“Okaasan Life” (お母さんライフ/Mother’s Life) and “Darling wa Gaikokujin” (ダーリンは外国人/My Darling is a Foreigner) are two popular manga(comics) in Japan.

The comics are based on family/couple life and, because of the warm feeling they give off, many housewives in Japan are reading them.

Okaasan Life is written by Naoko Takagi and it portraits the life of a housewife that gave birth in her 40s.

Although raising a child is tough, it also has a lot of fun moments and that is what the author of this comic is showing us through her work.

The struggles of parenting, waking up in the middle of the night, and all the things you experience as a mother are being introduced to us in Okaasan Life.

The author gave birth in her 40s so that makes it even more difficult when raising a child. However, even if there are struggles and it is difficult, just by seeing how cute her daughter is and witnessing her growth make the hard times feel like nothing. Naoko Takagi portrays a warm world together with her husband and her adorable daughter, Mu-chan, and shows us how amazing it is to become a mother and how accomplished you can feel while seeing your children growing up.

I am sure that many of you can sympathize with the author’s feelings while reading her work, including the anxiety after giving birth and leaving the hospital, that moment when you get home and realize you are a parent now, the fun and heart-warming moments while eating out with your family and all those happy and unforgettable memories together with the people you love.

Naoko Takagi is a freelance manga artist and her manga Okaasan Life is about raising a child and how the happiness and fun moments win over the anxiety. Regardless of you having a child or not, I am sure that you will find this manga interesting, and not only will it make you smile, but your heart will fill up with love and joy.

The second manga that was a hit in Japan is My Darling is a Foreigner (Darling wa Gaikokujin) written by Saori Oguri. The manga has been so popular that it even got a movie adaptation that features the popular actress Inoue Mao who also played in Hanayori Dango(Boys over Flowers) as Saori Oguri and Jonathan Sherr as Tony László.

The comics’ spotlight is the relationship between the manga artist, Saori Oguri, and Tony, a writer living in Tokyo. Tony grew up in the US and he has a Hungarian father and an Italian mother. His personality is unique and it was super fun reading about their couple life. The series gives the perspective of a mixed couple and the content is fun and interesting, so definitely give it a try.

Okaasan Life and Darling wa Gaikokujin can be found on Amazon and I’m sure anyone can enjoy both of the books because of the funny stories and heart-warming feeling they give.