Customer Reviews

Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In simple yet elegant prose, Turner tells the touching story of Hachiko, the loyal dog. Her writing is perfectly balanced by Nascimbene's delicate watercolor illustrations. It's hard to imagine any animal lover not being moved by this book.

THe true story of Hachiko is beautifully crafted in Pamela Turner's retelling. The little boy Kentaro, and his friendship with Hachiko a loyal dog, resonate with character, without being sentimental. Turner's poetic writing is complemented perfectly by Yan Nascimbene's deceptively simple illustrations, it has a timeless quality.My little boy (4) absolutely adores this gentle story, it will be a favourite with both of us for many years to come. I highly recommend it for children of any age.

This is a well known old story in Japan. It is a sad, but beautiful story of a friendship with a human and dog. Hachiko is a Akita that somewhat stubborn but truly royal disposition. He was waiting his owner even in a cold snow day until he died.

When my 14-year old daughter heard the story of Hachiko, her voice caught in her throat as she cried out, "Oh!" and hid her tears. This poignant story of man's best friend is beautifully told by Pamela Turner. It will warm the hearts of readers of all ages.

Whenever we make a trip to our local library, I always grab one book from the Nonfiction stacks to throw in with my three-year-old daughter's choices of picture books and Dr. Seuss. I grabbed this one on impulse - really I just thought it had a pretty cover - without knowing anything at all about the story. We are stationed at a military base in Korea and I try to choose Korean or Asian-themed books to help our family understand the culture a little better while we are here. It turns out this story is not Korean but Japanese, but I am so glad we read it! This book is not just for dog lovers or Akita lovers. Both my daughter and I loved the story - and in a certain part of the story I don't want to spoil, my voice choked up so that I could hardly keep reading. I was so moved by a story about a real dog and his loyalty to his owner! Well written and beautifully illustrated, this book is a delight and we have read it again and again. I especially appreciate the facts at the end. Appropriate for three year olds to thirty-year olds, and probably an even wider range than that. I hope you enjoy this book as much as we did.

This story of a dog's undeviating commitment to his master is sure to inspire you and warm your heart. It is beautifully told by a sensitive woman with firsthand experience of Japanese culture. The simple, lovely watercolor illustrations are endearing as well. My eyes swam before I got through this tender tale.

The story of Hachiko is one of the most moving accounts of the bond between dog and owner. Hachiko, a beautiful curly tailed Akita was the revered pet of one Professor Ueno, who named the dog after the number 8, which he considered a lucky symbol. Hachiko was his 8th Akita.

Sadly, Professor Ueno died at work in April of 1925, some 15 months after he bought the Akita. Hachiko faithfully walked with his loving owner to the Shibuya train station every morning and could be counted on like clock work to greet his owner upon return. Even after his owner's death, the curly tailed dog continued coming back to the train station to await his return.

This continued for 10 years until the Akita died in 1935. A statue of the dog was erected at the train station as a nod to his show of loving loyalty. Hachiko, like Balto, the malamute who braved storms in 1925 Alaska during an epidemic has been immemorialized in statue at the train station where he faithfully awaited his owner's return.

A beautiful moving story that might make you cry. Even so, it is worth reading. As wonderful as Hachiko's story is, I preferred Leslea Newman's book about the loyal curly tailed Akita.

Hachiko is a young puppy who lives with his owner, Professor Ueno. Everyday when Professor Ueno goes off to work the dog is there to tell him goodbye. He waits for his owner at the train station all day long. One day the Professor Ueno dies while away at work. Hachiko waits for him still, ten years pass by. This story is told from the point of view of a young boy who witnessed this love and devotion.


This was a unique story. I had heard of it before so it was nice to see it told in picture book form.


I would recommend this book to all dog lovers. It's a very inspiring story.

A parent was speaking to me the other day in my library (I'm a children's librarian, you see) and she wanted some nice picture books on dogs for her child. Naturally my mind jumped to such modern day classics as Bob Graham's, "Let's Get a Pup, Said Kate". "No", the parent said. "Something about a real dog". That's a significantly more difficult request. Right off the top of my head I had a hard time thinking up any seriously well-written non-fiction doggish titles. We scanned the 636.7's, when my eye alighted on a very new book indeed. I suggested, "Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog" without hesitation. After all, it had appeared on the New York Public Library's list of the great children's books of 2004. However, when I described the plot the patron pooh-poohed it as "depressing". And since I had not actually read the book myself, I was powerless to disagree. Now I come back to "Hachiko", having read it at long last, and I'm mighty sad that I wasn't able to defend it to the dog-seeking patron. Though containing sad elements, the book is a loving testament to one canine's love for his master.

Our hero is Hachiko, a large Akita dog that was owned and loved by its master, Dr. Ueno. Through the eyes of a small boy we see the dog return to the railroad station every day to wait for Dr. Ueno when he steps off the train from work. The boy loves the dog but is content to simply pet and hug it at the station. One day, the boy hears terrible news. Dr. Ueno has passed away, and naturally the boy's first question is, "What will happen to Hachiko?". Some kind relatives attempt to take the dog in, but to their surprise Hachiko continues to wait at the station every day for his lost master. For almost ten years, faithful Hachiko would wait for Dr. Ueno to come home. No one knows the dog's motivation, or if it really understood what it was waiting for. After its death, however, the people of the town raised the money to create a large bronze statue of the pup in its honor. A replica of that statue stands in the Shibuya Station of Tokyo to this day.

Okay, so maybe the whole idea of a dog waiting for its master to come home for years and years, not realizing that he's dead, is sad. But it's also the perfect material for a children's picture book. Not surprisingly, his tale was co-opted not only for this book but also for the slightly older reader, "Hachiko Waits" by Leslea Newman. But how well does it work here? First, I was surprised that it was categorized as non-fiction. Though the tale of the dog is true, the aspect of the boy who interacts with him was made up for the purpose of the story. The book is a bit sparse and formal as well. Long blocks of text will run on one page while the facing page shows a large full-page illustration or just a little picture with a sentence. This means that kids will probably have to have this book read to them, rather than the other way around. I could've enjoyed a more creative layout here. Fortunately, Yan Nascimbene's illustrations are lovely. Hachiko himself, oddly, looks a bit stiff for a hero. But the cherry blossoms, darkening evening scenes, and general feel is beautiful to the eye. It may be a little formal for a children's picture book, but no one can argue with its attractive qualities.

In a way, I don't blame the mother who wasn't inclined towardds the book. The audience for, "Hachiko" is a select one. But it truly is a lovely story, and one that I hope many kids will get a chance to hear at some point in their lives. Though not the most inviting package, it delivers a sweet emotional punch.

I bought this book to read to my kindergarten class. They LOVED it and all wrote in their journals about it. I'll admit I started to tear up a little while reading it. The story is uplifting. The pictures are beautiful. I LOVE this book.