Looking out the window with Totto-Chan
Book Review by Jordon Shinn for China Daily, August 2016, Beijing.
A charming and masterful study of the child's psyche, Totto-Chan, the Little Girl at the Window, is the seminal work by celebrated Japanese author and television personality Tetsuko Kuroyanagi. Published in 1981, the novel begins in late-1930s Japan during the lead-up to the Second World War. The plot follows the childhood adventures of the author as Totto-Chan and her escapades at the Bus Study Garden, against the backdrop of war.
Under the guidance of Principal Kobayashi Sosaku, who practices a non-traditional approach to education, the young Totto-Chan evolves from a problem student in the Japanese education system, to a self-confident class leader at her new school for 'special' students.
In awe of the world, while ignorant of the changes happening both within and around her, Totto-Chan takes the reader by the hand, leading the wizened adult back to childhood — a time when the world was fresh and exciting. Indeed, the novel succeeds in bringing us back to a place where ignorance is bliss. But this bliss crumbles away as Totto-Chan, or "Little Bean," slowly and painfully learns the facts of life with each new experience and failure.
These failures include an unfortunate fall into a latrine, being cheated by a roadside peddler, and realizing she doesn't have what it takes to be a spy when she grows up. Death plays a major role, as Totto-Chan experiences the deaths of a classmate and her beloved pet dog "Logic." She also faces hunger and economic hardship due to the war. Albeit understandably childish, her love of the world and zest for life continually bring her strength and joy; even in the darkest times, she manages to find some little thing to be amazed at.
Comprised of 61 chapters, each chapter tells a different story in the saga of Totto-Chan's childhood, and is a stand-alone story for a quick five-minute break from work or study. The novel is written in such a way so that the reader can turn to a random chapter and immediately enjoy the story, without needing much context of what came before it.
In one of my favorite chapters, the author describes the unique pre-lunch ritual that the students of Bus Study Garden engage in. Together, they each open their lunch boxes and sing a song about "the scent of the mountains" and "the scent of the sea," whetting their appetite for whatever they happen to have for lunch. Singing this simple lunch song seems to unite the students as classmates and comrades.
A children's story at first glance, the novel is written with easy vocabulary in any translation (I read the Chinese version), and is a good choice for beginning readers. But it gradually reveals itself to be an engaging study of childhood psychology. This makes the book a worthy read for adult readers, too, especially teachers and parents who want to understand how their own children find light and joy in a world full of danger and darkness.
#
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://jordonious.wordpress.com/2021/08/02/book-review-totto-chan-the-little-girl-at-the-window/