Japan is a fascinating place, packed full of traditions dating back thousands of years and with their multifaceted cultural, it has never failed to fascinate me. Even though I have been there five times with my family and friends, each time it still intrigues me and makes me want to learn more about their culture. So I am delighted to have received this book to read along with my children.
All About Japan is a great book for children who wish to learn about Japan. The book takes you through the journey of two children. A 10 year old boy, Yuto from the countryside and a 12 year old girl, Momoka from the city, on a tour of their beloved land through their eyes. They introduce us to their homes, families, favourite places, school life, holidays and more! We also learn how to compose a poem, sing their traditional Japanese songs and create some simple origami crafts.
I love that they highlight the most important traditions that they celebrate in Japan. Like the cherry blossom festival. This festival only happens once a year during spring time where families and friends gather around to enjoy Sakura in full bloom.
The book also includes easy to make recipes mochi (New Year’s sweet rice cakes), okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza or pancakes) and Onigiri (rice balls). These are some of my favourite recipes! Most of the ingredients can be found in good oriental supermarkets or some bigger high street supermarkets.
Ms C really enjoys reading this book with me and we love to learn about the Japanese myths and folk-tales. The pages are filled with fun watercolour illustrations that bring the characters to life. It is available to buy from Tuttle Publishing, Amazon and good bookstores. I would recommend it as it is very nicely put together with a lot of interesting fun facts that intrigue you to research more about it.
Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher for free. However, they have not paid me for this review, and they do not exercise any editorial control over my review or anything else on this site. We have included an Amazon affiliate link to the product. If you click on this and buy, we may earn a small commission.