Customer Reviews

Niimi: Buying Mittens

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
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Ignore the editorial review's opinion on the magic, as it's not at all out-of-place. In Japanese folklore, foxes are seen as tricksters, much like coyote or raven in Native American mythology. Mother fox, however, is not a malicious trickster; just a concerned mother that is sending her child into the human world for the first time. The translation, too, remains very Japanese, which is really only important to you if you're interested in Japanese literature.

As for the _story_... This book is sweet and heartwarming, and the illustrations bring out the beauty of winter like few others. It's short enough that attention won't wander, and has enough tension that small children will be drawn in to the story, but the ending will relieve everyone's fears. I know that if I were still small enough to want a story before bed, this would be one of my favorites.

A silent and cold night, I found a light. It was not so hot but heart warming. After reading it makes me happy like that. I 'm sure you cant't help loving human being more.

This book is excellent in both the graphics and language. It is truly a unique story with touching illustrations that captures the essence of winter. It is good Literature and uses wonderful english. More the remarkable because this book was written by a Japanese man during World War II, he died in 1943 at age 29, his death is unexplained in the book, one can only wonder if it was war related. A web page from Japan suggests he died from tuberculosis. http://www.narawa-j.ed.jp/english/englishtop.htm

Beautiful illustrations, though my wife claims that the Japanese edition has even better print quality.