Ichiro

Gr 7 Up—Ichiro is the son of a Japanese mother and an American father, a soldier who died years ago. The boy's identity seems fragmented and incomplete when readers first meet him. Ichiro was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, and acts like a typical American boy. He misses the father he barely remembers, and is obsessed with reading his soldier's handbook to reconnect with his memory. He knows very little about his Japanese heritage, but when his mother takes a job in Tokyo, he gets an immediate immersion in Japanese culture. The story of Ichiro's move to his grandfather's home is slowly interwoven with legends about gods and shape-shifters, and halfway through the book reality and legends merge into one. Ichiro is pulled into the world inhabited by the gods and creatures that his family had been telling him about, and he needs to rely on his wits in order to survive. Inzana's illustrations combine several modern and ancient artistic styles, reflecting the time shifts of the story. The eye-catching cover, depicting Ichiro wearing a Brooklyn sweatshirt; a Tanuki shape-shifter in its raccoon form; and the looming figure of Hachiman, the god of war, perfectly encapsulates the essence of this story. Like Gene Luen Yang's American Born Chinese (Roaring Brook, 2006), this is a graphic novel that explores the Asian American experience by blending modern, ancient, and fantastic elements.—Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library