A Pair of Red Clogs

An #Own Voices story that is older than I am, and absolutely delightful. I am so glad it was reissued. If you have trouble finding it, it's worth ordering from ILL imo. Mothers are amazing mind readers, and children are mischievous, all over the world.

How interesting to learn about some minor Japanese customs from about a century ago. I wonder if children there still play the weather-telling game... it wouldn't work quite so well with western shoes but it would still be fun, I think.

"Kara koro, kara koro..." when the clogs are new, but
"Gara gara, goro goro..." when they've been cracked....

Purple House Press has chosen this book to reprint. That's a testament to its classic quality! It's a simple yet profound story about the universal tendency of children to get into trouble and try to cover it up. This little girl is fortunate: her mother understands completely. Years later, she extends the same loving understanding to her granddaughter.

Mako, a little Japanese girl, had new shoes - wooden clogs painted with red lacquer that shone beautifully. This is the story of what happened after she cracked the new clogs playing the weather-telling game, and so longed for a bright, shiny new pair to replace them that she almost did a dishonest thing.

This is the first book I remember choosing for myself at the library. It was on the flat shelves by the fireplace, and I was at the library with my dad. We read it over and over and over. It's a delightful book about the consequences of folly. The illustrations have staying power, too.

I read it often as a child. It's beautiful. The illustrations, the writing, it's all so vivid. It's a beautiful story that all kids should read.