The TOMO anthology, about which I posted earlier (click here), has finally been released, and my personal copy was delivered to me today! How I love the smell of new books! This one is chock full of Japan-related stories targeted to teen readers, and a quick look through the table of contents reveals a wide variety of themes and styles, including poetry and comic strips. The first story I read had me sobbing, and it's been a looooong time since I was a teen.
TOMO is relevant to Project Uepeker in that it includes my English translation of "Shirokani pe ran ran pishkan: The Song Sung by the Owl God," the first yukar in Chiri Yukie's yukar anthology. The title of the English version of the story is Where the Silver Droplets Fall, and it was chosen for inclusion in TOMO because it tells the story of how one boy and his family maintain their dignity and morals during times of tribulation.
The full title of the book is TOMO Friendship Through Fiction--An Anthology of Japan Teen Stories. It it the brainchild of Holly Thompson (ed.) and published by Stone Bridge Press "in memory of all those lost in the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011, and dedicated to all the young people of Tohoku." Proceeds from sales will go to benefit recovery efforts. For details, go to the TOMO blog. Also see the Japan Times review of the book.
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