Himawari-san Review

I’m not one to write reviews (this is my first one ever), but that’s because I generally consume popular media, which doesn’t lack any coverage on the review aspect. Himawari-san – or Miss Sunflower, in English - is what I would define as a hidden gem of the slice-of-life genre, even though it’s mainly labeled as a girl’s love manga (more on that later). Such fantastic work deserves to be seen and read by far more people! Thus, my humble contribution.

While the “love” aspect makes its occasional presence, it’s not generally what you would expect from a Yuri work, and that might throw people off at first, understandably so (if you are a Yuri lover, that is). But while there won’t be any exchange of bodily fluids, it offers so much more than that in the form of raw, pure love for one another, and watching it bloom and bear fruits is absurdly satisfying.

The 109 chapters cover a young girl’s journey through high school and her relationship with Miss Sunflower, an unusually young bookshop keeper with a severely wounded soul. Little by little, day by day, their bond grows, the wounds begin to heal, and the bookshop gets just a bit warmer. The process is magnificently written and illustrated (the art is pretty good, I daresay).

Their interactions are surrounded by wholesomeness and purity, making it hard not to smile, laugh, and even cry with them. Witnessing their growth through episodic moments of their lives around the bookstore and all the joy it brings is a long yet worthwhile journey.

Every character is well-developed, with distinct - and grounded - personalities, which are generally rare in slice-of-life works. You will grow quite attached to them as you progress through the story. Their lore is equally solid, with no apparent plot holes.

It is a slice of life so masterfully done that one could wish it would go on forever: not only does it have all the elements one could want from the genre, but it also has the bonus of being extra wholesome, making you feel warm and fuzzy inside as you traverse its many pages.

While I’m often generous with my scoring, I rarely throw 10/10s haphazardly. If a work (anime or manga) earned a solid ten from me, I genuinely believe it to be a masterpiece. Himawari-san is what I would call a “sleeper masterpiece,” like a PC case from the 90s with top-of-the-line 2024 innards. It doesn’t seem like much at first glance, but all it takes is a few chapters to be entirely drawn to the Himawari bookshop and its regulars.

I hope this review can convince more people to read Himawari-san and come to enjoy it as much as I did. It's a literary experience I will never forget.