This manga is special. The level of delicacy it treats its characters with is a considerable rarity. Because the characters are so carefully crafted, they feel truly genuine. For such a character-driven story, this is so important because it's what lays its entire foundation. The author describes them as "imperfect girls" which makes sense because we are the same, that's just what it means to be human. Along with their beautiful sides, it doesn't shy away from showing their ugly sides as well. By relation, one of the biggest strengths of this manga is how well it captures the intricacies of human emotions. Emotions are often out of our control and tend to catch us by surprise. The story in no way diminishes that and portrays the internal conflicts of the characters in a deeply meaningful manner.

The central theme of the story is how other people's image of you can conflict with how you truly feel as a person. The girls here are lost, very much so. The topic of self-identity is a pretty loaded one and it can take a lifetime for us to figure it out. Our passion and connections with others are what help us understand those "unknowns" within us and the author chose social dance as the way to tell that to the readers. The characters in this manga are trying to find themselves as they pursue their passion in dancing, and it's nothing short of masterfully done. On this path, the girls are entwined together, helping each other embrace their true selves rather than submitting to the expectations of other people.

The artwork of this manga is excellent. The artist draws in a soft artstyle that accentuates the story very well. It's a little rough at the start but it gradually becomes cleaner and more consistent as you keep on reading. The characters are beautifully drawn and I often find myself appreciating the background art too. For manga as a medium, it has the advantage of being able to convey to the readers visually as well. Expressions can be worth a thousand words. A well drawn panel can convey everything to the reader without the need of a single word. The artist utilizes this very effectively to set the atmosphere of scenes, resulting in an experience that can be keenly felt.

This is an outstanding manga that I wholeheartedly recommend, even if Yuri isn't your usual jam. I believe the sheer quality and the emotional resonance it carries make for an experience everyone should try and read for themselves. It seems the manga is not very well known at the moment and I hope that changes in the near future.

"Even if I'm imperfect, and even if I don't love myself, other people can still love me. It's okay to fall in love."

The very first thing I feel the need to tell you is that this manga is utterly devastating. It most certainly will leave you feeling empty, sad or overwhelmed so read it at your own discretion.

With that out of the way, let me start explaining why you SHOULD read this. Kimi to Tsuzuru Utakata is a manga written and illustrated by Yuama. It tells the story of Hoshikawa Shizuku, a girl who has abandoned her future and how she comes across a girl as bright as the sun to light her path. It presents itself in a particularly enthralling way. Both of the characters are shrouded in mystery, yet the end result of their relationship is already revealed at the start. Rather than following a traditional storyline of introducing the obstacles after the characters, it instead raises all of the questions beforehand and leaves the job of answering them to the story along the way. Because of this, the story may feel lethargic at the beginning but don't leave just yet. It only gets better and better as it goes on. By letting us learn about the characters little by little, Yuama slowly lets us form a strong emotional connection with them. Dialogue and the interactions between the characters are written to be as effective as possible at connecting with our souls. Everything that happens in this story are things we experience in our own lives. It’s naturally less difficult for us to feel empathy for things we can relate to. Of course, achieving all this is far easier said than done. Yuama has done a magnificent job creating this manga and it clearly shows that she cares about it as much as we do, if not even more. With the way she develops the story, the conclusion still leaves you completely devastated even if you know fully well what is going to happen.

Given the nature of the manga, it has an extremely sharp sense of time. The title of the manga itself strictly sets summer as the time limit of the story and the unfolding events constantly remind the readers that it is coming to an end. Due to this, there's no room left for dilly-dallying and it gets straight to the point. What meaning Shizuku and Kaori obtain through being by each other's side is wholeheartedly explored with no distractions. Even though their relationship wouldn't last, the present is more important to them than the foreseeable future. Maybe the main takeaway here is that the significance of something doesn't lie in how long it stays for and instead what you found for yourself by embracing it.

I think not enough people bring the art up and I will not stand for it. It may be true that it's eclipsed by the compelling story but Yuama is undoubtedly an amazing artist. I almost feel spoiled by how good her art is. Great art can and will elevate a manga in ways words can’t. It’s hard to accurately describe it since it’s highly subjective but I think my favorite part of her art is how she draws facial expressions. Rage, sadness, distress, confusion, acceptance, joy and loneliness. You can feel it all right through the screen. Her way of structuring the panels does a great service conveying those raw emotions. I also find the character design of Shizuku to be a very memorable one. I'm sure many people other than myself will find themselves relating to her.

In the end, we are all treading along with our own words and feelings. By doing so, we continue to share our ideas and thoughts however worthless they might be. Maybe not every story is worth telling. However, the story of these two girls was one absolutely worth being told. You should definitely read this manga and think about its meaning for yourself. And if you have, please do read the story from start to finish one more time to catch anything you may have missed. I promise it'll be worth it.

Alas, I end this review by quoting Asaka Kaori.

“Every good story has an ending! It would be a shame otherwise!”