Where Are You Going? To See My Friend!

by Eric Carle, Kazuo Iwamura

Legendary author/illustrator Eric Carle pairs with Kazuo Iwamura to create a picture book full of rhyme and repetition, in a question and response format that will delight young readers.

Acclaimed author-illustrator Eric Carle and Japanese artist Kazuo Iwamura have created a unique bilingual book, half in English, half in Japanese, with each half illustrated respectively by Carle and Iwamura. Carle, using his distinctive collage technique, and Iwamura introduce a colorful cast of characters who join one another, one-by-one, on the way to see their friends. The two parts meet in the middle, in a beautiful eight-page gatefold. Here, Carle and Iwamura's stories and art come together, as the friends finally meet, joining English and Japanese.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Friendship, Fiction, Japanese Literature

40 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2003

About the author

Eric Carle was an American author, designer and illustrator of children's books. His picture book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, first published in 1969, has been translated into more than 66 languages and sold more than 50 million copies. Carle's career as an illustrator and children's book author accelerated after he collaborated on Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. Carle illustrated more than 70 books, most of which he also wrote, and more than 145 million copies of his books have been sold around the world.
In 2003, the American Library Association awarded Carle the biennial Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal (now called the Children's Literature Legacy Award), a prize for writers or illustrators of children's books published in the U.S. who have made lasting contributions to the field. Carle was also a U.S. nominee for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010.

Reviews

[Ken Yuen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cool concept for a bilingual children's book. You read it initially left to right in English, where it meets in the middle and turns Japanese. However, in Japan they read books right to left, so if you flip the book over, you can read the same story, but in Japanese and using Kazuo Iwamura's illustrations.

And it's not just a retelling, in the Japanese version the animals go meet a girl, and in Carle's the animals are meeting a boy, in the center the boy and girl meet and everyone sings and dances. Very fun

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clever idea for a bilingual book. I didn’t realize initially that I was supposed to read the Japanese part from the back to the middle and left to right, but it’s fun to see the two sections meet in the middle and the mix of the two illustrators’ styles. Also, I’m very glad that the Japanese part was written out phonetically as well as with characters, since that makes it much more readable for someone with no knowledge of the language.

[Russell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute artistic concept, but in the end we're left with a book that feels like it's been passed through a translation website and back again. But without the hilarious mistakes that oft result from that.

[Michelle Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary:
“Where Are You Going? To See My Friend!” is a fun and inclusive book about friendship in two languages. The first half of the book is in English, while the second half of the book is in Japanese. Both the English and Japanese parts have the same plot line, but with different illustrations. In the middle of the book, the two languages meet in the middle, where all the characters become friends. The book begins with a dog who runs into a cat. The dog tells the cat he’s going to see his friend. The cat asks the dog if the cat can join. The dog replies, “Yes, come along. My friend is your friend.” On the dog and cat's journey, they encounter a chicken, goat, rabbit, and a young boy. Together they unite their different sounds and moves to make one big song and dance. Eventually, they all become friends even though they are all very different.

Theme(s):
The themes of this book are diversity, friendship, multiculturalism, and inclusiveness.

Star rating:
I’m rating this book four stars because this book is great to teach children about multiculturalism and differences. The plot is super simple and engaging. Second, the plot is repeated in the second half of the book, but in a different language. So, children who are interested in learning another language or bilingual have an awesome book to read. The only reason I’m not giving this book five stars is because I wish the plot could continue with how the American boy and Japanese girl interacted. I think that part could have been very insightful to see how children from across the world can find similarities and become friends.

Personal response:
Wow, this book was quite impressive. When I first saw this book in the library, I thought the cover looked bland with non vibrant colors. However, I need to keep telling myself to not judge a book by its cover because this book was good. Most importantly, I loved how inclusive this book was between the different animals and different cultures. Today, diversity is such a touchy subject to teach to children because there are so many social justice topic issues to talk about. However, I loved how the two authors used simple animals to teach children about how differences can unite a group of friends. Second, the coolest part of this book is that the two languages have the exact same plot, but written in two different languages and have completely different illustrations. I thought it was interesting how each culture depicted the image of a dog, goat, cat, and chicken. Personally, I thought the Japanese illustrations were a lot better and more detailed than the American version, but both of them were really cool. Overall, I had a text-to-world connection because diversity is a subject that is studied and learned by the whole world. The last thing I want to touch on was the dialogue of this book. Both in the English and Japanese version, I thought it was brilliant that the authors drew pictures of the animal next to the line they said. As a child, I always had a difficult time differentiating what character was saying what line. However, this book made it super simple to tell what animal was talking. Overall, this book was great and I will hopefully read this to my kids in the future.

Recommendation:
I recommend this book to 1st through 4th graders because it’s simple enough to get the lesson of diversity, but the two languages may confuse younger children. Additionally, this book does a great job showing what two different cultures are like through interactions, language use, and illustrations. Last, this book can be a mirror or window for anyone who is trying to make friends with someone who is different from them.

[Tammy Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eric Carle and Kazua Iwamura have created a very interesting children"s book. Initially the book talks about a dog and a cat having a discussion. There are pictures between each of the animals answers to show who is talking. That by itself is brilliant. The dog and the cat gather their friends together to meet a young boy who could play guitar. The boy exclaims that his friends have come and a whole different language is introduced. Japanese is introduced into the conversation and the authors meld it together in the song. It then goes on sounding out the language for others to speak. The animals sing in Japanese and English soon moving to only Japanese. There are symbols beside each Japanese sound and that increases the knowledge of Japanese. The Japanese reading is also created to show each animal its conversation.
The Japanese does not also correspond with an English word, I was disappointed. Children would have a hard time associating the sound and spelling to the correct English word. The symbols of Japanese languages are great but again there isn't an association to a word.
A wonderful story in that it reiterates the inclusion of the friends saying "My friends are your friends." with each additional animal. I liked that message as it includes everyone.

[Melissa Conn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always adored Eric Carle. I've been learning Japanese off and on for years (which is why I haven't really learned a lick of it tbh- learning a second language is all about CONSITENCY). So when I was shelving you KNOW I had to pick this up.

And I was about to rate this a 3 when I finished Eric Carle's part. But once it switched over to Kazuo Iwamura's part, I was enthralled. I mean, I love Carle's art style, and it was cute. But it made me so happy to see that it kind of taught you that Japanese is read right to left. Once you start on Iwamura's part, you learn to go all the way to "the end" and "go backwards". And right next to the hiragana is romaji so even if you don't know hirigana, you can kind of learn to read it phonetically. It was really neat! And Iwamura's art style is so warm and cozy. I kind of want to buy a copy for my bookshelf.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collaborative project by Eric Carle and Kazo Iwamura where they each tell a story about a group of friends meeting. Carle's story begins at the front of book in English where a group of animals gather one by one with a little boy and they meet another group led by a little girl in the middle of the book to dance and sing. Iwamura's story told in Japanese begins at the end of the book and describes the group of animals gathering one by one with the little girl to meet the little boy's group in the middle of the book to dance and sing together. A gently told story of friendship that is a inspiring example of teamwork and cooperation.

[Seok Hyeon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Racial discrimination is still remains in some places, and it is the problem that people have to solve. Through this book, students can learn there are different kind of culture and language in the world. They can also learn how to accept and respect it. They can get open minded to make friends. English is still hard for me, and I know nothing about Japanese. The point that this story book is written in both English and Japanese, made me interested in both languages. It is easy to learn both Japanese and English. I could learn Japan and America, each country's animal sound.

[Kaci Beesecker]

This book is a bilingual book and goes about the ways in which the dog runs into different animals and is asked where he is going. It's a picture book full of rhyme and repetition, in a question and response format that will delight young readers.

This would be a good book to use in a classroom to get the students to talk with one another and make a game/activity out of the book. You could have the students go throughout the class and ask each person about something they are doing or where they are going/ what they did this summer.

[Mandi Simmons]

Rhythmic tale of animals traveling to meet a friend. It begins with a dog traveling. A cat asks the dog where he is going and he responds that he is going to see his friend, who is a good singer. The cat says it can sing too and proceeds to meow. The cat joins the dog in his travels. Each animal they encounter follows the same format until they reach the dog's friend, a human. Together they all sing and dance.

[Erik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of repetition and familiar animals. The text is repeated for both parts, left to right for Eric Carle and right to left for Kazuo Iwamura. Both are great artists and it's fun to see the two styles meet in the middle.

[Cheira Combs · Rating 3 out of 5]

I decided to read this book because the cover reminded me of Brown Bear Brown Bear. I liked this book because it was showing diversity and inclusivity. Although, the last half of the book was a little strange be haze it was only in a different language which is a little confusing.

[Patsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great story of friendship. When the English version is finished, the Japanese version begins which was illustrated by Kazuo Iwamura. It is a lovely book. This is a unique bilingual children's book!

[Reagan Church]

The dialogue in this bilingual picture book is upbeat and rhythmic, and the speakers are identified by rebus-like symbols. It describes a frantic adventure with a child, a dog, cat, rooster, goat, rabbit, and all of them becoming friends.

[Orion Kopf · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun though my mom wanted translations in the Japanese part

[Sean Harding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unique Carle book teaming up with Japanese author/illustrator Iwamura in this delightfully illustrated ad told tale.
Much to like here.
Eric Carle #42/89
Kazuo Iwamura #1

[Matthew Manchester · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, umm, I'll just give this a three. It's a simple word book for kids learning BOTH English and Japanese, with a hard emphasis on the latter.

[Haven · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s nice that it’s the same story in English and then again in Japanese, helps to keep a sense of what’s being said even though there’s no translation of either. Plus the art is so cute.

[Lucy Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very cool picture book that has both English and Japanese versions included, as well as a song in between. The kanji is written out phonetically as well, which was very helpful.

[Canette Arille · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is a bit annoying, because it keeps asking the same thing, instead of adding something new. But are different animals, so I can accept it. Besides, the illustrations are nice

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked that it is a direct translation since it's great for checking your translation. I would assume this is so if you're trying to learn English from Japanese as well as if you're trying to learn Japanese from English. Or both at the same time!

I do agree with another reviewer that the romaji next to the hiragana is distracting, though I do understand the necessity. I would prefer if the romanization were full Hepburn romanization, though because correctly pronouncing "い" with "ee" next to it and "と" with "toe" next to it while trying to completely ignore the romanizations in the first place creates very intense mind acrobatics!

[Madison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is written in English and in Chinese. Since you read Chinese from right to left the stories meet in the middle. The animals all tag along to meet the friend. When they meet in the middle they sing a song.

[Koorihime-sama · Rating 5 out of 5]

CHECKED OUT THE BOOK FROM MY PUBLIC LIBRARY.

APART OF THE GOODREADS 2011 READING CHALLENGE.

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5

Ease of Reading Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Plot: 5 out of 5

Five animals and a child go on an adventure to go visit their friends.

This book is pretty much just a fun book with no kind of plot. However, I like how they put Hiragana (どこへいくの?ともだちにあいに!) with romaji next to the Hiragana and English in it. To me, it was a very creative way for children to learn something new. Anyways, from the front of the book, it’s in English and drawn by Eric Carle. Then, for the Japanese version, you read it like you read manga (from the back of the book and then right to left). Then the illustrations in the back are from Kazuo Iwamura.

The illustrations are actually pretty good. The ones from Eric Carle are pretty average, and I didn’t like them that much. However, the illustrations by Kazuo Iwamura were very cutely drawn and looked great. I loved those illustrations more the ones from Eric Carle. Anyways, the text is pretty easy to read/see since it was black text on a white background.

Overall, it was a very good read and creative since it kind of introduces a new language for little kids.

Now a real quick guide on how to read the Hiragana.

1. First, go to the back of the book and open it.
2. Then it will look something like this here.
3. Then you read it like this here.

Thanks to hika on how to separate the romaji and the short Japanese lesson. :D

[Andrew Swanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“どこへいくの? ともだちにあいに!” Where Are You Going? To See My Friend! This is a brilliant bilingual story that skillfully marriages English and Japanese in both text and illustration.

Eric Carle’s illustrations are of an English boy on his way to meet a friend, and along the way he is asked by many animals where he is going. They all decide to come along. This version reads left to right, as is standard in English.

Meanwhile, on the back of the book, we see the cover in Japanese as portrayed by Iwamura Kazuo, whose illustrations are of the softer kind more akin to Japanese calligraphic art. Her side of the story features a Japanese girl also going to meet her friend, the English boy, and is asked the same questions as he is by her animals. This side reads right to left, as is traditional in Japanese.

The Japanese hiragana is accompanied by romaji, or English letters, to help those who can’t read hiragana pronounce the words to the story. As someone who can read hiragana, this is slightly annoying to me as it clutters up the page, but I understand why it is necessary.

In the middle, the two meet up, and sing a song in both English and Japanese to celebrate their friendship and the animal sounds they’ve encountered along the way. This also teaches Japanese onomatopoeia.

This book is fantastic and should be on the shelf in every child's classroom library.

[Sabrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this Eric Carle book, this is one that I was not familiar with it as a child, but I know that I would have really enjoyed it. It is about a dog is on his way to visit a friend. Along his journey, he encounters a number of different animals. The animals ask if they can join him on this journey to visit his friend. The dog is happy to have company and welcomes each animal that asks. The book has a great lesson of friendship as well as being nice to everyone that you meet. The format of the book was also really interesting, I have never read a book like it, it was written in both English and Chinese, the first half is English and the second half is in Chinese. This book would be awesome to have in the classroom when teaching about different cultures.

[Brant Rackley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel this book is a great way to teach children about multiculturalism. I have this book at home and have read it to my daughter countless times. It shows many different animals interested in others are doing and what they will find on their way to the next friend. The book is also printed in Japanese. This can help children see different languages as well as learn them and hopefully gets them to ask questions about different cultures.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute book about different types of animals coming together and sharing happiness... "My friend is your friend."
The Japanese is so easy, it's a real confidence booster if you're just learning, lol! There's no Kanji, just Hirigana.
I do have a qualm with the pronunciation guide though. For と the guide was "toe," and I ended up wanting to always say "toh-eh." They should have just used "toh" for that. :\

[Molly]

This is a book I read with my son. He likes the animals and the simple repetitive story. He does not understand the structure of the Japanese portion of the story, but he does enjoy looking at that version too. I like that he is introduced to the differences in the way written languages operate around the world. I think it is neat to see the immediate retelling of the story through two different illustrators as well. I will recommend this book to my friends.

[Y R · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a Japanese parent, who'd been looking for a book like this. Simple but a good story with beautiful illustrations and a song at the end. A con is that My 6 years old son tries to read Japanese by reading printed pronunciation besides each Japanese word, instead of reading Japanese itself - and the original pronunciations are sometimes lost in there, so I had to hide them

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short, interesting story, fairly typical of Eric Carle's works. This time, though, there's a Japanese version that is on the other side of the book and the two meet in the middle. Each author provides his own illustrations, and it makes for an interesting contrast.