THE SECRET OF THE BLUE GLASS

Name: THE SECRET OF THE BLUE GLASS
Author: Tomiko Inui
ISBN: 978-1-78269-034-4

by Tomiko Inui ; translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 26, 2016

A child’s goodness in difficult times animates this touching story for fans ofThe Borrowers and the Chronicles of Narnia.

bookshelf

A young girl carefully keeps a magical secret during World War II.

Before she left Japan to return home to England in 1913, Tatsuo Moriyama’s teacher entrusted him with care of the Little People, instructing him to give them a secret place to live and provide them with milk daily in their special blue crystal glass. Each generation of the Moriyama children has in turn taken on responsibility for filling the blue glass. Now it is Yuri’s chance to look after Balbo and Fern and their children, Robin and Iris. For years a bookshelf in the Moriyama house has been a hidden refuge, but radical changes are underway with the onset of World War II. Evacuated for safety to a remote rural area, Yuri does her best to care for the Little People, but as food becomes scarce, their situation takes a turn for the worst. Originally published in Japan in 1967, this is a powerful mix of fantasy and historical fiction depicting the impact of war on civilians—children in particular—and offering insights into the Japanese experience of the Second World War. Although filled with lovely imagery and charming descriptions, for example, of the Little People’s ingenuity with scavenged objects and their friendship with a helpful pigeon, there is ample drama and anguish as well.

A child’s goodness in difficult times animates this touching story for fans ofThe Borrowers and the Chronicles of Narnia. (Historical fantasy. 10-14)

Pub Date: Jan. 26, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-78269-034-4

Page Count: 193

Publisher: Pushkin Children’s Books

Review Posted Online: April 21, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION

bookshelf

THE SEVENTH MOST IMPORTANT THING

by Shelley Pearsall ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 8, 2015

Luminescent, just like the artwork it celebrates. (Historical fiction. 10-14)

bookshelf

Traumatized by his father’s recent death, a boy throws a brick at an old man who collects junk in his neighborhood and winds up on probation working for him.

Pearsall bases the book on a famed real work of folk art, the Throne of the Third Heaven, by James Hampton, a janitor who built his work in a garage in Washington, D.C., from bits of light bulbs, foil, mirrors, wood, bottles, coffee cans, and cardboard—the titular seven most important things. In late 1963, 13-year-old Arthur finds himself looking for junk for Mr. Hampton, who needs help with his artistic masterpiece, begun during World War II. The book focuses on redemption rather than art, as Hampton forgives the fictional Arthur for his crime, getting the boy to participate in his work at first reluctantly, later with love. Arthur struggles with his anger over his father’s death and his mother’s new boyfriend. Readers watch as Arthur transfers much of his love for his father to Mr. Hampton and accepts responsibility for saving the art when it becomes endangered. Written in a homespun style that reflects the simple components of the artwork, the story guides readers along with Arthur to an understanding of the most important things in life.

Luminescent, just like the artwork it celebrates. (Historical fiction. 10-14)