The Garden of Words by Shinkai Makoto is a wonderful coming-of-age, slice of life, shoujo manga centers around a young first year boy, just starting high school, and a woman who has started to give up on life. Once these two meet, they start to change each other, preparing themselves for what lies ahead in their lives. I had to reread this manga to remember the details, like the characters' names, since it's been a while from when I last read it. The story is superb and it really moves you, making you sympathize with the characters and feel as though you're them.
"Shinkai has often been hailed as the next Miyazaki..." -Variety
