The Journey of an Artist:
Allen Say
His Books
From Amazon.com:
As a girl, Alice loved to dance, but the rhythms of her life offered little opportunity for a foxtrot, let alone a waltz. World War II erupted soon after she was married. Alice and her husband, along with many other Japanese Americans, were forced to leave their homes and report to assembly centers around the country. Undaunted, Alice and her husband learned to make the most of every circumstance, from their stall in the old stockyard in Portland to the decrepit farm in the Oregon desert, with its field of stones. Like a pair of skilled dancers, they sidestepped adversity to land gracefully amid golden opportunity. Together they turned a barren wasteland into a field of endless flowers. Such achievements did not come without effort and sacrifice, though, and Alice often thought her dancing days were long behind her. But as her story testifies, life is full of changes . . .
In this striking book, Allen Say introduces readers to the remarkable story of the life of a woman whose perseverance and resilience serve as an inspirational reminder that dreams can be fulfilled, even when least expected.
Say, Allen. Music for Alice. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2004.
From Amazon.com:
Caldecott Medalist Allen Say creates a beautiful story about an American girl who seeks adventure in Japan and discovers more than she could have imagined.
In her grandmother’s house there is one Japanese print of a small house with lighted windows. Even as a small girl, Erika loved that picture.
It will pull her through childhood, across vast oceans and modern cities, then into towns—older, quieter places—she has only ever dreamed about.
But Erika cannot truly know what she will find there, among the rocky seacoasts, the rice paddies, the circle of mountains, and the class of children.
For Erika-san, can Japan be all that she has imagined?
Say, Allen. Erika-San. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2009.
From Amazon.com:
Early one morning a boy comes into town looking for work. He meets a sign painter who takes him on as a helper, and they are commissioned to paint a series of billboards in the desert. Each billboard has only one word, Arrowstar. They do not know its meaning. As they are about to paint the last sign, the boy looks up and sees in the distance a magnificent structure. Is it real? Together, they go to find out.
Say, Allen. The Sign Painter. Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000
From Amazon.com:
At home in San Francisco, May speaks Japanese and the family eats rice and miso soup and drinks green tea. When she visits her friends' homes, she eats fried chicken and spaghetti. May plans someday to go to college and live in an apartment of her own. But when her family moves back to Japan, she soon feels lost and homesick for America. In Japan everyone calls her by her Japanese name, Masako. She has to wear kimonos and sit on the floor. Poor May is sure that she will never feel at home in this country. Eventually May is expected to marry and a matchmaker is hired. Outraged at the thought, May sets out to find her own way in the big city of Osaka. Allen Say has created a moving tribute to his parents and their path to discovering where home really is.
Say, Allen. Tea with Milk. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.
From Amazon.com:
The amazing tricks two American soldiers perform on a borrowed bicycle are a fitting finale for the school sports day festivities in a small village in occupied Japan.
Say, Allen. The Bicycle Man. Oakland, Calif.; Boston: Parnassus Press ; Houghton Mifflin, 1982.
From Amazon.com:
From School Library Journal
Grade 2-5-- A picture-book biography of the first Chinese matador. On his first vacation to Europe, Billy Wong saw a Spanish bullfight and, marveling at the athletic prowess of the matador, realized that even a man shorter than he might enter the sport. So he stayed in Spain and went to bullfighting school, but after two years passed without fighting a single cow, Billy realized that a Chinese matador might stand out in the crowd of aspiring bullfighters--as indeed he did. After his first success as El Chino --The Chinese--in his native costume, Billy receivedan offer to become a real matador. The large, bordered illustrations in the first part of the book describe Billy's early life in Arizona, and are suggestive of old sepia photographs; these have that sense of being posed in that way that both conceals and reveals the life of the subjects. When he attends the bullfight in Spain, however, the illustrations take on color and action. Say's subtle watercolor shadings and the details in the fine lines of these illustrations capture the power and the sensitivity of this story of a man who learns that to become someone beyond his current self, he must first truly be himself.
Say, Allen. El Chino. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1990.
From Amazon.com:
In dreamlike sequences, a man symbolically confronts the trauma of his family’s incarceration in the Japanese internment camps during World War II. This infamous event is made emotionally clear through his meeting a group of children all with strange name tags pinned to their coats. The man feels the helplessness of the children. Finally, desperately he releases the name tags like birds into the air to find their way home with the hope for a time when Americans will be seen as one people—not judged, mistrusted, or segregated because of their individual heritage.
Sixty years after thousands of Japanese Americans were unjustly imprisoned, the cogent prose and haunting paintings of renowned author and illustrator Allen Say remind readers of a dark chapter in America’s history.
Say, Allen. Home of the Brave. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.
From Amazon.com:
Publishers Weekly Review
In a story of warmth and surprise, Allen Say explores the origins of artistic inspiration. Elegant illustrations portray the journey of a child who discovers that creativity ultimately comes from within. As a small child, Emma has two noteworthy practices: she stares for long periods at the fuzzy white rug she has had since birth, and she spends quite a bit of time drawing intently. When she enters school and garners many prizes for her artwork, it becomes clear that the seemingly blank rug is the source of her inspiration. Knowing more than Emma's mother, youngsters will wish they could intervene when she decides, soon after Emma is feted as the winner of a citywide art competition, that the now-dingy rug needs a washing and throws it into the machine. Caldecott Medalist Say's (Grandfather's Journey) deftly understated tale leaves ample room for readers' own interpretations. Yet it is his superb visual images, which have the semblance of faultlessly composed photographs, that make the most indelible mark here. As he has so affectingly accomplished with the characters in his previous works, Say fills Emma's face with abundant expression; her moments of anguish when she thinks she has lost the source of her art and her subsequent despondency seem wrenchingly real. Equally convincing is the child's tentative hopefulness when, in the book's most innovative picture, she spies the faces of many intriguing creatures (which Say hides playfully around her) begging to be drawn. An impressive creation, to be appreciated on many levels. All ages.
Say, Allen. Emma's Rug. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1996.
From Amazon.com:
From Publishers Weekly
Taro is a Japanese boy whose penchant for sleeping is the butt of village jokes, much to the chagrin of his poor widowed mother, who works hard to provide them with necessities. Taro cannot be coaxed into working, despite his mother's pleas, until he falls in love with a rich merchant's daughter and hatches a scheme to make himself wealthy. The author's foreword explains that many gods and demons inhabit Japanese folklore, which will help readers understand how Taro, disguised as a local deity, is able to convince the rich neighbor that his daughter must wed the laziest boy in town. Say's art, with stylized Oriental touches, comically animates the sprightly tale, perfectly matching the abundant wit of Snyder's adaptation. All ages.
Snyder, Dianne Say Allen Houghton Mifflin Company. The Boy of the Three-Year Nap. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1988.
From Amazon.com:
From Publishers Weekly
A boy spends a lonely summer with his father, who is so engrossed in work he scarcely notices or talks to his son. Early one Saturday Dad wakes the boy with a surprise: they are going camping, in search of a special lake Dad had visited as a boy. When the Lost Lake is rediscovered, it is overrun with families camping and swimming; Dad is determined they will find another. Through a bleak rainstorm and dangerous bear country father and son press on, and the boy is happy to see Dad gradually become more animated and talkative. The father's dogged perseverance finally pays off: a brand-new special lake, all to themselves, to enjoy and remember. There is a sense of melancholy pervading Say's narrative, yet the story is far from depressing. The reader is drawn into the frustration felt--for different reasons--by both father and son, and rejoices with them in their final glorious discovery. The search for a childhood dream has a universal appeal, and Say's watercolors beautifully enhance both the senses of loss and discovery. Ages 4-8.
Say, Allen. The Lost Lake. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1989.
From Amazon.com:
When Allison tries on the red kimono her grandmother has sent her, she is suddenly aware that she resembles her favorite doll more than she does her mother and father. When her parents try to explain that she is adopted, her world becomes an uncomfortable place. She becomes angry and withdrawn. She wonders why she was given up, what her real name is, and whether other children have parents in faraway countries. Allison's doll becomes her only solace until she finds a stray cat in the garden and learns the true meaning of adoption and parental love.
Say, Allen. Allison. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997.
From Amazon.com:
The Kamishibai man used to ride his bicycle into town where he would tell stories to the children and sell them candy, but gradually, fewer and fewer children came running at the sound of his clappers. They were all watching their new televisions instead. Finally, only one boy remained, and he had no money for candy. Years later, the Kamishibai man and his wife made another batch of candy, and he pedaled into town to tell one more story—his own. When he comes out of the reverie of his memories, he looks around to see he is surrounded by familiar faces—the children he used to entertain have returned, all grown up and more eager than ever to listen to his delightful tales.
Say, Allen. Kamishibai Man. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2005
From Amazon.com:
A father helps his daughter find pride and inspiration in this masterful picture book.
Yuriko hates her name when the children make fun of it and call her "Eureka!" Though she is half Japanese, the teasing makes her want to hide, to retreat even from the art projects she used to love. Fortunately she has a patient, kind father who finds gentle ways of drawing her out and reminding Yuriko of the traditions they share that have always brought her joy: walks in lovely Golden Gate Park, lunch at their favorite sushi restaurant, watching the fog blow in off the bay. It's enough... it's more than enough to face down her challenges with confidence.
Say, Allen. The Favorite Daughter. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2013.
From Amazon.com:
From School Library Journal Gr 2-5–Say takes the ancient legend about a crane magically transformed into a woman through an act of kindness and adds another layer of mystery to the story. A brief retelling of “the Grateful Crane,” as told to Jiro by his mother, sets the scene. The rest of the book traces the child and his father's visit to Mr. Ozu, who has a “famous garden and many treasures in his house.” Intrigued by the life-size bronze crane, Jiro investigates first the statue and then a small seemingly empty cottage on the property. When a tall, lovely Japanese lady appears, he finds himself playing out the tale. Is she the crane personified? Is he the woodcutter from the story? With the arrival of his father to take him home, he is left to ponder: Was this just a dream? The care and subtlety the artist employs to make the contemporary twist believable, in both text and illustration, is extraordinary. A final magnificent image depicts a crane flying through the night sky beneath a full moon. Carefully chosen words mesh seamlessly with dramatic and effective paintings, bringing both energy and tranquility to carry the story to its thought-provoking ending.
Say, Allen. The Boy in the Garden. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010.
From Amazon.com:
From Publishers Weekly
A child's unrest over the departure of his grandfather sparks the Caldecott Medalist's provocative new story, which begins with Sam gripped by the thought of "how small Grandpa had looked waving good-bye." Grandpa's destination is not revealed, but it's not a pleasant one. So when the boy awakens the next day to find that he has the face of an elderly man, he worries that he, too, will be sent away, "you know, where Grandpa went." At school, Sam is teased by classmates and shunned by friends. Baffled and hurt, he is in the process of running away when a skateboard lands at his feet. He takes off on it, impressing a playground of kids with his tricky maneuvers. Tired, the man-child returns home and, talking to himself, utters words that cut to the core of the story: "Who cares what I look like? I'm Sam. Nobody can change that." Once this valuable if obvious message is delivered, Say returns Sam to his youthful self, camouflaging the transformations by implying that Sam has been dreaming. More affecting than the text's messages about outer appearances and inner truth, and clearer than the undercurrents about perceptions of the aged, are Say's hauntingly realistic paintings, which simultaneously present a convincing likeness of an old man's face on a boy's body and an equally effective sense of the confusion and betrayal Sam is experiencing within. All ages.
Say, Allen. Stranger in the Mirror. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1995.
