Help your child learn more one of Mother Nature's lesser known phenomenons, as well as a little bit about Japanese culture, in "Tsunami!" The sentences tell a clear story with a plot and morals to boot. The inclusion of literary tools such as dialogue, simile, expression through capital letters, and personification add an almost-poetic nature to the story while helping your child understand the magnitude of a tsunami; "The mountain shuddered" and "...they saw the angry white sea swallowing up the village." A handful of Japanese words are sprinkled strategically throughout the story and emphasized in italics, so their meaning is clear. The main focus of the story is the visual aspect of the book, pictures created through clever collages of textured materials including felt, burlap, fabric, straw, corduroy, cardboard, string, tissue, and colorful origami paper.
Many children have probably not heard of a tsunami before, so they will be fascinated to learn about this 'new' natural disaster, when "The sea was running away from the land!" Your child may want to know if tsunamis are real, where they occur, how often, and if you've ever seen one. This opens a door for discussion about natural disasters and the devastation they can cause, "All started in shock at the destruction below. There were no more houses...no more rice fields...no temple. The village had disappeared." You can impress upon your child the message of helping others in need, just as Ojiisan burned his rice fields - his fortune - to save his house so he could offer it to all those who had lost theirs in the Tsunami.
I read this book to five-year-old Molly who enjoyed naming the materials used in each collage picture. She also wanted to repeat the Japanese words, "Ojiisan," "Nobori," Taimatsu," "Taihen da," and "Kits" until she felt she had them right. It really took her by surprise when I told her Tsunamis are real, and they really do devastate villages and towns. I assured her that we don't live somewhere where a tsunami would occur, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't help those who do. Molly even offered to send some of her toys to a tsunami relief collection.
--Audra