Kick Back in the Countryside with These 6 Manga

Silver Spoon, by Hiromu Arakawa
Finally, finally, Hiromu Arakawa’s agricultural high school manga is available in English. Although the bookish Hachiken has no real interest in agriculture, his new school in rural Hokkaido has two important features: firstly, it’s as far away as possible from his family; and second, Hachiken is bound to be top of his class, because how smart can farmers be anyway? Of course, Hachiken soon discovers how very wrong his assumptions are, both about farm work and his new classmates. Jumping from fantasy blockbuster Fullmetal Alchemist to a coming of age tale set in farm school might seem like a weird left turn for Arakawa, but the mangaka draws on her own experiences of growing up on a Hokkaido dairy farm in this warm, sincere comedy. Don’t let this manga pass you by—you will never look at eggs the same way again.

Flying Witch, by Chihiro Ishizuka
When fifteen-year-old Makoto moves in with relatives in the countryside of Aomori to attend high school, she’s not just looking for fresh air and good hiking. Aomori is peaceful, quiet, and surrounded by nature—an ideal place to complete Makoto’s training as a witch. This totally delightful rural slice of life seamlessly mixes low-key fantasy with everyday magic as Makoto and her cousins spend peaceful days going to school, enjoying country life, and meeting new friends, both human and supernatural. The small triumph of growing a garden or frying tempura is treated with the same wonder as encounters with seasonal spirits and flying brooms. Flying Witch is a dryly funny, understated fantasy perfect for reading on a quiet afternoon, preferably with a cat curled up somewhere nearby.

Non Non Biyori, by Atto
Renge, Komari, Natsume, and Hotaru live in a town so tiny and so remote that the elementary and middle school students are combined into one class—there are only five students in the whole school, after all. When the bus to the next town comes once an eon and the most exciting thing you’re going to see on a daily basis is a cow crossing the road, you’ve got to make your own entertainment. Non Non Biyori is a slice-of-life in the vein of Yotsuba&, composed of short, silly, and often absurd vignettes in which the girls get themselves into as much trouble as possible in the sticks, be it “rescuing” a crafty pet rabbit, staying up too late watching scary movies, or going on ill-fated field trips with their slacker teacher.

Barakamon, by Satsuki Yoshino
After disgracing himself by behaving badly at a high-profile calligraphy exhibition, up-and-coming young calligrapher Seishuu Handa finds himself packed off to an rural island with instructions to get his head straight. Between trying to move into a creaky old house and dodging the nosy familiarity of his new neighbors, the city-bred artist is immediately out of his element. And when the village scamp, a completely incorrigible urchin named Naru, becomes inexplicably attached to him, any chance of a peaceful retreat is over. This exceedingly charming country slice of life strikes an easy balance between goofy fish-out-of-water antics and earnestly engaging with Handa’s struggles to mature as an artist. Heartwarming as a tupperware of grandma’s homemade pickles.

Natsume’s Book of Friends, Yuki Midorikawa
Passed from relative to distant relative after the death of his parents, Natsume has been alone most of his life. Always a lonely child, his uncanny ability to see spirits and yokai has made him feel even more isolated from those around him. When Natsume moves to the rural hometown of his late grandmother, yokai come calling, looking for an odd family heirloom: a book of yokai names collected by his grandmother during her time there. Although there are plenty of supernatural creatures populating this manga, Natsume’s Book of Friends finds its greatest magic in the small things—a walk in new-fallen snow, a warm meal with family, a reunion between friends separated too long. Yuki Midorikawa’s delicate, loose artwork adds to the loveliness of this heartfelt, often bittersweet, fantasy, which shines brightest in its quietest moments.

Laid-Back Camp, by Afro
When you want to really get off the grid, even living in a small rural town won’t cut it—you’ve got to head to the great outdoors. Rin is a girl with a passion for camping, and her idea of a packed weekend is riding her bike out to a remote campsite and assembling a tent while gazing at Mt. Fuji. When Rin accidentally rescues Nadeshiko, a hapless girl who got herself stranded near Rin’s latest campsite, Nadeshiko catches the camping bug herself. The how-tos of camping in Laid-Back Camp are so methodically laid out that you’re guaranteed to walk away having learned how to use pine cones as tinder and which sleeping bag you need to survive bitter winter nights under the stars. With its slow pace and fluffy, gray-toned art, roughing it has never been so comfy.