clearly lived a hard and grief-filled life since the start. He did not ask for his special sight but as it is painfully revealed in this book, the things you cannot change are the ones that change your life the hardest. With Nyanko-sensei out of the picture for a percentage of the action, it is nice to see Natsume's growth as a character played out more explicitly on the page. It’s not easy being Takashi Natsume but it is ridiculously easy to see how superbly drawn out his story is.

You can read the rest of my review over at Nagareboshi Reviews! ( )

First story: Nyanko is resting due to events in the previous volume, so Natsume tries to deal with a weird yokai rock that keeps possessing people around him on his own. He doesn't want to ruin the cultural festival, which he's really looking forward to. Second story: Tanuma gets possessed by a yokai looking for shards of a mirror that could help her sick friend. For once, Tanuma gets to experience some of what Natsume goes through. Third story: A flashback to Natsume's childhood, when he tried to deal with a yokai feeding off his loneliness (or fear? My notes could be better). This was also the first time he met Toko and Shigeru. Fourth story: From Chobi's POV. Natsume helps a yokai remove a rock that fell on top of a bird's nest.

This is the first volume to include something that I don't remember seeing in the anime (Chobi's story).

I loved how the second story turned the tables a bit. Natsume learned how much it hurt to be avoided, even for his own protection, and Tanuma got a glimpse of what Natsume's life is like.

I also enjoyed getting to see Natsume's friends worrying about him at the cultural festival. It's nice to see that his ordinary, have-no-clue-he-can-see-yokai friends care about him and try to watch out for him. It's too bad that Natsume's first home, after his parents died, wasn't with the Fujiwaras.

And speaking of the Fujiwaras, the story in which Natsume first met them was one of my favorites in the anime. I was happy to be able to read it in the manga. It was so sad that, when he first met Toko, a part of him wondered if she was really a yokai, since no humans had ever shown signs of wanting him to live with them. And Toko! She was so adorable and awkward. I really do love the Fujiwaras. A part of me hopes that a future volume shows how Toko and Shigeru first met and became a couple.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) ( )