My neighbor Totoro

Gr 3-5-Totoro unfolds in brief, pleasantly uneventful episodes in this adaptation of Miyazaki's animated film. A humorous fantasy populated with the filmmaker's trademark endearing, unclassifiable creatures, it contains elements familiar to fans of Spirited Away. Fourth-grader Satsuki and her four-year-old sister, Mei, move to the country with their father to be closer to their mother, who is in a hospital recovering from an illness. The first volume simply recounts the family's first day in their new house, which they discover is haunted by amicable soot sprites. In volume two, Mei discovers the Totoros, benign forest spirits. The story develops leisurely and is told primarily through the illustrations, with a minimum of text. Bright, cheerful colors reflect Totoro's amiable humor and depict a veritable dream world for young children, where lush green fields and forests populated with the quirky, friendly Totoros provide an idyllic playground. Gentler in pace and tone than Spirited Away, these books will appeal not only to manga and anime fans, but also to younger readers with little or no previous knowledge of the genre.-Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.