Asian Pacific Lit. KAMISHIBAI MAN by: Allen Say

Bibliography: Say, Allen. 2005. KAMISHIBAI MAN. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0618479546

Summary

The kamishibai man has been retired for a number of years and goes back to the city to perform for the children. When he goes back there are many changes with buildings and traffic everywhere. There are no children interested in hearing his stories. However, a group of adults soon begin to form around him. These are the ones he told stories to when they were children. Nostalgically they enjoy hearing his stories and buying his candies again.

Critical Analysis:

A fall 2005 Parent’s Choice Gold Award winner for picture books, KAMISHIBAI MAN, is based on how the kamishibai man earned a living in the 1930’s through the 1950’s in Japan. This 32 page picture book in muted colors illustrates the timeless quality of Jiicahn’s home and then as he travels to the city the illustrations jump to the high rise buildings and looming traffic of the modern world. One illustration depicts the vast difference in the city that Jicahan remembers as he precariously rides his bicycle with a huge truck advancing upon him and blasting his horn for him to move out of the way. He finds the area where the park used to be now full of restaurants and stores. The gray hues of the illustrations versus the text of the story which tells of the beautiful trees now all chopped down to make room for the restaurants and stores. His box for his performance and the pictures that tell the stories are authentically illustrated. Although his return to the city does not attract the children as it did in years past the adults gather to hear the stories they remember from their childhoods. The illustrations of the adults show them in contemporary clothing of modern day Japan with the business women and men dressed in business suits and others in their casual clothing. Facial expressions are varied, some wearing eyeglasses and eyes shining as they go back to their childhood. The illustrations of the young children listening to the kamishibai man are shown in contemporary clothing as well. Then in the last illustration Jicahan is back at home with his wife in the traditional setting of the Japanese home, with them eating, sitting on the floor dressed in their traditional Japanese clothing. The modern television reflects changes in society, but the news story of the day by the young man carrying the camera was of the return of the kamishibai man. The names of Jicahan and Baachan mean simply Grandpa and Grandma. Although they did not have children of their own it is obvious that they have a love for children with his passion for storytelling and hers for making the candies for the children.

The foreword explains what the kamishibai means “paper theater”. The kamishibai man of Japan would ride a bicycle with a wooden box mounted on the backseat. The box had drawers full of candies and a stage on top. This is reminiscent of his childhood in Japan. The stories told by the kamishibai man were “cliff-hangers” to be continued. Each day would bring a new story, but they were actually a never-ending tale. In this book he introduces the tradition of the kamishibai man to his audience. The afterword is written by Tara McGowan, a Japanese folklore scholar. Historically the kamishibai is said to have stared in the 1930’s, but is part of a long tradition of picture storytelling in Japan. The kamishibai consisted of an easily transported wooden box which held the story pictures and candies. The performer would carry his stories from town to town. The storylines many times came from popular films. This was the poor man’s theater. They were abundant in Japan from the 1930’s to the 1950’s during the time of a great economic depression in Japan and following through until after World War II. After the advent of television the kamishibai became less desirable. People began to see it associated with poverty and backwardness. When the phase of the kamishibai passed many of the artists turned to the creation of comic books.

This is a well written book about the history of a specific type of storytelling indigenous to Japan which entertained children from the 1930’s to the 1950’s. Both the illustrations and the text give an authentic picture of the life of the kamishibai man.

Reviews

Horn Book Guide: In Say's nostalgic homage to kamishibai ("paper theater" of 1930s Japan), retired performer Jiichan essays a decades-later visit to his old haunts in a now-crowded city. Miraculously, recounting his story summons his former audience grown up, a throng of adults who greet him with affection and praise. Say's lovely paintings feature eloquent characterizations and evocative landscapes.

Booklist: In a foreword, Say explains that Kamishibai means paper theater and that years ago Kamishibai men were itinerant storytellers who traveled around Japan on bicycles with a big, wooden box mounted on the back seat. The box contained a miniature theater, and beneath it were drawers of candy that the performer sold to eke out a living. As a storyteller spun his tale, he used picture cards to illustrate dramatic points, finishing each time with a cliffhanger designed to entice the children in his audience to come back another time to hear the continuation of the story. Say's lovely new book is about an elderly Kamishibai man, long retired, who, missing his rounds, decides to pedal back to the old neighborhood for one last performance. The story-within-a-story that emerges reveals why this unique type of performance art has all but disappeared. The quietly dramatic, beautifully evocative tale contains a cliffhanger of its own, and its exquisite art, in the style of Kamishibai picture cards, will attract even the most jaded kid away from the TV to enjoy a good, good book.

Connection

Students draw illustrations and tell stories using their illustrations

KAMISHIBAI STORY THEATER: THE ART OF PICTURE TELLING Author: Dianne De las Casas ISBN 1591584043 – 25 folktales from across Asia for the classroom, Using the method of storytelling through pictures. Students could use these stories to share with each other, or other classes.

Other books by Allen Say

GRANDFATHER’S JOURNEY
TREE OF CRANES
THE BICYCLE MAN