Available:*
Format | Library | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|---|
Book | Searching... Main Library | J Kas | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
Winner of the 2022 Mildred L. Batchelder Award
A July/August 2021 Kids' Indie Next Pick
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
From renowned Japanese children's author Sachiko Kashiwaba, Temple Alley Summer is a fantastical and mysterious adventure featuring the living dead, a magical pearl, and a suspiciously nosy black cat named Kiriko.
Kazu knows something odd is going on when he sees a girl in a white kimono sneak out of his house in the middle of the night--was he dreaming? Did he see a ghost? Things get even stranger when he shows up to school the next day to see the very same figure sitting in his classroom. No one else thinks it's weird, and, even though Kazu doesn't remember ever seeing her before, they all seem convinced that the ghost-girl Akari has been their friend for years!
When Kazu's summer project to learn about Kimyo Temple draws the meddling attention of his mysterious neighbor Ms. Minakami and his secretive new classmate Akari, Kazu soon learns that not everything is as it seems in his hometown. Kazu discovers that Kimyo Temple is linked to a long forgotten legend about bringing the dead to life, which could explain Akari's sudden appearance--is she a zombie or a ghost? Kazu and Akari join forces to find and protect the source of the temple's power. An unfinished story in a magazine from Akari's youth might just hold the key to keeping Akari in the world of the living, and it's up to them to find the story's ending and solve the mystery as the adults around them conspire to stop them from finding the truth.
Author Notes
Sachiko Kashiwaba is a prolific writer of children's and young adult fantasy whose career spans more than four decades. Her works have garnered the prestigious Sankei, Shogakukan, and Noma children's literature awards, and her novel The Marvelous Village Veiled in Mist influenced Hayao Miyazaki's film Spirited Away . Her works have recently been animated as the films The Wonderland and The House of the Lost on the Cape , and her novel Temple Alley Summer , illustrated by Miho Satake and translated by Avery Fischer Udagawa, won the American Library Association's 2022 Mildred L. Batchelder Award. She lives in Morioka, Iwate.
Avery Fischer Udagawa grew up in Kansas and studied English and Asian Studies at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. She holds an MA in advanced Japanese studies from the University of Sheffield. She has studied at Nanzan University, Nagoya, on a Fulbright fellowship, and at the Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies, Yokohama. She writes, translates and works in international education near Bangkok, where she lives with her bicultural family.
Miho Satake is a Japanese artist and illustrator. She is best known for illustrating the Japanese editions of several classic children's books including Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, three books in the Kiki's Delivery Service series by Eiko Kadono, and the twentieth-anniversary edition of the Harry Potter series.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 3--7--It all starts with a ghost story show on TV one night, a show self-proclaimed scaredy-cat Kazuhiro Sada knows he has no business watching. Late that night, Kazu sees a pale figure sneaking out of his family's altar room. Could it be a ghost? Then he sees the same figure in his class the very next day--a girl known as Akari who all of his friends insist he's known since kindergarten. When he learns the street he and Akari live on used to be called Kimyo Temple Alley, a name that implies the dead coming back to life, Kazu's sure something fishy is going on. But as he spends the summer delving deeper into this mystery and befriending Akari, things will become even more complicated and strange than he could've imagined. A humorous yet thoughtful mystery chock-full of the fantastical, this is a must-read for young fans of Studio Ghibli--an especially warranted comparison, as another book by Kashiwaba served as inspiration for Spirited Away. Lovingly translated into English from the original 2011 text, this version is completely accessible to an English-language audience while retaining a classic Japanese sensibility and storytelling style. All characters default as Japanese. VERDICT An excellent choice for fantasy lovers of all ages, particularly those who enjoy magical realism and a dose of the supernatural. Highly recommended.--Kaitlin Frick, Darien Lib., CT
Publisher's Weekly Review
Japanese novelist Kashiwaba (The Marvelous Village Veiled in Mist) introduces Kazu, a nervous Japanese fifth grader who's sure the girl in a white kimono he sees slipping out of his house one night is a ghost. Then she appears, normally dressed, in his classroom the next morning. His classmates all seem to know her, and they're baffled by his questions about her provenance. Kazu soon discovers that his family's old house contains a small Buddhist statue with the power to bring the dead back to life--a statue that may have some connection to Akari, the mysterious girl. Under the guise of a summer project, Kazu turns detective in a story that reveals an entirely separate nested fairy tale--one that has unsettling parallels to Akari's own. The more he discovers about her, the more deeply Kazu comes to care about Akari, and readers will, too. Though a detailed, exposition-heavy initial 50 pages may stymie readers, the sturdily translated story eventually recovers, bringing Kashiwaba's imaginative power, and Satake's occasional comics-style b&w vignettes, to English-speaking readers. Ages 8--13. (July)
Kirkus Review
One curious boy, the ghost of a long-dead girl, a mysterious old temple, an unfinished story, and several weeks of summer vacation add up to an unforgettable adventure. Kazu and his family live in a sprawling old house in Japan. One night, Kazu is shocked to see what seems to be a ghost in a white kimono leaving the altar room. He's even more shocked when his friends insist this girl, Akari, has always been around. Meanwhile, Kazu decides to do his summer homework project on local history, an idea sparked by an old map that labeled his street Kimyō Temple Alley, a name whose meaning implies the dead can come back to life. Kazu is led deeper into the puzzle through conversations with older community members--some of whom actively discourage his investigations--and befriending Akari and learning where she really came from. A story within a story to which Kazu and Akari seek the ending, a fantasy tale about a girl held hostage by a witch, reinforces the book's overarching theme of living life so that you have no regrets. This imaginative tale, enchantingly written and charmingly illustrated by veteran Japanese creators for young people, has a timeless feel. Its captivating blend of humor and mystery is undergirded with real substance that will provoke deeper contemplation. Udagawa's translation naturally and seamlessly renders the text completely accessible to non-Japanese readers. An instant classic filled with supernatural intrigue and real-world friendship. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
When an author and an illustrator with ties to books associated with renowned Studio Ghibli masterpieces such as Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away join forces on a middle-grade fantasy adventure, you can count on it being something truly special. Main character Kazu discovers, quite by accident, that his home is the location of an ancient temple that can bring people back to life, when the ghost of a girl steps out of its entrance in the middle of the night. He tries to learn more, but he attracts the attention of village elders who would rather the temple be put to rest. Determined to keep the girl, Akari, safe, he does everything he can to help her and shows her plenty of new experiences along the way. Beautifully translated, this sweet tale has a story-within-a-story tied in to convey a theme of living a full life with no regrets, and it nicely reflects one village elder's changing attitude. Satake's crisp illustrations are sprinkled throughout the book and add to the magical atmosphere of the story. Her exquisite, immediately engaging cover art, too, will certainly lure in readers. Heartwarming with a supernatural touch, this beautifully captures the magic of childhood.