International Companion Encyclopedia of Children’s Literature

magazine, Dôwa (1920–1926) wrote nostalgic stories based on his own boyhood, and
was skilled in depicting children’s actions and feelings in everyday life. Torachan no Nikki
[A Summer Diary of a Village Boy Tora] (1925) and Tote Basha [A Story of an Old-
Fashioned Coach] (1929) were highly regarded as first steps towards realism.

Shôwa Era, before the Second World War: 1925–1944

The worldwide panic of 1929, and the deepening shadow of war forced people to turn to
practicalities, and although the movement towards proletarian literature for children
was immediately suppressed, it strongly influenced many writers. The books of Kenjiro
Tsukahara (1895–1965), Daiji Kawasaki (1902–1980), Taku Shimohata (1916–1944),
Yoshio Okamoto (1919–1963), and Hideo Seki (1912-) show children who come to
understand the realities of life.
The most distinguished author of the period was Jôji Tsubota (1890–1982). As well as
many novels for adults, he contributed to the growth of realistic novels for children with
Kaze no naka no Kodomo [A Family Against the Wind] (1936) and Kodomo no Shiki [A
Family’s Four Seasons] (1937). The two novels tell the story of a small family business,
involving the children. All the characters are lifelike, although the author idealised
children, and the family’s problems are solved through their innocence.

Shôwa Era after the Second World War: 1945-

The defeat and occupation of Japan in 1945 brought revolutionary changes (although,
looking back, some of these were actually superficial) and children’s literature was no
exception.
Released from wartime controls, there was a temporary boom in publishing books and
magazines for children; many of these books lacked charm and only a few have
survived. Momoko Ishii (1907-), translator of A.A.Milne’s Pooh books, wrote a family
chronicle of pre-war Japan, which not only showed her sense of humour, but which is
permeated with Western democratic spirit: Nonchan Kumo ni Noru [Nobuko and her
Family] (1947). Another authoress, Sakae Tsuboi, told of children growing up before,
during, and after the war in Nijûshi no Hitomi [The Story of Twelve Boys and Girls]
(1954). It is a very good anti-war novel, as is Biruma no Tategoto [A Harp in Burma]
(1949) by Michio Takeyama (1903–1984), then a professor of German literature.
The 1950s was really a preparatory decade. The Japanese economy was still weak, the
market for children’s books was small, and young writers were searching for an
appropriate technique. The novel was thought to be the best way of writing about the
situation of boys and girls in disordered post-war Japan, and writers looked to
translations of British and American books for models.

Realistic fiction

The first of the young writers to make an impression was Hisashi Yamakana (1931–)
with Akagne no Pochi [Katsuko and her Dog, Pochi] (1960). The heroine is the daughter
of a part-time coal miner in the early 1950s. Through her growing awareness of social

828 THE WORLD OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE