What a gem of a book. This is a wonderful way to learn about Japanese culture through the eyes of a young boy who is describling a very special school dayl The description of the school in the south island of Japan located halfway up a tall green mountain is lush and beautitully rendered. How lovely to be able to see old sailing ships and hear the pounding of the waves for this vantage point.

The setting is a lovely spring day when the annual sportsday is held. The writer does an excellent joy of rendering the excitement of the day with special headbands worn indicating the team the child belongs. Coroeful flags and streamers adorn the poles carried with with chalk lines drawn. The principal sets the tone of sportsmanship and the idea of fun no matter who wins.

Then, there is a joint race of parents and teachers running alonside calling words of encouragement. And then, the winners approached the judges table to receive their prize from the principal. Wrapped in white paper and gold thread, each child walks to the table slowly recognizing the privilidge and honor that winning connotates.

There is a description of the family meal with attention to detail. More games are played in the afternon, with the fun of parents and teachers joining in the festivities.

And then the tone changes as two strangers, make the day important because they are American soldiers. One is very dark skinned, the other had "bright hair like fire." The author stresses physical characteristics to make the difference more profound. The World Was II is over and thus there is no fear of capture, harm or abandonment, simply the recognition that American soldiers are indeed strangers.

The principal gladly offers his bike to the tall black man who performs a series of stunts with the bike. Twisiting and turning, looking backward, leaping in the air with bike in hand, encourages the students to laugh. When the stunts are finished, a prize is given to the very tale American soldier. There is a sense of comradre and joy.

A special school day made all the more important by the inclusion of American Soliders, and two groups, previously at war, now have no need for weapons, only the sense of joy and revelry. ( )

If you are looking for a good book for your class or child to read and practice asking questions as a reading comprehension strategy, this book is perfect. The book is historical fiction and the setting is in Japan, so there are cultural differences between the school in the story and probably the school your child attends (as this blog is in English and all the books mentioned in it are in English). It also has what Lucy Calkins would describe as a "small moment" during a special school sports day in spring. The sports day is the frame of the story, but the small moment of the two soldiers passing by and what happens for a short time is the most exciting part of the book. So, questioning and small moments would be the focus of this read-aloud. Children will be asking questions, so you may want to tell them to wait until the end of the book or the second reading to ask them. ( )

In this text the author/illustrator use detailed pictures in order to help explain the text. The book discusses a sportsmanship day that a school is having in Japan. The young boys in the story participate in several different games. The author describes the events well, but the detailed drawings of the book really help to let the reader see what these events look like and entail. ( )

Compare Japanese children's "Sportsday" to our kids' "field day." ( )

Very enjoyable! Great lead into history lessons. Students will probably find the tale very engaging.