Misuzu Kaneko (1903–1930)

Born in a fishing village in Japan, Misuzu Kaneko (1903-1930) was an observant, thoughtful child who asked lots of questions: “What does it feel like to be snow?....Where do stars go in the daytime?” And what she pondered as a child made its way into poetry as she grew older, clearly evident as the book alternately shares Misuzu’s life story and her poems. Although many girls in that era only went through sixth grade, Misuzu went to high school, as her mother, manager of a bookstore, valued education. By age 20, Misuzu was a published poet, but her life took a tragic turn when her abusive husband forced her to stop writing and she took her own life. For years, no one heard of her poetry and much was only published decades later. Her words, however, were brought to life after the tsunami of 2011 reaching “millions of people in Japan just when they needed it.” Additional poems in both English and Japanese are included. This sensitively-illustrated, picture book biography provides a lens into another culture, and yet the child-friendly poems show universality of feelings the world over. Indeed, the poetry could inspire readers to translate their wonderings to poems.… (meer)