Konnichiwa! Ah, Japan! A place I loved to live and am still learning about. I love to share my memories and experiences with my family, and they are learning about the Japanese culture a little more each month. Over the past 2 years we have reviewed so many great books about Japan and it has been a real privilege. This week I’m sharing some of our favourite books about Japan with you!
In addition to the usual links to purchase our recommended books, I’m also sharing the links to our original reviews of these books. Have fun looking around and finding out why we love these books so much, and I hope that you will find yourself a new favourite book as well. From Japanese children’s stories, Japanese cookbooks, Japanese crafts, and more; let me know your favourite book about Japan in the comments below and perhaps we’ll add it to our collection, too.
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Great Books About Japan
For your convenience, I have provided Amazon links to these books for both my American and British readers. Enjoy!
Japanese Traditions and Customs Explained
Traditions are ingrained into Japanese culture and everyday society. The origins are fascinating, and you really must learn about the festivals and celebrations to learn about Japanese culture.
- All About Japan: Stories, Songs, Crafts and Games for Kids (UK link here)
- Read our review next week
- Japanese Celebrations: Cherry Blossoms, Lanterns and Stars! (UK link here)
- Japanese Traditions: Rice Cakes, Cherry Blossoms and Matsuri: A Year of Seasonal Japanese Festivities (UK link here)
Japanese Children’s Stories
Japan has some fantastic children’s stories! From old fables to modern tales, each one has a moral and something to be learned. Here are three that my children love to listen to and read again and again.
- Once Upon a Time in Japan (UK link here)
- The Last Kappa of Old Japan Bilingual English & Japanese Edition: A Magical Journey of Two Friends (English-Japanese) (UK link here)
- The Peace Tree from Hiroshima: The Little Bonsai with a Big Story (UK link here)
Origami Books
Origami is a fun way to integrate Japanese culture into Western life. From simple first origami projects, family paper airplane competitions, to more advanced origami, there are origami projects for all ages and interests.
- My First Origami Kit: [Origami Kit with Book, 60 Papers, 150 Stickers, 20 Projects] (UK link here)
- Ultimate Paper Airplanes for Kids: The Best Guide to Paper Airplanes!: Includes Instruction Book with 12 Innovative Designs & 48 Tear-Out Paper Planes (UK link here)
- LaFosse & Alexander’s Essential Book of Origami: The Complete Guide for Everyone: Origami Book with 16 Lessons and Instructional DVD (UK link here)
Japanese Art in Everyday Life
In Japan, art is integrated easily into everyday life. It looks so easy and simple, but it can take years, even decades of study to learn the intricacies of each art form. Here are three historical art forms that are still popular today.
- Floating World Japanese Prints Coloring Book: Color your Masterpiece & Clear Your Mind (Adult Coloring Book) (UK link here)
- Japanese Ikebana for Every Season (UK link here)
- The Japanese Tea Ceremony: Cha-No-Yu (Tuttle Classics) (UK link here)
Japanese Cuisine
Japanese food always looks so beautiful and complicated. But it doesn’t have to be! We often use these three recipe books for inspiration and too add some flavour to our table. My daughter has insisted on Sushi for her last 3 birthdays. This year I was happy to have these books to make her wish come true.
Mother of 3 says
We really enjoyed our foray into Origami earlier this year and these all look like wonderful books.