Mieko and the Fifth Treasure

I loved "Mieko and the Fifth Treasure," and I would give it five stars. I liked that I was able to see the effects of the bombing of Nagasaki in WWII through the lens of a child survivor, which is a unique perspective that I have not come across in other children's books and novels. I have read several books that have mentioned the bombings, like "When my Name was Keoko," but very few of the books I read feature Japanese protagonists. The few books that I have read from the Japanese perspective, like "Shin's Tricycle," are told from the perspective of adult survivors, so when I read "Mieko and the Fifth Treasure" I found it very interesting to read about these historical events through the eyes of a child. I think that this book helped show more me to better understand the impact that the bombings had on the citizens who did survive and had to radically change their lives as a result. I thought that Mieko was a great character because I found that she was very relatable, even though I have never experienced anything like Mieko had. What I could relate to were Mieko's emotions about the world and about herself after the event. Mieko had sustained an injury on her hand when the bomb had hit Nagasaki, and as a result she had a large scar and could not move her hand normally. As a result, Mieko felt embarrassed about how her hand looked and frustrated that she was not able to paint "word-pictures" like she used to, so she grew bitter and angry. Several times in my life, I have felt angry and bitter as a result of failure or loss, and I believe that to be a universal reaction to events over which we have no power. Mieko could not make the scar on her hand disappear and she could not go back to Nagasaki with her parents, so she reacted by turning her sadness into anger. My late grandmother lived for several years with dementia, but she only had full-time care for the last few weeks of her life. For years I knew that she was not receiving the level of care that she needed, and I allowed myself to become angry at my grandfather for refusing assistance. I began to blame my grandfather, my father, and my aunts for my grandmother's declining health. I convinced myself that it was their fault that she was getting worse even though I knew that they had no control over what was happening. While she should have had more assistance, it would not have changed the progression of the disease in any way. I found that placing the blame on others and becoming angry to be much easier than admitting that there was nothing that I or anyone else could do to make my grandmother better. Only within the past couple of months I have been able to let go of that anger and come to terms with the fact that my family and I were powerless to stop what was happening. In "Mieko and the Fifth Treasure," Mieko did not want to face the fact that there was nothing she could do to make her scar go away or to make her hand work the way it used to, so she decided to "hate everyone." She gave up on painting and chose to stew over her misfortune, but eventually she learned that this anger was only hurting her. I believe that the "big idea" of the story is that harboring anger is not productive, but learning to accept changes and move forward with life can help to heal emotional wounds. When Mieko opened herself up to Yoshi and her other classmates, accepted that her "word-pictures" would be different but still beautiful, and allowed herself to make mistakes, Mieko was able to find "the fifth treasure," her ability to see beauty and translate it into art, within her heart once again. By making herself honest, open, and vulnerable, Mieko was able to let go of her hatred and begin to enjoy life again. show less

THIS BOOK IS NOT ABOUT THE ATOMIC BOMBINGS. They are barely mentioned and mostly serve as plot background for a story about overcoming one's one fears and shortcomings. If that slight change-up does not discourage you, then you should definitely read this book.
I read this book because I was far more familiar with Eleanor Coerr's other book, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. I know the story, and I have seen the site where all of the paper cranes are collected near the remains of the last remaining building from the Hiroshima bombing (quite a sight). As such, I thought another fictionalized story about a young girl who was injured during an atomic bombing (this time at the far less discussed Nagasaki) would also be enjoyable. It was, show more but maybe not in the way that I was hoping.
I feel weird comparing this to Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes because they are definitely different stories, but they have similar formats and themes. Both are fictionalized accounts of real life tragedies. Both focus on young girls recovering and rebuilding after the devastation of atomic bombings, and both feature an uplifting message. Unfortunately, for me, this account was simply not as compelling as Sadako's. The comparison is unfair since it is two different situations, but since both feature atomic bomb backstories and are technically fiction, why couldn't this have been more about Nagasaki. It is true that her injury as a result of the bombing is sad, but when you have the context of what happened to thousands of others in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, her injury feels rather slight. I understand she is sad about her injury and her lack of desire to create calligraphy art, but the story around her is written like any child who doesn't fit in with new surroundings after they move. It works okay, but it is honestly rather mundane and dull compared to Sadako or other stories like this.
In terms of its narrative structure, it is perfectly serviceable. Coerr has a good ear for dialogue and she writes likeable characters even if they often do not have much to do other than tell the main character to do what she wants to do. The main character's constant self pity and sullen, sulky behavior make her difficult to root for regardless of her tragic past because she is so unintentionally mean to everyone who is trying to help her. The book's plot is never all that surprising and its character arcs are rather stock despite its horrifying backstory and occasional dark imagery.
I feel like the book cannot tonally decide if it wants to be more somber and reflective or just charming and serene. Some stories can manage that balance, but this one did not find as good of a balance. It was fine. It is serviceable. show less

Ten-year-old Mieko had her hand badly damaged in the bombing of Nagasaki, 1945. The injury took away her ability to paint calligraphy -- and took away her fifth treasure, beauty in the heart. When she is sent to her grandparents in the country to recuperate, she mourns the loss of both, though she tries to accept the wisdom of the poem scratched into the rock in her grandfather's garden: 'spilled water never returns to the glass'. At first school is difficult, with kids teasing her for having a monster-hand. But then Yoshi befriends her and helps give her the courage to try painting again in preparation for the school calligraphy contest. But she needs more than courage, she needs her fifth treasure to return. It does and we are left in show more no doubt that she won the contest and that she would later mourn leaving her grandparents' village because of the good friends she'd made there. show less

A girl recovers from the bombing of Nagasaki and learns to find beauty in calligraphy again because of a new friendship. Great book about Japanese culture and learning to overcome difficulty.

beautiful art in the mieko