Materials from Japan
Sweet and full of wonder, from catchy to quiet, children’s poems captivate readers of all ages. Here, familiar nursery rhymes and folk songs join poetry selections from many traditions. Recall old favorites and discover new poems, from Poland to Mozambique, Japan to Mexico, and every corner in between. Cheerful illustrations capture the beauty of diversity the world over.
Hannah would much rather be back in Australia, starting high school with her friends. But Japan turns out to be nothing like she’d imagined, and when Hannah and her new friend Miki find an ancient message in the stationery shop, they are drawn into solving a mysterious riddle. Why do the beans go berserk during the bean-throwing festival? Who is the evil-eyed woman at Sarumaru Shrine? Why is Hannah attacked by flying donuts? Is the ocean boy really trying to tell her something? A compelling combination of fact, fantasy, and humor, this middle-grade novel is filled with intriguing characters, exotic locations and baffling events.
Featured in Volume II, Issue 1 of WOW Review.
After her mother’s suicide when she is twelve years old, Yuki spends years living with her distant father and his resentful new wife, cut off from her mother’s family, and relying on her own inner strength to cope with the tragedy.
Aided by magical creatures from Japanese myths, Mitsuko, a young girl in the imperial court of twelfth-century Japan, bravely ventures to the netherworld to search for her sister’s wandering spirit.
A little rabbit enjoys having a day off from kindergarten and spending time with his mother during a snowstorm, but his father’s flight home is cancelled until the snow stops falling.
Samurai fear nothing, not even death. They are loyal and brave. Fourteen-year-old Seikei has studied the way of the samurai, and would like nothing more than to be one. But a samurai is born, not made; Seikei was born the son of a tea merchant, so a merchant he must be. But when a priceless ruby intended for the shogun-the military governor of Japan-is stolen by a ghost, Seikei finds himself having to display all the courage of a samurai. Seikei is the only person to have seen the thief, and now the famous magistrate, Judge Ooka, needs the boy\’s help to solve this mystery. Can the son of a merchant prove himself worthy to the shogun himself?
Allen Say creates a beautiful story about an American girl who seeks adventure in Japan and discovers more than she could have imagined. In her grandmother’s house there is one Japanese print of a small house with lighted windows. Even as a small girl, Erika loved that picture. It will pull her through childhood, across vast oceans and modern cities, then into towns—older, quieter places—she has only ever dreamed about. But Erika cannot truly know what she will find there, among the rocky seacoasts, the rice paddies, the circle of mountains, and the class of children.
Step back 15,000 years as a modern boy enters a Stone Age village and learns a few prehistoric tricks of the trade. One day a boy falls down a hole, and an amazing thing happens — when he wakes, he’s in a camp full of people wearing animal skins! Mixing flight of fancy with prehistoric facts, Satoshi Kitamura ushers us back to a time of surprising innovation and artistic expression, shown in cave paintings visible to this day.
The author of So Far from the Bamboo Grove continues her semi-autobiographical fiction, describing the hardships, poverty, tragedies, and struggles of life for her and her two older brother and sister, living in post-World War II (1947) Japan.
The happiest day of Wink’s life was when he was accepted to the Summer Moon School for Young Ninjas. He is sure that he will be a great ninja. Silence is the first lesson and everyone is very very silent except for Wink. Stealth is the second lesson and everyone is very very stealthy except for Wink. Finally, Wink decides that he will be silent and stealthy, but he realizes that no one can realize that he is a great ninja. Eventually, he finds that his acrobatic skills are a perfect match to be a circus performer.