Taro Yashima (1908–1994)

The overall theme of this book is great. Children need to learn early on that they should not make fun of someone for being a little different, but to rather see the beauty in their differences. However I really did not enjoy the illustrations in this book, I found them to be scary.
If I were a child, I would be slightly scared to read this book because of the illustrations. The Crow Boy almost looks mutated, making him very odd. I would like to see this book remade with friendlier, happier show more illustrations that the students can relate to or enjoy looking at.
This book is a very good book to read aloud or to use in lessons that want to teach the students about always treating others with kindness. This can also teach students about determination. Crow Boy was determined to get an education, even if it meant walking miles to get there. I can see why this book won the Caldecott Honor Book. show less

This book does not age well. For 1955 it is a great example of “own voices” but by today’s standards this book would be considered racist, ablest, and a host of other things. We do not even get to know Crow Boy’s name. Throughout the book he is called Chibi (Tiny one in Japanese), but no real name. He is the “other”. He is the silent kid in class who lives in his imagination. This book honestly makes me sad, especially as this was considered “progressive” for 1955. To me this show more is just, nope. It does not do well for today. For history, I get it, but I would not have this in my library today. #bannedBook show less

I thought this book was very lovely. At first it reminded me of "Thank you Mr. Falker" because they thought Chibi was slow, and he kept to himself. I loved how towards the end of the book there was a reason for Chibi keeping to himself, and it helped him make friends. The new teacher in this book reminded me of Mr, Falker. I found it interesting how he came to school every day, even though people teased him. By keeping to himself he learned a lot about nature. No one knew his true struggle show more which I personally didn't realize either. I liked how at the end everyone at the school could picture where he lived on the mountain top and felt his emotion. He was dedicated about getting an education. This book taught children to never judge a book by it's cover. The illustrations were bright and simple. This book also teaches children about bullying and how it is wrong. It's a nice multicultural book and shows how the Japanese culture works especially with young children in school. The grammar in the story is easy to read and follow along with. I liked how there were a good amount of pages and not that many sentences on each page. It kept me entertained and focused. show less

A lovely picture book about a boy who didn't connect with anyone over five years of school until a new teacher paid attention to who he'd been all along.