Japan: The Culture

Bobbie Kalman - Lands, Peoples and Cultures

by Bobbie Kalman

From social manners to festivals, children will love reading about the many traditions, such as the tea ceremony, that enrich Japanese lives.

Genres: Japan

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Bobbie Kalman is a Hungarian-born children's author and publisher known for educational nonfiction books widely used in schools and libraries. After fleeing Hungary with her family during the 1956 Revolution, she later settled in North America. With backgrounds in English, psychology, and education, she wrote more than 800 books, including “Refugee Child” and several popular curriculum-based series.

Reviews

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book for younger readers about Japan, containing some very beautiful photographs and a good deal of information. It starts out with how Japan is a blending of the modern and the traditional, then discusses the love of nature in Japan. The next section deals with fine arts including the making of handmade paper (I saw a special on this once and it was fascinating), then moves on to the treasures of Japan (which National Geographic did a special on entitled Living Treasures of Japan.)


The next section is about Japanese theater which covers several of the theater forms; this moves on to a discussion of Shinto, Buddhism and Zen. Festivals are discussed next and this takes up a number of pages. Ancient robes are shown (this is the kimono), and then the tea ceremony is covered.


There are a couple pages on Japanese customs and a page of activities one can do on one's own.

A neat book for readers of any age, really.

[Kendall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview of cultures around the world--I like this series and have read many of them. Highly recommended.