Renee's Book of the Day: Momotaro: The Peach Boy (Storycard Theater) by Hazuki Kataoka and David Battino

I went to a little happy hour get-together thing last night organized by the Children’s Book Council for people in children’s book publishing in the Bay Area. The event was called “Where the Wild Things Drink,” and we met at the Thirsty Bear Brewery in San Francisco after work.

I must admit I had a really good time. Only about a dozen people attended (all women), and I knew half of them, maybe. And even though I’m really shy and am totally afraid of meeting new people, I had a great time. I love the children’s book industry! Every single person is nice, friendly, and genuine. I loved being around people who are interested in hearing about what I do, and I always enjoy hearing about what other people are doing.

One of the women there that I already knew was Hazuki Kataoka, author and inventor of a product called Storycard Theater. Her idea is based on the traditional kamishibai storytelling cards from Japan. Each of her stories, like Momantaro: The Peach Boy, is printed on large cards with pictures on one side and text on the back. However, the text that goes along with a particular picture is printed on the back of the previous picture’s card, so that when you stack them in a pile, the right words will be on the last card in the pile, the one the narrator sees when holding the cards forward.

At one point in the evening, I had to tell Hazuki about visiting Japan. She was eager to hear what I thought, and I explained that the most striking thing about Japan was the way two seemingly irreconcilable yet entirely unique cultures are juxtaposed in daily life. On the one hand, there are bowing bellmen, ladies in kimonos coming out of the kabuki theater, and shopkeepers who pick up miniscule bits of litter on the sidewalk outside their shops. On the other, there are punk teenagers gathered in cafes, cell phone stores the size of department stores, and shopping arcades with more neon than ten Times Squares put together. It’s mind boggling.

Momotaro: The Peach Boy (Storycard Theater) by Hazuki Kataoka and David Battino