YUKI AND THE ONE THOUSAND CARRIERS

Yuki’s father, a provincial governor, has been summoned from Kyoto to Edo (modern-day Tokyo). Along with her mother, Yuki and her little dog Kita will accompany him on the 300-mile journey, a commonplace one for Japanese governors of the 17th and 18th centuries. Before they leave, Yuki’s teacher reminds her to write haiku, so she does, alternating her narrative between descriptions of the trip and the gem-like poems it inspires. Readers will get a sense of the limits and favors afforded a wealthy girl of the period, as well as descriptions of food, inns and the many memorable glimpses of the land that Yuki drinks in from her palanquin (the enclosed litter borne by some of the household’s 1,000 carriers). Nascimbene’s evocative and appealing watercolors inspired by classic Japanese woodcuts combine perfectly with the present-tense text. An excellent introduction to the art of haiku and the world of old Japan. (author’s note) (Picture book. 6-10)