Japanese / Japan
Kyō otomodachi ga dekita no
(Today I’ve made friends)
Tokuda, Yukihisa
(text)
Tanemura, Yukiko
(illus.)
Tōkyō: Dōshinsha, 2018. – [28] p.
(Series: Dōshinsha no ohanashi ehon)
ISBN 978-4-494-01627-3
Friendship | Worry | Picture book
Reading age: 4+
White Ravens issue: 2018
Yūna has no friends because she is so shy, but today a girl, Rina, wants to play with her. She tells her mother, father, and even a grocer she sees on her way home about her new friend, sharing her joy with them. She cannot wait to see Rina the next day. However, she gradually begins to worry – would Rina play with her tomorrow? The illustrations match the simple plot very well. Drawn with a gentle line and light, delicate colours, each character’s expressions and movements ingeniously represent their personality, as with Rina’s cheerful spirit or Yūna’s introversion. In the last scene, as Yūna gains confidence and discovers a new side to herself through her friendship with Rina, the children around her are now colourful, rather than monochromatic as they appear at the start of the book, suggesting Yūna’s world will continue to broaden as she makes more friends. A story full of heart and emotion, this captivating picture book has universal appeal.