
The Secret of the Blue Glass
Description
<b>'I love this book' Michael Morpurgo
</b><b>A classic story about a magical miniature family's adventures in wartime Japan.
</b>In a dusty library, in the quietest corner of a house in Tokyo, live the Little People: Fern, Balbo, Robin and Iris. Just a few inches high, sleeping in cigarette boxes and crafting shoes from old book jackets, they need only one thing from their Humans - a nightly glass of milk, served in a sparkling blue glass goblet.
But when the Second World War comes to Japan, both Humans and their beloved Little People face a world they could never have imagined. It will take great love, bravery, and the help of one very loyal pigeon to bring their unique families back together...
<i>The Secret of the Blue Glass</i> is a timeless adventure and a heartwarming reminder that everyone, no matter how small, can make a difference.
<b>Part of the new Pushkin Children's Classics series of thrilling, magical and inspiring stories from around the world, which young readers will return to time and again.
</b><b>Translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori
</b>Tomiko Inui (1924-2002) was born in Tokyo and joined a publishing house in 1950, where she began working as an editor while also writing. A pioneer of children's fantasy literature in Japan, she published many titles over her long career, during which she won numerous prizes and was a runner-up for the Hans Christian Andersen Award.
Ginny Tapley Takemori lives at the foot of a mountain in eastern Japan and has translated fiction by over a dozen Japanese authors for both adults and children. Her translation of <i>The Whale That Fell in Love with a Submarine</i> is also available from Pushkin Children's.
Reviews / Votes
I love this book. Pushkin Children's Books are to be congratulated in making it available to an English audience. How important it is, in these times, that our children read the stories from other peoples, other cultures, other times.... While the story has elements of the work of Oscar Wilde and Hans Christian Andersen, the author admits to having been inspired by Kenneth Grahame and Antoine de Saint-Exupery -- Michael Morpurgo * Guardian * Has a sensibility and a poetry of its own * Independent * A tender and beautifully written story full of adventure, hardship and cultural revelations * Lancashire Evening Post * Enchanting and charming, and written with a lovely lightness of touch * BookTrust * A glorious fantasy story... utterly captivating * Read it Daddy * Hurrah once again for Pushkin's wonderful mission to bring fresh translations of foreign classics to a generation of english speaking readers. First published in Japan in 1959, think The Borrowers, under the shadow of WW2 * Angels & Urchins * A terrific story of courage, loyalty and love * Books for Keeps * The English translation of Tomiko Inui's 1967 classic has been a long but worthwhile wait, the author's tribute to love and courage in the face of a menacing new form of patriotism, reminding us that children's literature can both address adult concerns and provide alternatives to our failings * Japan Times, Books of the Year * An extraordinary book and Pushkin Children's Books are to be congratulated... the story has elements of the work of Oscar Wilde and Hans Christian Andersen * The School Librarian * A fascinating and absorbing read that opens up a window into another world... A terrific story of love and courage in the face of change and adversity as well as a gripping fantasy read * South China Morning Post * A unique and valuable read * Lines from the Horizon (blog) *More details
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Content
The Little Book Room 12
The Two Men 25
A Fairy Story 37
Yahei the Pigeon, Robin and the Tiger 50
Acorns Aren't from Zelkova Trees! 59
Farewell, Little Book Room! 70
The House in the Mountains 86
A Day of Grass-cutting 100
A New Friend 110
The First Snow 118
Yahei and Amanejakki 127
The Last of the Milk 136
The Little People Go Away 147
At Amanejakki's 151
Come Home, Little People! 161
Dark Days 169
Yuri Goes Home 178