Review by Booklist Review
Inspired by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, this deeply affecting picture book recounts the devastation through the eyes of a little girl named Hana. Hana spends her day at school busily scribbling notes and occasionally daydreaming, sometimes thinking about her parents, such as her mother's zeal for painting small seabirds called plovers. Hana's reverie abruptly ends when a sudden rumble shakes the school, and she must evacuate to higher ground. There she witnesses the dark wave of water sweep over her village, leaving nothing in its wake but destruction and a loss so deep and far-reaching that Hana's life is forever changed. Amid her sorrow, Hana pushes through her grief while her grandmother teaches her how to paint her mother's beloved plovers. With her mother's white paintbrush, she paints beautiful birds that eventually help free her from grief's grip and drive home the story's message of acceptance and the search for peace. Author Maruno writes with a passion that paints an emotional arc underscoring the themes of resilience and recovery, while Sato's impressive mixed-media collage evokes with raw clarity the waves of emotion lifting from each page. This is a book to pass down, and one that gently helps children of all ages learn about grief, bereavement, and coping.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1--3--This story centers Hana, a young girl who lives in Japan, and how she deals with the effects of an earthquake followed by a tsunami that hits her village. The earthquake shakes her classroom, but the tsunami sweeps through the market where her mother works and destroys fishing boats, cars, trucks, and homes. Hana's mother does not return. The girl's grief is profound, and the way she deals with it is by painting one thousand birds. These are the plovers that her mother liked to paint, and they symbolize courage and determination. The story focuses on a tragedy for Hana, but also shows readers how sumi-e, the style of painting she learned from her grandmother, can have a soothing, therapeutic effect. Hana paints the birds in spots around the village and on a special place: the rock where she used to meet her mother after school. While this story is fiction, it is based on an actual event in 2011. This story of loss is told in a straightforward way and is enhanced by collage art that shows the impact of the tsunami, but also suggests the healing power of art. One question is unresolved: what will be the long-term impact of the painting of the birds on Hana, her family, and others in the village? Readers may come away, despite the book's lovely art, with the feeling that an ending is missing. VERDICT An interesting story, but also one that leaves readers with an unanswered question.--Myra Zarnowski
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
In this tale inspired by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan, a young girl finds hope amid the darkness. Hana gazes out her classroom window toward the sea and the plovers flying above her village. In front of her school sits the rock where she and her mother meet each day before walking home together. Suddenly, the ground shakes, and Hana's teachers lead the students to safety. They watch the sea rise and overtake the village, "tossing cars and trucks like toys." When Hana reunites with her father and Obaasan (Grandmother), she learns that her mother didn't survive. "A wave, darker than the one that had taken their village, washed over Hana's heart." Maruno's simple yet poignant prose gently carries young readers through Hana's grief as, with Obaasan's guidance, she discovers her mother's paintbrush in the rubble and decides to paint images of plovers throughout the village, imbuing her frightening new world with a sense of hope. An author's note explains that the book's title is a Japanese word meaning "one thousand birds" and that it also refers to the plover, which represents resolve in the face of hardship; information on sumi-e painting is included. Featuring soft lines and a warm palette, Sato's signature mixed-media artwork has a three-dimensional feel, well suited for young readers; it deftly evokes the power of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami on the town, as well as the people's quiet sadness and recovery. A moving introduction to a tragic event.(Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
