Tokyo Friends: Tokyo No Tomodachi

by Betty Reynolds

Introduces common Japanese words in Japanese, in spelled-out form, and in English, compares the life of American and Japanese children, and describes Japanese holidays for each month

Genres: Picture Books, Japan, Childrens, Asian Literature, Fiction

64 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1999

Reviews

[Maia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun to learn another language.

[Abby Neuwirth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tokyo Friends by Betty Reynolds is a fun-spirited book about a young American girl living in Japan. She meetings two friends that take her around and show her Japanese culture. This book was full of cultural facts, comparing them to American traditions while defining common Japanese words in English. Tokyo Friends is another great example of a book that encourages students to learn about another culture while representing students who are not commonly seen in children's literature. I found the art style to be unique and the up-beat tone kept me engaged. Overall I really enjoyed this book!

[Gitta · Rating 5 out of 5]

termasuk salah satu hasil perjuangan desek-desekan di ikapi book fair 16 november 2007 kemaren di stand periplus.
bukunya cool..banget.
nyeritain bedanya daily life westeners dan japanese versi kids.
gambarnya banyak, bagus. kata-katanya sedikit.
kenapa juga yah kita belum punya buku versi indonesia ato suku-suku di indo nih. jawa apa sunda apa bali. kan seru!
yuk buat...
o iya, ngeliat buku ini jadi ngiler pengen makan sushi..he..he...

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tokyo Friends features the Japanese culture by looking at their traditions and words and the western influences they have absorbed. The words are written in hiragana/katakana, romaji, and English to facilitate learning. There is good variety between the amount of Japanese words, and borrowed western words.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great story for any child learning about Tokyo or Japanese customs. It compares American and Japanese customs on almost every topic. Not good for a read aloud, but great for 1-on-1, particularly when the children or parents have special ties to Japan.

[Zatika · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gift from my best friend, Ezlyna, who is currently residing in Japan. A great & fun way to learn Japanese and I love how the writer compare and contrast the difference in American and Japanese culture.

[Marina · Rating 3 out of 5]

** Books 306 - 2016 **

3,2 of 5 stars!

If you wanna introduce Japan to your kiddo i think this books will be useful and also it is cute since every single pages have illustration :D

Thankyou Bookmate!

[Mehsi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I spotted this book and just had to try it out. I just love books about Japan/Tokyo.

Sadly, given the blurb, I had expected a story. There is a bit of a story lingering somewhere (as you see our American girl get more acquainted with Japan/see her hang out with her friends, and some other things), but with story I meant a real story. With a start, a middle, a finish. And we don't get that. So I am giving this book -1 star for that.

Instead this book is for learning a new language. We see different illustrations with various objects on those illustrations translated from Japanese > Romaji > English. Which was a fun, though not much new for me. But I am sure that kids will love this book and pick up a few words here and there.

Just when I thought it was over, the book continues with featuring each month and telling us a bit about them, what happens then, some objects/food/etc., a fitting illustration to go with that month.

The illustrations are pretty decent, I am not a fan of how the humans are drawn, but I like the backgrounds/objects/scenery.

All in all, I would still recommend this book. I would have rated it higher if it had a real story, which I feel would make the whole learning part much more fun.

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

[Bléu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I take Japanese classes at school so i know some of the terms already but there are some words that i don't and i learned more than i already know so that's good. Plus the representation(both visually and the text) are short and amazingly drawn.

[MAILA · Rating 4 out of 5]

bercerita tentang Kattie yang berasal dari amerika dan tinggal di jepang. suatu hari kattie bertemu keiko. keiko lalu mengajak kattie untuk berkeliling dan memperkenalkan tentang Jepang.

ini bukan buku cerita sih. lebih ke buku perkenalan yang memperlihatkan perbedaan gaya hidup amerika dan jepang. baik dari cara makan, mandi, tidur dan bertemu orang baru.

cukup menarik, ilustrasinya juga cakep.
paling suka di bagian saat menjelaskan perbedaan tempat tidur. ada anak-anak yang tidur di futon dan ada juga yang tidur di kasur.

pengen banget cobain tidur di futon, soalnya saya juga paling gabisa tidur di kasur (di rumah saya sendiri yang tidur di atas karpet tanpa alas apapun lagi wq).

kapan ya Indonesia bikin beginian juga hh

[Ladeja Slaughter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is more so a list and not a story. It's simply about a little American girl who takes a walk through Japan with a Japanese brother and sister. While on this walk they teach each other about their own customs and cultural background. It's more so of a comparison type book. I wouldn't necessarily read this to a large group but I could incorporate it into a small group activity where I could introduce learning the Japanese language. I like the fact that there is an illustration for each word so that children can fully understand what each word means.