Umbrella

by Taro Yashima

Momo can't wait to use the red boots and umbrella she received on her birthday.  All she needs now is a rainy day!  Soft illustrations portray a thoughtful story about patience and growing independence.

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

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1958

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Taro Yashima’s work. I need to know more about Taro; are they a boy or girl? How do they come up with these ideas. They are incredible. This is the most details I have seen Taro give in their work. It looks like they use crayons with regular materials to create the art.

This is about a girl who receives an umbrella for her birthday and she can’t wait for it to rain. She wants to use her umbrella so badly. I can relate to this girl. I am the one needing a break from all the sun in the summer and a good rain helps with that.

I also appreciate that there are a few Chinese characters given in the upper left corner on a few pages like the character for rain or summer to explore that language. I find it so interesting that Japanese use the same characters as the Chinese, but it’s a different language. So they can read each other’s nation, but they can’t speak each other’s tongue unless they learn a new language. That fascinates me.

Anyway. My niece understood a little about wanting to use something they receive as a gift as she is the queen of asking for interesting things. One Christmas she wanted a heating pad. Yes. She’s not crazy about the art, but she enjoyed the story and gave it 3 stars. The nephew thought this was not so exciting and he gave it 2 stars.

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple and sweet story of a toddler's impatient wait for a rainy day on which she can use her new umbrella.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

A unique story.

A little girl is gifted rain boots and an umbrella. She simply cannot wait for it to rain. And when it does, she is so excited to use her new things when walking to school.

And then she’s a big girl. She doesn’t remember this. But her parents do (I’m assuming this is the author’s child). And with an oddly worded sentence, it ends.

Ages: 4 - 8

Cleanliness: nothing to note.

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[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

This just barely skims the 'okay' realm for us. I almost didn't give it 2 stars. The reason I ended up with this rating is because there are a few things about the book that we liked.
Julia and I liked the little girl, Julia and I liked the illustrations, and we liked the basics of the story.
We did not like the rain sounds because it went on too long. It was almost like starting another book. Or song or whatever it could be called. It could have been shortened up by a lot. That doesn't seem like much but it was bothersome for us. It got so I just read the first one or two line of these noises and skipped the rest.
This is another that I'm befuddled about in relation to the medal.

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I couldn't believe any child would get that excited over using an umbrella . . . then I remembered when my oldest son was three and picked out a Tweety umbrella.

Then it didn't rain.

Anyway, I love the sweet and simple illustrations in this book. It's a classic.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got the idea to read this book from www.vintagechildrensbooksmykidloves.com

It is a sweet book about a three year old girl who receives an umbrella and waits for it to rain. At the end, it talks about her not remembering this. (She was just three, after all.) So my son and I talked about what we remembered. Nice discussion starter.

There are Japanese words in the margins, which my son liked.

[Robert Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

**** Caldecott Honor (1959) ****

Delightful and charming story of a very little girl who waits eagerly for a rainy day so she can wear her new red boots and carry her new umbrella. There is a gentle tenderness in the imagery that reminded me of the brilliant and colorful art in my very favorite book from childhood, The Land of Lost Buttons by Kayako Nishimaki. The book is a reminiscence on forgotten childhood memories, and it made me smile.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yashima does a wonderful job making an umbrella come alive, through the eyes of a little girl. The anticipation builds up in Momo as to when she will be able to but her umbrella to use. The rain took forever to come but when it did, her umbrella came alive and so did the rain as it danced and made music on the little girl's umbrella. Cute children's story and the illustrations are very colorful and pretty to look at. The Japanese symbols on the top corner of each page add to the celebration of the Japanese culture.

[Jennie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really hated the illustrations, especially the depiction of the little girl. Momo looks like a faceless yokai. I also found the "story" if you could call it that, extremely dull. I was baffled by the Caldecott award but then realized this book was published in 1959. This picture book perhaps received more credit than it was due for the tiny details of Japanese life.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story about a Japanese American girl living in New York who waits for a rainy day so she can use her umbrella. Not only is it the first day she gets to use the umbrella, it is also the first day she walks in the city without holding one of her parents' hand. Illustrations in this Caldecott honor recipient, while still nice and colorful, do not hold up well to today's standards. The author includes a few Japanese words and their translations for young readers.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mother would sing the rain-sounds when reading us this book.

Ed - And today I sang the rain-sounds for Ada! <3

[Aladdin Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story, for me, is an appeal to the readers emotinos....which is a great strategy for authors to use in their works. I can honestly say that I was happy and thrilled at the beginning of the book, but as I continued to read those feelings of excitement slowly began to develop into sorrow. This is a tale of a young girl and her adventures with her prized umbrella. One takeaway that could be derived from this book is the concept of patience. Another is to realize just how important the little things in life are to some people. For some, it doesn't take much to please them or to encourage their day. Take the time to think of others as you give them a gift..even if it's a simple smile. Some will cherish those gifts throughout the remainder of their lives and it will bring joy to them each time they see it.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sorrow pervades this text. Mother's resistance (and pain, I suspect) intrigues me. The descriptions of the rain are lovingly rendered.

[Gabi Loveday · Rating 4 out of 5]

_Umbrella_ was a sweet book about a young girl who eagerly longs for a rainy day so she can finally use the boots and umbrella that she was given as a gift, and I think this story speaks to the young, easily excited kid in all of us, reminding us not to let the little moments slip away too quickly. For me personally, I loved the concept of Momo waiting for the rain, and I could relate because as a child, I loved rainy days so much that I would constantly ask my mom, much like Momo did, when the rain was going to come. I would recommend this book, which was awarded a Caldecott Medal in 1959, for preschool age children, as the vocabulary and illustrations are simple fairly easy for children to grasp, and more relatable to young readers. The style and medium that Yashima used for his artwork in this book pairs perfectly with the story; since the point of view is from the perspective of young Momo, who views the world with wide and innocent eyes, Yashima uses what appears to be colored pencils and/or crayons and loose shading (often outside the lines) to mimic as if young Momo herself had drawn these pictures. Of all the artistic styles, I think this style most likely falls in line with impressionism, as Yashima blurs blues, pinks, purples, yellows, and greens to create shading and depth to the images of Momo as she looks out the window at the New York City skyline. For example, when it finally rains and Momo goes to the nursery, readers see the wet, rainy world, illustrated by white streaks/scratches, from inside the nursery, through the big window with “Nursery-School” printed backwards across the top (as if the reader was truly on the “inside” of the nursery). I think Yashima’s use of perspective is really notable in this instance, and it draws reader’s further in to life through Momo’s eyes. This book would be fantastic for really young kids to read during their free time, and I think they might be inspired by the artwork. It would be really fun as a teacher to take this idea and inspiration and use it as a class project—perhaps have the children read it or read it to them, and then ask them to write and illustrate their own story of a time they wanted something really bad but had to wait for it. I think the results would be fun and insightful, just like Yashima’s book.

[Aly Gutierrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

• Book summary
-A girl named Momo received rain boots and an umbrella as a gift. She was so excited but it did not rain, it was summer outside. Her mother told her to be patient, so she waited and wished for rain each day. One day it finally began to rain, so she excitedly grabbed her umbrella and rain boots and went to school. She did not forget her items and walked “straight like a lady” because she felt all grown up.

• Caldecott Honor Book

• Grade level, interest level, Lexile
-K-2

• Appropriate classroom use (subject area)
-This is a good book to use during reading time while teaching the value of patience.

• Individual students who might benefit from reading
-All students can benefit from learning patience through reading this book. As well as, students that are from different cultures can relate to the protagonist.

• Small group use (literature circles)
-Group can read together and then analyze the value they learned. What did Momo have to do since she couldn’t use her umbrella? Have students share a time they had to be patient.

• Whole class use (read aloud)
-Good book to teach students patience in a fun way. After reading, students can give specific examples of times they had to be patient like Momo.

• Related books in genre/subject or content area
Taro Yashima also wrote other stories about multicultural children and a lesson they learned. “Crow Boy” is a similar book with a Japanese protagonist.

• Multimedia connections
-Available in hardcover and paperback copies.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: Momo is the name of a little girl who was born in New York.

Premise/plot: Momo received two gifts for her third birthday: red rubber boots and an umbrella. She loves, loves, loves her presents and she wants to use them right away! But of course it is not raining! Momo reluctantly waits and waits for the rain to come. One day it does!

Favorite quotes:
On the umbrella, raindrops made a wonderful music she never had heard before--
Bon polo
Bon polo
Ponpolo ponpolo
Ponpolo ponpolo
Bolo bolo ponpolo
Bolo bolo ponpolo
Boto boto ponpolo
Boto boto ponpolo

My thoughts: Whenever I'm asked what my favorite picture book from childhood is, I know exactly how to answer! Umbrella! I love, love, love the rhythm of it. The illustrations are amazing! I think I judge all other books by this one!

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Total: 10 out of 10

[Cory Schulz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about a girl receives a new umbrella and this umbrella becomes very important to her. I love the story because every child has that special present that they adore over all others. The only aspects I don’t like about this book are the illustrations. The illustration style depicts the people as appearing scary, even to me. The eyes are not drawn, and the faces are not present in many of the pictures. If I say the illustration first I would not even pick this book up. If I was going to use it in the classroom I would use it right before Christmas. Sense kids will be getting presents and some families are richer than other ones I hope this book teaches the students to value what they get.

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story could easily be told about any child. It's just a girl waiting and waiting to use her new umbrella, and then striving to be responsible (and grown-up!) when she does.

I love the details, how this was the first time she walked home without holding her parents' hands, how she had forgotten other things before, but not her umbrella now that she's growing up.

The art isn't my favorite, I'll admit, but I can live with it.

[Linda Lipko · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not one of the most beautifully illustrated Cadecott books, still it is a rather simple and delightful tale of Momo who lives in New York Citiy with her parents. Receiving an umbrella and books as a gift for her third birthday, she longs to make use of this special present.

As the sun shines day after day, she longs for rain. When it rains, not only can she use her gift, but, in addition, she learns the sound that water makes when it hits a hard surface.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how this book travels through spring and summer. This would be great for Preschool through 1st grade. The colored pencil illustrations are amazing and I like how the book teaches a few Japanese words. This would be a great book teaching independence. My favorite part is at the end when she says that Momo will never forget that day, because it is the first day she did not hold her mother or her father's hand walking down the street.

[Maria Rowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

• 1959 Caldecott Honor Book •

Cute book about a little girl in NYC who gets rain boots and an umbrella for her third birthday… then has to wait and wait and wait for it to rain! I like the story, but I love the art. The colors are beautiful, and the style is really unique. Great book!

Materials used: unlisted
Typeface used: unlisted

[Melissa Coyle]

I love it when children receive an item that they adore and are proud of! A sweet story!

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://pussreboots.pair.com/blog/2016...

[Zai Zai · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rather charmless. The art was a choice. 1.5.

[Cassandra Gelvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The umbrella is the last component of the ghastly ritual.

This book is extremely wordy for the brief amount of story that it actually tells. There's a little girl. She lives in New York. Her parents are Japanese immigrants. For her third birthday, she gets rubber boots and an umbrella. She wants to use them right away, but it's not raining because it's summer. She asks her parents, "Well, could I use the umbrella in the sun?" And they say no. And then finally it rains, she uses her umbrella and her boots, and she goes to school and she comes home from school. And now she's a big girl and she doesn't remember the story anymore.

Okay, I'm not a big fan of Yashima's art style. He seems to almost consider people's faces to be unimportant. And when he does actually draw them, they look really creepy. There's this great picture of her in here holding the umbrella, and all you can see of her face are completely solid black eyes and no other facial features. She looks like some kind of undead creature. And she always looks that way, every time you can actually see her face, except when she's older. Usually she's hiding her face, like she's facing away from the reader or ducking and hiding her eyes under her hand. But every time you can see her face, pretty much all you can see is these solid black eyes, with a little bit of eyelash at the edge. Like this girl has been possessed by demons. I just do not care for the art style of this artist, and the story uses far too many words to tell this completely trivial story. It's like somebody is telling the story who doesn't know how to tell a story. They have no concept of brevity and word choice, making every small detail super important with no concept of what to stress.

Maybe it's actually based on a true event in a girl's life. The book actually has a dedication: it says, "To Momo on her eighth birthday." So maybe the author actually knew a girl named Momo who actually did this, but the story still isn't told very well.

Message: Umbrellas can only be used on rainy days. Or, umbrellas are awesome.

For more children's book reviews, see my website at http://www.drttmk.com.

[Beth Crownover · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a sweet simple book. However, I was disappointed in the plot because I felt the ending was very empty and lacking. The book seemed to lack excitement and the tone was very flat. I think this book is appropriate for children in kindergarten through second grade because the vocab and sentence structure is at a lower level. Older kids may get bored with this book fairly easily especially with abrupt ending. This book did win the Caldecott Honor for its illustrations. The artwork contributes to the understanding because it illustrates the text to depict what is happening in the story. The illustrations are very colorful which would appeal to children but not all the colors are traditional, for example the little girl is blue or purple on some pages which may be confusing for a child. The style of the illustrations is impressionism because the artist plays with a lot of light and color, the drawings are less realistic and the lines are very blurred between objects. The illustrations appear to be done with a combination of mediums. It appears to be guache paint for the bottom layer, then often there are pastels streaked over the paint. Black ink is used to create a definitive line although the colors usually do not stay within the lines. For a rainy effect the artist scratched away the color. Some noticeable physical elements of the book are its bright yellow cover which draws the eye to it. The text of the book is always on the left page with some small illustration while the right side is usually a full page illustration. I would use this book as a read aloud to introduce different cultures to my students because the book does incorporate Japanese words and their meaning. I might also use the book to accompany a lesson on weather because Momo in the book cannot wait for it to rain.

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Umbrella by Taro Yashima- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The book narrates the story of a Japanese child named Momo means peach fruit. Mono has been brought up in United States of America. On her fourth birthday, her parents gift her a red coloured rubber shoes an umbrella. As the season is hot, Momo is unable to wear her shoes. She feels that she can use her umbrella to save herself from scorching heat but her parents suggest that an umbrella is used during rainy season. Momo suggests that umbrella will save her from the strong wind but her parents reply that the umbrella will fly away due to the fast wind. After a few months, rains ultimately arrive. Momo is fast asleep. Her mother awakens her and informs her that rains have arrived. Momo is happy. She does not wash her face. She does not wear her socks. She wears her red rubber shoes and walks out confidently in the rain to enjoy the tip-tip falling on her umbrella. She behaves as if she is a grown up lady. While going to school with umbrella in her hand, Momo is a confident girl. The book narrates how during growth of children, their eagerness and inquisitiveness develops. Coloured illustrations help the reader in relating to the story. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.

[Hannahcarlson7875gmail.Com]

A story about a young girl who received rain boots and an umbrella but had to wait to use them. This involves stereotypes within the book such as the main character stating that she has to walk in a straight line to be a woman. This would need to be addressed if reading as a read aloud to students. An important part of the book that stood out to me was at the end and had to do with growing independent. Because of her umbrella, she walked home for the first time without holding her parents hand. This part of the book resinated with me because I remember how I felt when I started to walk around without holding a parents home.

[Madelaine O'Neil]

This was a book that I genuinely enjoyed reading. Overall it was simple and cute, but it was great that it also included diversity. I loved the water color illustrations, they were beautiful and not overdone. One thing that I especially liked about this book was that it included Chinese words on each page. It showed the Chinese word for things like "Spring" or "Summer" and included the translation right next to it. I think this is a great way to share different beautiful languages with children at a young age and include some of the culture in the book. Overall this was a book that I really liked and would read to my students.

[Karin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Children's literature picture book
K-2

I was enchanted by this book. It's an older book (copyright 1967) so the art has a bit of a dated feel but not so much that it made the story feel 'old.' This story was written for Momo (the little girl in the story) about her third birthday, when she received an umbrella. The book tells the story of the umbrella and how long Momo had to wait to use it for the first time. Momo received this book, Umbrella, for her eighth birthday. What I loved the most was that Japanese words are included throughout the book so that it could give students an idea of how different written language can look depending on its country of origin.