SUMI'S SPECIAL HAPPENING

by Yoshiko Uchida ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1966

Sumi's Prize (1964) introduced an appealing little girl of modern rural Japan. This time Sumi's problem is to find the perfect gift for Ojii Chan. He was going to be ninety-nine and Sumi wanted it to be the birthday he'd never forget. Everyone else in her family had prepared an appropriate gift, but Sumi wanted ""a happening,"" something to make the old man's heart sing. Kazue Mizumura's illustrations capture Sumi's bursting good health and Ojii Chan's marvelous fragility. The story reveals the silent detachment of old age, the gestures which replace words. Sumi arranges a ride in a village fire engine as the happening and the delighted old man announces that he hasn't been that thrilled or pleased since his seventies. Story and text complement each other and provide a reasonable, readable idea of present day country and village life in the Far East.

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1966

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Scribners

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1966

Categories: FICTION