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kblincoln's review
5.0
Tomo is a charity anthology (in the wake of the recent tsunami) that brings together a wide range of voices writing about young people related to Japan in some way. Japanese, ex-pat, male, female, young, old, professional and amateur; the authors of this anthology represent a varied array of experiences with disasters, youth, and Japan.
Holly Thompson, whom I know from the fabulous children's book, "Wakame Gatherers" (which never fails to make me cry when I read it) edited the anthology.
It's well worth reading. There are "slice of life" stories along with stories of the fantastic, folktales. classics (Kenji Miyazawa), manga, and poetry.
You won't get bored.
The story opens with Andrew Fukuda's "Lost", about a girl awakening after a disaster who has lost her memory and must start over.
But it is the last stories of the anthology (in the section titled "Families and Connections") that resonated with me the most. (No surprise as I am married to a Tokyo boy and have two bicultural/biracial daughters forming their own identities in the US).
"The Law of Gravity" by Yuko Katakawa and translated by Deborah Iwabuchi features the voice of a young Japanese man, Kai, who is questioning the "perfect son" role he has played all his life for his parents; who all but ignore his little sister, Maika. It is Maika who ends up giving Kai a reason for continuing, and it is in their relationship that I find a bitter hope; parents can never really know the life of their children, but siblings can sometimes be the greatest support to eachother.
"Paper Lanterns" by Jennifer Fumiko Cahill uses the conceit of a dead friend who accompanies a haafu (biracial) girl to visit her grandparents in Japan to be the voice of the "clueless foreigner." The snarky voice of the dead friend clashing with the half-exasperated, half-embarassed voice of Mina as she explains funerary customs brings to light the complicated ways we deal with grief.
"I Hate Harajuku Girls" by Katrina Toshiko Grigg-Saito is a tale of another biracial girl, for the first time in Japan confronting in reality the place her beloved father had only shown her in tales. She attempts to come to terms with fer father's death by finding a certain shrine he loved, and instead confronts some stereotypes.
"Peace on Earth" features Taiga, a biracial son of an American mother and Japanese father living in Tokyo after the earthquake and tsunami. While the world around them begins to recover from disaster, Taiga's family also deals with upsets and differences. This story really hit home for me; especially the descriptions of the sacrifices each parent makes for the other's country, as well as the mundane things such as blueberry pancakes vs. Miso soup and rice for breakfast!
This Book's Snack Rating: a smorgasbord of voice, styles, and genres all flowing together into a thoughtful feast on youth, disaster, and Japan.
Holly Thompson, whom I know from the fabulous children's book, "Wakame Gatherers" (which never fails to make me cry when I read it) edited the anthology.
It's well worth reading. There are "slice of life" stories along with stories of the fantastic, folktales. classics (Kenji Miyazawa), manga, and poetry.
You won't get bored.
The story opens with Andrew Fukuda's "Lost", about a girl awakening after a disaster who has lost her memory and must start over.
But it is the last stories of the anthology (in the section titled "Families and Connections") that resonated with me the most. (No surprise as I am married to a Tokyo boy and have two bicultural/biracial daughters forming their own identities in the US).
"The Law of Gravity" by Yuko Katakawa and translated by Deborah Iwabuchi features the voice of a young Japanese man, Kai, who is questioning the "perfect son" role he has played all his life for his parents; who all but ignore his little sister, Maika. It is Maika who ends up giving Kai a reason for continuing, and it is in their relationship that I find a bitter hope; parents can never really know the life of their children, but siblings can sometimes be the greatest support to eachother.
"Paper Lanterns" by Jennifer Fumiko Cahill uses the conceit of a dead friend who accompanies a haafu (biracial) girl to visit her grandparents in Japan to be the voice of the "clueless foreigner." The snarky voice of the dead friend clashing with the half-exasperated, half-embarassed voice of Mina as she explains funerary customs brings to light the complicated ways we deal with grief.
"I Hate Harajuku Girls" by Katrina Toshiko Grigg-Saito is a tale of another biracial girl, for the first time in Japan confronting in reality the place her beloved father had only shown her in tales. She attempts to come to terms with fer father's death by finding a certain shrine he loved, and instead confronts some stereotypes.
"Peace on Earth" features Taiga, a biracial son of an American mother and Japanese father living in Tokyo after the earthquake and tsunami. While the world around them begins to recover from disaster, Taiga's family also deals with upsets and differences. This story really hit home for me; especially the descriptions of the sacrifices each parent makes for the other's country, as well as the mundane things such as blueberry pancakes vs. Miso soup and rice for breakfast!
This Book's Snack Rating: a smorgasbord of voice, styles, and genres all flowing together into a thoughtful feast on youth, disaster, and Japan.
bookish_bridget's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Some of the stories were better than others but I did enjoy this book. I like how it was broken up into different parts with different themes I felt like I got a little bit of everything.
jameseckman's review
3.0
An interesting set of short stories, poems (I skimmed these) and amateur comics along with a smattering of translated older works. While billed as a teen collection, they are mature enough to be enjoyed by anyone. I really liked some of the ghostly monster stories, many others are quite well done, especially considering most of the writers are new to print.
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