Japanese Children's Favorite Stories - Hardcover

by Florence Sakade (Author), Yoshisuke Kurosaki (Illustrator)

This colorfully illustrated multicultural children's book presents Japanese fairy tales and other folk stories--providing insight into a vibrant literary culture.

For 60 years, generations of English-speaking children around the world have been enchanted by Japanese Children's Favorite Stories--and for good reason. With such titles as "The Toothpick Warriors" and "The Rabbit Who Crossed the Sea," these 20 stories offer age-old lessons in kindness and goodness that are still riveting to children and parents alike. This 60th Anniversary Tuttle edition is proof that good stories never wear out.

In this treasure trove of much-beloved Japanese children's stories, you'll meet charming characters drawn from folklore and passed down for generations. These tales about playful goblins with long noses, walking statues, and a delightful hero who just happens to be one-inch tall speak of the virtues of honesty, humility and hard work. What better way for a parent to teach than through stories that thrill their children!

Author Florence Sakade, a pioneer of English-language publishing in Japan, has compiled so many enchanting stories, readers will have a difficult time deciding which is their favorite. The sparking illustrations by Yoshisuke Kurosaki are a visual treat that readers of all ages will enjoy! His original and stylized watercolors bring to life the fascinating tales of fairy cranes, eel catchers, and singing turtles, among many others. These Japanese stories shine on every page and are sure to captivate your family as they have many others.

The Children's Favorite Stories series was created to share the folktales and legends most beloved by children in the East with young readers of all backgrounds in the West. Other multicultural children's books in this series include: Asian Children's Favorite Stories, Indian Children's Favorite Stories, Indonesian Children's Favorite Stories, Singapore Children's Favorite Stories, Filipino Favorite Children's Stories, Favorite Children's Stories from China & Tibet, Chinese Children's Favorite Stories, Korean Children's Favorite Stories, Balinese Children's Favorite Stories, and Vietnamese Children's Favorite Stories.

Author Biography

The late Florence Sakade was an experienced editor and author/compiler of many popular books on Japan such as A Guide to Reading and Writing Japanese, Origami: Japanese Paper Folding, and Japanese Children's Favorite Stories. Her distinguished career spanned five decades, and she continued working until her death in 1999 at the age of 82.

Yoshisuke Kurosaki (1905-1984) studied at the Kawabata Painting school and illustrated children's books from around 1927 until his death. His work has helped define the style of Japanese children's book illustration in the 20th century.