The Tale of the Shining Princess

by Sally Fisher, Donald Keene (Translator)

An extraordinary beautiful moon princess who is sent to Earth for punishment temporarily becomes the daughter of a poor bamboo cutter and his wife.

The illustrations are reproduced from a late 18th-century illustrated edition of Taketori (The Bamboo Cutter), in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Genres: Fiction, Japan, Classics, Fantasy, Childrens, Japanese Literature, Picture Books

70 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

Reviews

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Metropolitan Museum of Art Studio book with translation by Donald Keene of Taketori Monogatari, The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. Art work is from eighteenth century Japanese book from the Metropolitan's collection. Beautiful art and a translation by a gifted and trusted translator.

[Melanti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a lazy "1001 Books" reader - I've no plan on ever finishing the enormous list, but I occasionally pick up a book I might not have because it's included.

This is a translation of the 9th century Japanese tale of the Bamboo Cutter, complete with illustrations from a early 19th century version of the same tale. The afterward indicated that the cover is a reproduction of the top of the lacquered box the manuscript was stored in.

I do have to say - it's amusing how medieval Japanese men always sat - even when on board a ship that's about to sink in a storm!

It was an interesting (and very influential) fairy tale, but I'm not sure it was worth the hours I spent at the library waiting for the librarians to bring it out of the closed stacks.

[Karen Witzler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very beautiful and oddly moving. The melancholia reminds me of The Little Mermaid. The poetic exchanges feel both ancient and profound.

Culturally significant Japanese folk tale and now part of everyone's heritage and all ongoing literary lineages. Also known as Taketori, or The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. This is a beautiful edition with illustrations from a version owned by The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m crying !!!!! This story is 1100 years old and beautiful in every way !!!!!

[Hollie Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

This came from books being downsized by one of my clients and the cover caught my eye. The interior of the book is filled with reproductions of paintings - the original album of which is housed at the Metropolitan Museum in NY. Just because they are so stunning I decided to give this book a quick read one morning. It was written somewhere around 900 AD, and is considered a very familiar tale in Japan. The story of a banished Moon Princess who comes into the life of an old bamboo cutter. She is so beautiful she has many suitors but she knows she cannot marry a human so she assigns impossible tasks to them as a way to prove their devotion. If they can accomplish the task she will consent to marry he who earns it. Alas none can - and not even the hand of the Emperor could win her over. And soon enough the Moon people come to claim her, for her time of banishment is over.

[Captain Comic Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love reading fairy tales from other cultures because it's a peek into how the other culture works. This is a lovely, fun, slightly heart-wrenching story with a melancholy ending, and I really enjoyed the overall peaceful vibe of the tale.

[Nav · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art (no surprise given its source) is museum worthy and the tale is a good example of the beauty of fairytales' minimalism.

[Kristen EJ Lauderdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart-rending story.

[Stephanie 🌻📖🐈‍⬛ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A ninth century Japanese tale of a lonely old bamboo cutter and his wife who find a three inch baby girl in a bamboo stalk. She grows to become the most the beautiful woman in the land and has many admirers who wish to marry her. She does not want to marry but wishes to please the bamboo cutter since he knows he will not live much longer. The princess gives each of her five most devoted suitors an impossible task to complete in order to win her hand: bring her the begging bowl of the Buddha, a jeweled branch from Paradise, a robe made of Chinese fire rats, a jewel from a dragon's head, and the easy birth charm from a swallow. I enjoyed the story and was fascinated by the ending, where it's revealed the princess is from the Palace of the Moon. Her people come to gather her. They give her an elixir of life and jacket of feathers, which will make her forget what pity or sorrow feel like. After leaving notes, the princess dons the feather jacket and flies back to the moon. This edition is also accompanied by beautiful eighteenth century illustrations of the tale made for a powerful samurai family.

[Regan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Metropolitan Museum of Art book - a translation/adaptation of a Japanese tale from 900 a.d. (ish). The tale is a familiar one in it's way: supernatural child comes to poor parents, garners the attention of many suitors, sends them on difficult/impossible tasks for her hand, ends up going "home" in the end.

There are a few things I like in this one, though, specifically the differentiation between the emotional state of humans and gods. The illustrations are also pretty nifty, it would be fun to find the originals in the Met.

A VERY fast read, might be a good one to use as a bedtime story for a child. Enjoyable, pretty.

[Anie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short retelling of the Tale of the Bamboo-Cutter. The main reason to like it is the illustrations---beautiful, full color illustrations from ~1800 Tokugawa Japan. They're gorgeous, and add a great deal to the story.

[Eden Silverfox · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a retelling of a story called The Bamboo Cutter. It's an interesting tale that I thought had a sad ending. Nice illustrations.

[Dean Prichard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice version of the tale of the bamboo cutter, but not a good as the Kawabata one.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully illustrated version of The Bamboo Cutter story from about 900 AD Japan.

[Celeste Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing was beautiful, the dialogue surprised me in how timeless it came off. And the twist was transcendent

[Merrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely fair tale from a wonderful time and country.