Title: Momotaro
Illustrator: George Suyeoka
Reviewer: peachboy
I wish that I could list a whole bunch of multicultural books from my childhood. Alas, nothing by bell hooks in 70's. Amidst the Dr. Seuss, Beverly Cleary, and Frank Baum, is this one: Momotaro (peach boy). If you ain't hip to this, it's the Japanese fable of a boy that emerges from a peach, grows up, and kicks much ass fighting ogres and saving villages.
I dug this book for several reasons, maybe then articulated as "The drawings are cool and the people look like us." Today, I still enjoy the graphic quality of the illustrations -- color-saturated, with bites of Hiroshige. My grandfather's name was Momotaro. His fifth and youngest daughter, my mother, is Momoko. Her husband, my father, is a now retired peach farmer. How could we not see our family in this book? It is a must-read for our babygirl in the coming years.
The Rice Daddies Blogaversary Children's Book Review contest is ovah! Thanks to all who submitted reviews. Stay tuned for an announcement about winners and prizes (from Kane Miller Book Publishers) coming soon!
1 comment:
I'd never heard this story until my daughter and I were doing one of her history lessons. It's part of the kindergarten curriculum when studying Asia. I loved the lessons shared in the story, and she thought it was pretty cool, too. :)
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