Julian Sedgwick & Chie Kutsuwada - 100 Tales from the Tokyo Ghost Café - Book Review - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

100 Tales from the Tokyo Ghost Café is a captivating and enchanting book that seamlessly blends manga/graphic novel and prose to deliver a rich collection of ghost stories. Written by Julian Sedgwick and beautifully illustrated by Chie Kutsuwada, this book takes readers on a thrilling journey through Japan 'between the worlds'.

The story revolves around Akira, a young boy who is abducted by spirits, who sets out on a quest to find his family and rescue his sister before time runs out. As Akira and his companions venture deeper into northern Japan, they encounter a myriad of yokai monsters and famous ghosts, unravelling a tapestry of interlinked and ghostly short stories.

Julian's storytelling prowess shines through as he masterfully navigates his imaginative skateboard by weaving together tales that are both heartfelt and eerie. He really does create a delightful balance of emotions. The prose effortlessly transports readers into the mystical folklore realm, allowing them to immerse themselves in the vivid and rich atmospheric setting of the Tokyo Ghost Café.

What sets this book apart is the inclusion of manga illustrations by Chie Kutsuwada. Her artwork beautifully complements Sedgwick's prose, bringing the characters and the supernatural world to life with stunning detail and evocative imagery. The combination of manga and prose adds a unique and dynamic element to the storytelling, enhancing the reading experience as you go on a journey throughout the story.  

Each ghostly tale within the collection is carefully crafted, presenting a diverse range of narratives that explore themes of loss, redemption, and the power of human connections. Sedgwick's ability to capture the essence of Japanese folklore and mythology is commendable, offering readers a glimpse into the rich cultural heritage of Japan. The book connects really well to the previous book Tsunami Girl which was also excellent and fabulously immersive. 

"100 Tales from the Tokyo Ghost Café" is a must-read for fans of ghost stories, manga, and captivating storytelling. Sedgwick's imaginative experiences and love for the Japanese culture make the narrative very special. Kutsuwada's exquisite artwork makes for a truly immersive reading experience. Whether you are seeking spine-chilling encounters or heartwarming moments, this book delivers an abundance of both, leaving readers spellbound until the very last page. The book was published by Guppy Books (23 Nov. 2023). BUY HERE!

The Best Children's Book Picks JULY 2023 - US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Rob Renzetti - The Horrible Bag of Terrible Things - Published by Penguin Workshop (July 18, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593519523 - Hardback - Age: 7+ 

From the creator of My Life As a Teenage Robot comes a middle-grade horror story about a horrible bag, the spine-chilling world hidden within it, and a terrifying adventure into the world of GrahBhag.

When Zenith finds a strange, unsettling bag at his front door, he's not sure where it came from or who sent it to him. He knows better than to expect his overprotective older sister Apogee to help him figure it out, because ever since she became a teenager, she's been acting more like a parent to him than a sibling. But he certainly did not expect for a horrifying spiderlike creature to emerge from the bag, kidnap Apogee, and drag her inside to the equally horrifying and unsettling world of GrahBhag. 

Zenith sets off into the bag to bring her back but soon finds a bizarre realm where malicious forests, a trio of blood-drinking mouths, and a sentient sawdust-stuffed giant are lurking within the seams. And from every corner of the world come whispers of the Great Wurm, an eldritch horror with a godlike hold over the creatures of GrahBhag, who seems to have a dark, insidious purpose for Apogee. With the help of a greedy, earwax-nibbling gargoyle, Zenith will have to save Apogee from the Great Wurm and help them both escape the horrible bag before it's too late. 

With a combination of dry, absurdist humor and no-holds-barred horror, Rob Renzetti has crafted a delightfully imaginative fantasy world that will hook readers as surely as it will send chills down their spines.

M. R. Fournet - Brick Dust and Bones - Published by Feiwel & Friends (July 18, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250876027 - Hardback - Age: 8+

A twelve-year-old cemetery boy and monster hunter–along with his flesh-eating mermaid friend–has to race against the clock to save the ghost of his dead mother in Brick Dust and Bones, M.R. Fournet's magical middle-grade debut. 

Marius Grey hunts Monsters. He's not supposed to. He's only twelve and his job as a Cemetery Boy is to look after the ghosts in his family's graveyard. He should be tending these ghosts and–of course–going to school to learn how to live between worlds without getting into trouble. 

But, Marius has an expensive goal. He wants to bring his mother back from the dead, and that takes a LOT of mystic coins, which means a LOT of Monster Hunting, and his mother’s window to return is closing.

If he wants her back, Marius is going to have to go after bigger and meaner monsters, decide if a certain flesh-eating mermaid is a friend or foe, and avoid meddling Demons and teachers along the way. Can Marius navigate New Orleans’s gritty monster bounty-hunting market, or will he have to say goodbye to his mother forever?

Jacqueline Davies - The International House of Dereliction - Published by Clarion Books (July 18, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063258075 - Hardback - Age: 7+ 

In this not-so-scary ghost story from Jacqueline Davies, bestselling author of the Lemonade War series, quirky, tool-wielding Alice Cannoli-Potchnik begins to repair the dilapidated mansion next door—only to discover the old house is home to ghosts, and they need mending, too!

Home is where the heart is. But can a house have a heart of its own? 

Ten-year-old Alice is moving for the eleventh time.

She’s lived in so many houses, each more broken than the last, that home to Alice is nothing more than a place you fix and then a place you leave. After all, who needs a permanent home when you’re a whiz at fixing things?

But when Alice arrives at her new home, she can’t take her eyes off the house next door, the stately dark house that hulked in the dimming light. The once-grand mansion, now dilapidated and condemned, beckons Alice; it's the perfect new repair job!

As Alice begins to restore the House to its former splendor, she senses strange presences. Is there a heartbeat coming from the House’s walls? Is someone looking at her? Soon she realizes she’s not alone. Three ghosts have been watching, and they need Alice’s help to solve their unfinished business.

Will Alice be able to unravel the mysteries of the House and find her forever home . . . before it’s too late?

Summer Rachel Short - The Legend of Greyhallow - Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (July 18, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1665918879 - Hardback - Age: 9+ 

Disney’s Enchanted gets a Lord of the Rings twist in this fantastical middle-grade adventure about two siblings who must close the portal to a magical realm that inspired a popular movie franchise before their own world is conquered by emerging foes.

Twelve-year-old Ainsley Galloway and her ten-year-old brother, Tobin, have just moved to the small, picturesque mountain town of Lowry. The town is famously the setting for the blockbuster Legend of Greyhallow trilogy and there are traces of the films wherever they go. Ainsley’s parents even bought the film director’s former home, which they dream of turning into an inn that caters to fans eager to check out the local Greyhallow Movie Festival. 

But when Ainsley and Tobin are fooling around in the attic of their new home, Ainsley unleashes something. Something she doesn’t quite understand. And suddenly, purple mist is flooding the town, she’s receiving cryptic messages from strangers in medieval garb. Oddest of all, the enigmatic director of the Greyhallow movies, who’s been missing for years, has a message for them.

Ainsley and Tobin have opened a passage between the very real magical world of the movies and their own. In a swirl of shifting loyalties, capricious creatures, and movie trivia, Ainsley and Tobin have to figure out what to do—and who to trust—in order to save them all.

Waka T. Brown - The Very Unfortunate Wish of Melony Yoshimura -  Published by Quill Tree Books (July 18, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063230767- Hardback - Age: 8+

In this magical and chilling Coraline-esque retelling of the Japanese folktale “The Melon Princess and the Amanjaku," one girl must save herself—and her loved ones—from a deceitful demon she befriended.

Melony Yoshimura’s parents have always been overprotective. They say it’s because a demonic spirit called the Amanjaku once preyed upon kids back in Japan, but Melony suspects it’s just a cautionary tale to keep her in line. So on her twelfth birthday, Melony takes a chance and wishes for the freedom and adventure her parents seem determined to keep her from.

As if conjured by her wish, the Amanjaku appears. At first, Melony is wary. If this creature is real, are the stories about its destructive ways also real? In no time, however, the Amanjaku woos Melony with its ability to shape-shift, grant wishes, and understand her desire for independence. But what Melony doesn’t realize is that the Amanjaku’s friendship has sinister consequences, and she quickly finds every aspect of her life controlled by the demon’s trickery—including herself.

Melony is determined to set things right, but will she be able to before the Amanjaku turns her life, her family, and her community upside down?

The Best Children's Book Picks March 2023 - US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Polly Holyoke - Skyriders - Published by Viking Books for Young Readers (March 7, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593464410 - Hardback - Age: 7+ 

Wings of Fire meets Skandar and the Unicorn Thief in this epic fantasy adventure set in a world where human and skysteed share a deep bond of friendship and love.

When monsters emerge to attack the empire, it's up to Kiesandra and her beloved winged horse N'Rah to prove to herself and the imperial army that she has what it takes to lead them to victory . . . and survival.

Thirteen-year-old Kiesandra's best friend isn't human, but that doesn't stop her from sharing jokes and secrets with her winged horse, N'Rah. She, like every other person with a skysteed, can communicate with N'Rah through her mind. Their bond is critical when one day, monsters from long ago reemerge to ravage a nearby village. No one knows how to fight the fearsome chimerae except Kie's uncle . . . and now Kie.

Injured in the battle, Uncle Dug makes her promise to bring his attack plan and weapons to the capital. Kie reluctantly agrees. At the palace, she and N'Rah attempt to gain the trust of the royals and train the army in Dug's lessons. But how can a young girl and her skysteed convince anyone that only they know how to defeat the deadly monsters?

Buzzing with action, heart, and friendship, this first book in the Skyriders series show that kids can achieve the impossible—especially with flying horses on their side.

Rebecca Mahoney - The Memory Eater - Published by Razorbill (March 14, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593524602 - Hardback - Age: 11+ 

“An eerie tale offering equal measures of fright, angst, and emotional catharsis.” —Kirkus, starred review

A teenage girl must save her town from a memory-devouring monster in this piercing exploration of grief, trauma, and memory, from the author of The Valley and the Flood.

For generations, a monster called the Memory Eater has lived in the caves of Whistler Beach, Maine, surviving off the unhappy memories of those who want to forget. And for generations, the Harlows have been in charge of keeping her locked up—and keeping her fed.

After her grandmother dies, seventeen-year-old Alana Harlow inherits the family business. But there’s something Alana doesn’t know: the strange gaps in her memory aren’t from an accident. Her memories have been taken—eaten. And with them, she’s lost the knowledge of how to keep the monster contained.

Now the Memory Eater is loose. Alana’s mistake could cost Whistler Beach everything—unless she can figure out how to retrieve her memories and recapture the monster. But as Alana delves deeper into her family’s magic and the history of her town, she discovers a shocking secret at the center of the Harlow family business and learns that tampering with memories always comes at a price.

Cayla Fay - Ravensong - Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (March 14, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1665905299 - Hardback - Age: 12+

A demi-god who refuses to cohabitate with humans accidentally falls in love with one in the first book of a pulse-pounding teen duology that’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Celtic mythology.

Neve has spent lifetimes defending the mortal world against the legions of hell with her two sisters. 

Unfortunately for Neve, in this lifetime, she is the only one of the Morrigan—a triad of Irish war gods—still stuck in high school and still without her full power. She’s been counting down the days until her eighteenth birthday, when she finally gets to shed the pretenses of humanity and grow into her divine power.

But then she meets Alexandria. And Alexandria is as determined to force Neve into some semblance of teenage normalcy as she is haunted by her own demons—both figurative and literal.

As they grow closer, Neve decides that humanity—and, perhaps, love—isn’t so detestable after all. This makes it all the more dangerous when she realizes that something in Hell wants Alexandria, and it’s up to Neve and her sisters to save her before Alexandria’s past catches up to all of them.

Chica Umino - March Comes in Like a Lion (Volume 1) - Published by ‎DENPA BOOKS (March 28, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1634428125 - Paperback - Age: 12+ 
Rei Kiriyama is a child prodigy. Rei Kiriyama is also an orphan who lives alone in an empty apartment. Rei Kiriyama is a teen working in an adult's world. Life is complicated for Rei. He's an up-and-coming shogi (Japanese chess) player on the verge of turning pro but he has no homelife or much of a life period outside his board game but thankfully with the help of some life-long friends he has an opportunity start all over again.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Children's Book Picks Feb 2023 - US Published Post

 

Beth Lincoln (Author), Claire Powell (Illustrator) - The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels - Published by  Dutton Books for Young Readers (February 7, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593533239 - Hardback - Age: 7+

On the day they are born, every Swift child is brought before the sacred Family Dictionary. They are given a name, and a definition. A definition it is assumed they will grow up to match. 
Meet Shenanigan Swift: Little sister. Risk-taker. Mischief-maker.

Shenanigan is getting ready for the big Swift Family Reunion and plotting her next great scheme: hunting for Grand-Uncle Vile’s long-lost treasure. She’s excited to finally meet her arriving relatives—until one of them gives Arch-Aunt Schadenfreude a deadly shove down the stairs.

So what if everyone thinks she’ll never be more than a troublemaker, just because of her name? Shenanigan knows she can become whatever she wants, even a detective. And she’s determined to follow the twisty clues and catch the killer.

Deliciously suspenseful and delightfully clever, The Swifts is a remarkable debut that is both brilliantly contemporary and instantly classic. A celebration of words and individuality, it's packed with games, wordplay, and lots and lots of mischief as Shenanigan sets out to save her family and define herself in a world where definitions are so important.

• Jonathan Starrett - The Architect - Published by Tyndale House Publishers (February 7, 2023) - 
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1496466600 - Harback - Age: 8+ 
• There’s a golden rule in Phantom City: “No one about when the Zeppelin is out.” But one night, twelve-year-old Charlie Crane comes face-to-face with the Zeppelin, and instead of finding trouble, she is awakened.
  
  Determined to find the truth in a city plagued with lies, Charlie, along with a quirky band of unlikely heroes, works to free the people of Phantom City from the clutches of a shadowy, evil villain. Helped by a mysterious Architect who only communicates over radio and telephone, Charlie wrestles with two big questions: Can she trust a guide she can't see? And is the truth actually worth the trouble?
  
  Filled with sinister schemes, bumbling superheroes, unexpected friendships, and plenty of humor and plot twists, The Architect keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Boys and girls alike will be fascinated by the unique world of Phantom City, with its steampunk and Gotham City–type elements and will quickly find themselves cheering for our heroes in their fight against evil.

Miya T. Beck - The Pearl Hunter - Published by Balzer + Bray (February 7, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063238190 - Hardback - Age: 8+

Set in a world inspired by pre-Shogun era Japan, this is a stunning debut fantasy in the vein of Grace Lin about how a young pearl diver goes to the ends of the earth to rescue her twin sister, who has been stolen by a ghost whale.

Kai and Kishi share the same futon, the same face, and the same talent for pearl diving. But Kishi is the obedient daughter, while Kai tries to push the rules, and sometimes they fight. Still, when Kishi is stolen and killed by the legendary Ghost Whale, nothing will stop Kai from searching for her, deep in the ocean, hoping for a way to bring her back to life.

But such a rescue is beyond the power of an ordinary mortal. Kai strikes a deal with the gods: she’ll steal a magic pearl in exchange for her sister’s soul. As she journeys across treacherous landscape, Kai must navigate encounters with scheming bandits, a power-hungry warlord, and a legion of conniving fox spirits.  And when a new friendship becomes something almost as powerful as her love for her sister, Kai must make impossible choices and risk everything just to get home again.

Woven through with Japanese culture and legends, this many-layered story will grip readers of all ages.

Misa Sugiura - Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind - Published by Labyrinth Road (February 28, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593564066 - Hardback - Age 7+ 

All Momo wants for her twelfth birthday is an ordinary life—like everyone else's. At home, she has to take care of her absentminded widowed mother. At school, kids ridicule her for mixing up reality with the magical stories her mother used to tell her.

But then Momo’s mother falls gravely ill, and a death hag straight out of those childhood stories attacks Momo at the mall, where she’s rescued by a talking fox . . . and “ordinary” goes out the window. It turns out that Momo's mother is a banished Shinto goddess who used to protect a long-forgotten passageway to Yomi—a.k.a. the land of the dead. That passageway is now under attack, and countless evil spirits threaten to escape and wreak havoc across the earth.

Joined by Niko the fox and Danny—her former best friend turned popular jerk, whom she never planned to speak to again, much less save the world with—Momo must embrace her (definitely not "ordinary") identity as half human, half goddess to unlock her divine powers, save her mother’s life, and force the demons back to Yomi.

Tsunami Girl by Julian Sedgwick (Author), Chie Kutsuwada (Illustrator) - Guest Post Interview - Guppy Books

 

Hello Everybody! (みなさん、こんにちは) One of my favourite books of the year has been Tsunami Girl by Julian Sedgwick. It has been brilliantly illustrated by Chie Kutsuwada. Told through both prose and manga, it's a fantastic but very poignant cultural reality. If you would like to read my review then follow the link HERE. This post is an interview with Julian and Chie about the partnership between author and illustrator and the origins of this amazing book. We hope you enjoy it as much as we have. 

There is a link at the bottom of the post to watch the live book launch and a place where you can buy signed copies of this special book. Enjoy and see you soon. 

Julian writes: Two things in particular worried me about researching and writing Tsunami Girl. The first was to earn the trust and support of affected communities on the Fukushima coast, and create a story that would do justice and respect to the heavy themes of loss, trauma, damage and recovery. If I hadn’t had such a positive reaction from the towns I visited near the stricken Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear plant, I would have abandoned the idea. 

But secondly - even after winning that trust, and friendship – I also worried a lot about whether my idea of combining a prose and manga story could work. It took many, many notebooks, early abandoned drafts and plot diagrams to find a way to combine the main prose part of the novel  (which tells central character Yūki’s story) with the manga inserts that show another angle – another world even – and highlight Yuki’s own creation, a diminutive superhero called Half Wave. 

Even when I had the main shape of an idea, and a contract with my new publisher, Guppy Books, I still had to convince an experienced manga artist that this would work. It was at this point that a mutual friend introduced me to Chie Kutsuwada, and – after our own discussion about motivations and trust! - our collaboration began. 

Below, we chat about the practical process involved in weaving manga and prose into one book.

JULIAN: Hi Chie! I’m still so delighted that I found you to bring the manga sections of Tsunami Girl to life. For a long time I worried whether the idea would work, and what a manga artist would make of my script. Did you have any worries about the technical aspects of tying prose and manga together? And was there anything that particularly excited – or worried you - about the task?

CHIE: Hi Julian! So do I! I’m still feeling honoured and lucky to be involved in your brave and epic project! 

Well, I actually didn’t have many worries. I just liked the idea of prose and manga together. And when I read your text, I felt sure that it would work well. The aspect I was most careful about was this: I had to make sure that all the characters ‘looked’ the same in both the prose and in the manga parts where readers can actually see the characters’ faces. So, I tried to imagine the whole book visually first. By doing so, I could get an even approach to, for example, how each character makes their facial expressions. How about you, Julian? How did you make the text go back and forth between prose and manga seamlessly?

JULIAN: Through a long process of trial and error! I always knew there would be both manga pages and a manga storyline, but in early versions it was Grandpa who had created Half Wave, and it was the grandchild who helped him imagine one final great instalment of Half Wave’s adventures. At that point the manga story was a separate adventure that mirrored what was happening to our central character Yūki - (who incidentally started out as a boy in the first few drafts!) 

Whilst I could make certain echoes between the prose and manga stories, they just wouldn’t interweave well enough, until I realised the manga story had to be more about the disaster itself, and just show a different, imaginative interaction with that disaster and the recovery. Suddenly I could feel it was going to work. But even then I wondered if the images and text would gel. 

Your early roughs of characters and settings were really convincing and good to see. But I remember it took us a little while to find a version of Half Wave that worked for us all. Maybe you could say a little about developing the characters visually - particularly Half Wave?

CHIE: I know it is not the most practical way to do character design, but I usually wait for inspiration to hit me. In this case, I read the script a few times and repeatedly read some critical parts. I was thinking about the characters, almost all the time, until I started feeling that I knew them.

Usually when I feel I know characters, I can get to see them visually, then I start sketching several different versions. For the Tsunami Girl characters, I did not need to do much planning sketches. As I familiarised with the story, I quite easily started to see them visually because the way you describe them is very clear. I believe you know them very, very well. Because you are the creator, of course to come extent you must know them - but it is beyond that. I feel you really KNOW them, maybe it is because some of the characters were based on your actual friends? Also the image references you showed me helped me a lot.

As for Half Wave, the sketch of him by your son was everything. His sketch, and how Half Wave acts in the story, gave me inspiration - and I think I did not change much from your son’s initial image! What I did was to make him look more manga. That’s it really!  I remember that our discussion was mainly his age and height,  wasn’t it? 

JULIAN: It’s interesting that your process of finding characters as an illustrator is so like mine as a writer. Suddenly - you know they are coming to some kind of life. 

Practically, with Half Wave, getting his height right was really important - he’s an eternal (wise) child, forever on the cusp of growing up, with real wisdom and strength. What we did discuss was how Half Wave should look subtly different from Yūki, Taka, Grandpa and the other people from this world. Half Wave needed to look like he belonged in the liminal space between this world (konoyo) and ‘that world’ (anoyo). After two or three versions, suddenly he was there. A very exciting moment. (And as my younger son comes towards the end of his comic and character design degree at uni, he’ll be glad of that praise!)

It’s interesting, ever since reading Spiegelman’s Maus I’ve been in no doubt that all subject material can be tackled in comic/graphic novel/manga type approaches. I never worried that manga could help carry the weight of the story of the disaster, (especially after reading more widely around  alternative manga or gekiga - and coming across works like the incredible Fukushima Devil Fish by Katsumata Susumu.) Are there any manga series or titles you’d love to see translated and brought into the UK market from Japan? Anything we’re really missing out on?!

CHIE: It was amazing when your visualisation of the characters and mine overlapped and merged to become what they are now…
Well, as for manga which I strongly believe should be translated... all of Yumiko Oshima’s work, especially short stories. She debuted in 1968 and is a very well-established manga artist. She is just one of the best storytellers… (Another manga artist who I think is in that category is Moto Hagio. Her work is getting translated more and more recently.)
Oshima’s work may look quite pretty and delicate, but often the theme is very heavy and philosophical, concerning love (not typical romantic type), birth, death, mental illness, aging, and the end of the world - which are not typical topics for manga works targeting towards young girls. I think this kind of heavy but realistic theme is picked as a theme for manga more and more recently, but she did it more than 30 years ago, and her work does not look dated at all… 

One of many qualities I like about her work is even though she talks about those heavy issues, she does not use bang-in-your-face sensationalism. Her work is very poetic, her choice of words and drawing style is soft, but as you read, it feels like something has gouged at your heart. Very powerful. I hope one day some of her work is properly translated into English. I even want to volunteer to be that translator…!

Click Here if you weren’t able to make the event live – and enter password +aD4@u%4 to watch. Signed copies by both Julian and Chie are available on the Waterstone’s Website Here.

Julian Sedgwick (Author), Chie Kutsuwada (Illustrator) - Tsunami Girl - Book Review (Mr. Ripley's Enchanted Books)

Hello and welcome (こんにちは、ようこそ)  to Mr. Ripley's Enchanted Books. This has been a very emotional and poignant book review.

A huge earthquake and Tsunami struck Japan at 2.46pm on March 11, 2011. It devastated towns and changed the landscape forever whilst also triggering nuclear meltdowns in Fukushima. The world watched helplessly as a triple disaster unfolded and the chaotic struggle to contain the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl took place. Ten years later and the story of Tsunami Girl by Julian Sedgwick is born. Published by Guppy Books in March 2021 the book will finally spread its wings and soar into the world. 

The book was inspired by the people, memories, and the author's visits to Odak, Minamisōm, Japan. The book is a three-year culmination of research and writing about the unseen crisis. It's a story to remember, savour and reflect upon. Just like petals falling from a Skura tree, this story showers the reader with a poignant and heartfelt story. It has both dark and light flowing throughout the narrative. 

The book is part story and part manga (a comic art form traditionally developed in Japan from scrolls dating back as far as the 12th century). The manga illustrations have been wonderfully created by Chie Kutsuwada and are used to weave in the imaginary element of the story alongside the written reality. They particularly introduce and follow the super-hero character in the imaginary world (Half Wave) who is bound by Yuki's own manga creation which is very much linked to the back story. The character is pulled together in a quirky quality that I associate with watching a Studio Ghibli film, both of which I really love. 

The narrative follows shy 15-year-old, Yuki Hara Jones, who finds herself caught up in the Earthquake and Tsunami whilst visiting her Grandpa. The story centers around both Yuki and her amazing Grandpa, who is an award-winning adult Manga artist. Back in England, she finds herself reliving the tragic events that unfolded on that unimaginable day. You'll find yourself walking a tightrope of emotions as you follow Yuki and the relationships between her English family in Cambridge (England) and her Japanese family as she attempts to heal herself by revisiting the disaster zone with the help of her friend Taka. 

This is the most thought-provoking story that I've read for a long time. It made me feel so emotional that it really swept me off my feet and stirred many thoughts. It was almost like looking over the edge of the cliff and free-falling into the foamy sea. The story is about place/time, pain, loss, friendship, and finally finding one's self again. It charts the struggles in the aftermath and how life was viewed differently as a result of such devastation. It's about not only the importance of memories but also after being in such a dark place trying to find the light and courage once more to make life a full experience and as rewarding as it can be. 

The way to best describe this book is as one massive Hanabi (花火) firework display as it sparkles, pops, and fizzes on the brain. A fluttering ghost story (Yami Shibai) delivers the yin and yang punching into the plot with a beating heart. The encounters and the feelings of the characters have been masterfully written. I view the story with sadness but also have fond memories from the special moments within. One day I hope to take a journey to Japan and, as a result of this book, will remember the people who lost their lives as well as those who were left behind to deal with the devastation. 

The story has been very well researched and written. It really is a very fitting tribute to one of the biggest natural disasters to happen in our lifetime. I'm sure that many people as they read this book will feel and view things differently but that's why I particularly love books like this. There is certainly no other book like this available to buy at the moment so I really would recommend that you read this. I would be particularly interested to know your thoughts on this amazingly well-published book. Thank you for reading and have a great day.

If you also fancy a doubled signed copy of the book. Here is the link to do so! https://www.kenilworthbooks.co.uk/tsunami-girl/

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Author Interview with Jason Rohan The Sword of Kuromori &The Shield of Kuromori

Today I'm very pleased to be interviewing Jason Rohan, the author of "The Sword of Kuromori" and "The Shield of Kuromori." I'd like to thank him for agreeing to do this interview and for taking the time out to answer a few questions for Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books. This has been one of my favourite Q&As that I've received recently - very interesting and incredibly engaging. Thank you very much. 

Tell us a little bit about The Sword of Kuromori and the series?

As the title suggests, The Sword of Kuromori is somewhat unique for a kids' book in that it's set entirely in modern Japan. Japan is one those countries that everyone knows a little about but at the same time is still viewed as exotic and largely unknown which is odd given the huge presence Japanese culture has in our lives. Be it film, comics, consumer electronics, cars, toys, games, fashion, cuisine - you name it - Japan has its influence.

Having spent five years in Japan, living and working the sarariman lifestyle, I wanted to bring that rich culture to a wider audience, not only by describing everyday life in the country, but also by tapping into its history, religion and folklore. As with Europe, villages were quite isolated in feudal times and regions developed their own distinctive traits, such as dialects, foods and folk tales. These diverse myths create a rich backdrop to set a story against and I had a blast bringing some of these ancient stories kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

One of the central conflicts I see in modern Japan is the clash between a fiercely traditional society and a fast-paced world which embraces technology. I decided to take that old-versus-new battle to a literal extreme by having ancient Japanese gods adopt modern science to settle old scores, and that's another aspect which I think sets the Kuromori books apart from other middle grade fantasy stories.

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp? 

There is, but I try to be subtle about it as I think readers don't like the sense that they are being preached to. The Kuromori books each have a different theme which is etched into the DNA of the story. The first is about the power of belief, of having faith in yourself and in not giving up when life sets you back - I think every aspiring writer can relate to that! The second book explores the classic samurai dilemma of 'duty versus desire,' and the third book is about duality and the necessity for balance. In every case, the theme grew out of the story and not vice versa.

How much of the book is realistic? 

I'd like to say, "all of it," but I probably can't get away with that in a book featuring magic, myth and monsters! I did try to portray life in Tokyo as realistically as possible, so I write about public transportation, language, using chopsticks, correct etiquette when visiting Shinto shrines, bowing, removing shoes, public baths, the tea ceremony, even correct shuriken-throwing technique! I tried to get all of the everyday aspects as accurate as I could with the idea that someone could read the book and have a good idea of what to expect if they ever visited Japan. 

How much research do you do? 

Tonnes! It's hard to measure exactly, because I tend to do research as I go along. For example, I have a section in the book where the main characters take a tour of the Imperial Palace, something I wasn't able to do when I was there. After a few hours of serious digging I was able to take a virtual tour, cross reference several Japanese guide books, check maps, read visitor blogs and collate what I needed. I also did a lot of reading up on Japanese mythology and folklore as background. It helped that my Japanese is still serviceable so I was able to go to the source for a lot of my research. In fact, that language barrier is probably one of the biggest reasons why Japanese culture remains largely unknown to western audiences.

Do you work to an outline/plot or do you prefer to see where an idea takes you? 

I'm definitely a plotter by nature and you'll see a classic three-act structure in what I do but that doesn't mean I write an outline and stick to it slavishly. Most of my novels tend to start out as back-of-the-envelope sketches, and I start writing with that loose map in mind and then see where it goes. I'm a firm believer in always knowing the direction you're drifting in and in knowing your ending, but I'm open to taking detours and feeling my way through a story, because characters will surprise you and do their own thing if you let them. While it's important to not be too rigid, I don't fancy writing a whole book straight off the cuff. I can't afford the time if it goes spectacularly wrong!

Is travel an important aspect to you, as your books are based in Japan?

I love travel and have been fortunate enough to visit many parts of the world, but there's always more to see, learn and discover. I have a fairly diverse background being Indian by genetics, Caribbean by heritage and British by culture. My extended family includes Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Jews so I have a very broad view of the world. To me, people are essentially the same wherever they are; we have the same desires and needs. Travel, and by that I mean seeing how people live and sharing in their lives, rather than merely passing through and treating them like exhibits, is a hugely rewarding experience because it teaches you new ways of looking at the world. We are so steeped in our cultural mindset that we assume it is the only way of seeing things; exposure to different peoples shows us how blinkered we are and how little we know. For example, the concept of owning land is alien to some cultures. They see it the other way round and, if you think about it, it is absurd to believe that any individual can lay claim to any portion of our planet. The land owns us and that's a lesson that we'll be reminded of in the coming decades as the climate changes.

Do you think that the cover plays an important part in the buying process? 

That's an intriguing question. I'd like to say no, that readers will discover new books through word of mouth or recommendations from trusted bloggers, but if packaging wasn't important, we wouldn't spend millions on it. It's funny, because I've had kids express reservations about the cover of The Sword of Kuromori yet go on to love the book. Equally, there are books that have gone on to huge success with covers that I don't find at all appealing. I've been very lucky, though, in that my publisher Egmont has involved me fully in the cover design process and I love the movie-poster/computer-game look that we've gone with.

Are there any authors that you have found inspiring?

As a kid, I devoured the Willard Price Adventure series of books and learned so much from them about animals, nature, science and the wider world. I also enjoyed classics such as King Solomon's Mines by H Rider Haggard and I can see even now how those novels inspired my rapid-fire style of writing. Stan Lee at Marvel Comics was another huge influence because not only did he write multiple titles simultaneously but he also went big with his ideas. Lee was never afraid to raise the stakes and go epic while retaining the sense of fragility that encapsulates mankind. Finally, I have to mention Sarwat Chadda because we go back a long way and seeing him break into publishing gave me the kick that I needed to get back to writing seriously.

Do you have any advice for other writers?  

Don't write for success. Don't write for the market. Don't write for your friends. Don't write to meet an arbitrary target. Don't write to win a bet. Write for yourself because not getting that story out will haunt you for the rest of your life. My father wanted to be a writer but he never knuckled down and only left a few pages of jottings. I wrote four books before I sold one and I was prepared to keep writing novels, even if I never succeeded, so I would leave my children a shelf full of finished manuscripts and they could say that at least I tried. Write because you have to. Everything else is a bonus.

Is there anything else that you would like to tell us? 

One of the biggest surprises I've found this year is that there are so many really wonderful people out there who love reading, love books and give up their free time to share that love. The community of readers, writers, editors, agents, bloggers and publishers that I've stumbled across is like a big, warm hug and I'm honoured to be a member of that extended family. Thank you to everyone who has read this, supported their favourite author and spread the word about their favourite book. It's been a pleasure.