The story is very endearing. The author took her time to portray a colorful picture of various personalities. They felt alive and real, and you can understand them; what makes them happy, their personal struggles, their thoughts and dreams, all revealed in a natural way of story-telling. Kaoru Mori sure has lots of attention to details and aspiration for the culture. You'll see it clearly in the unique way she depicts daily activities, professions, religious beliefs, food, architecture,...
Talking about the art, it is outright gorgeous and consistently so.
Overall, there is a subtle beauty to this work that made me think it deserves a 10. I think you can rarely find gems like this.
