Cool Melons- Turn to Frogs!: The Life and Poems of Issa

Recommended to me by a school librarian, this book was a sweet delight which I read to my child thinking to encourage her to enjoy poetry. We both enjoyed this book and its wonderful illustrations of Japanese life, learning about the sad life of Issa and what is behind some of his poems, especially as haiku are not as simple as they appear on the surface. While the story may be a bit intense for very young children, the book accomplishes its intention of providing an interesting and eye-catching introduction to haiku and the sensitivity to feeling and experience that helps create the art of poetry. It also carries an underlying message of how one can not only persevere through mistreatment and adversity but keep a caring and uplifted spirit. LOVED the author's informational notes at the end.Also see  Grass Sandals : The Travels of Basho

I got this book at the library to enrich a study on Japan with my 8 year old daughter. I fell in love with the whole book: the story, the writing, the pictures, the extra information in the back. It was a find! So of course, I now have my own copy. My daughter enjoyed it so much she wants to learn Japanese now.

Wonderful imagery & poetry & based on historical character! Love it. Simple, yet profound. I liked it as well as my 5 1/2 year old grandson.

This is a beautiful book, even for children who aren't fond of poetry. Matthew Gollub tells the story of the haiku master Issa, interweaving translations of 33 haiku. The narrative creates a framework for understanding, especially the plaintive poems written when Issa keenly felt the loss of his mother."Motherless sparrow,/ come play/ with me."Kazuko G. Stone's lovely illustrations complement the haiku but also can stand on their own. I found myself turning back to three illustrations in particular: a kitten playing in bright red autumn leaves, three children catching snowflakes in their mouths, and a beautifully detailed dragonfly.Stone's artwork helps interpret the haiku. For example, the titular poem didn't make much sense to me when I read it years ago, but the illustration of small green melons trembling in a water basin as a sandal-clad foot steps into view makes it clear: If the melons transform, they can escape the fate of being eaten!In addition to the child-friendly main narrative, Gollub includes an author's note section on the selection of the poems, details about particular poems, and explanation of haiku in general. These are very helpful for teachers or parents who would like to have more background to share with children.Between the story-style and the illustrations, this is a wonderful book for storytime. I can see it becoming a favorite that children revisit.

I am a big fan of Issa, and this is a lovely book. I returned this purchase (soft cover) only because I had bought it for a gift, and for a gift, the book just doesn't look as nice in soft cover. The illustrations are gorgeous and look much better in hard cover.

The impressive quality of the illustrations and translations presented in this children's book makes it a cherished Haiku collector's item. What can haiku (or this book) do for our children? If the child is scientist-oriented, he/she will have fun see the world through insects' perspectives and experience the transforming power of imagination turning cool melons into frogs. If the child loves drawing, the book will enrich their interests with Eastern style paintings where Japanese character itself is a fascinating art. If the child has a writer in them, this book will share the strength of ISSA who first found comfort and hope in writing haiku after losing his mother at a very young age, had then emerged, through persistence and faith, to be the Japanese cultural icon whose name we equates with HAIKU today. The Spring of My Life: And Selected Haiku

Kazuko Stone's watercolors accompany Matthew Gollub's with great style, and his text always pleases. Do you feel a childlieke innocence in the verses of ISSA? His mother died when he was three and perhaps his sadness is reflected in this verse:"The new Year's first dream -- I see my village and wake to a chilly tear."Four years later he had a step-mother who brought dissention to the household so that the father finally took the boy to a path leading to Edo (now Tokyo) when he was 17 years old.Every person should experience during Lent some humor. This leads to the conviction that the writing of HAIKU is an appropriate theme for a Lenten retreat. These are obviously different but the interior of our hearts is where a sharing of philosophies can begin.We should also experince during the Lenten Season thoughtful meditation aand a caring exchange, "TO CATCH ONE MEANINGFUL MOMENT IN TIME" - a quote from the author is something we should all try to achieve.Reviewer mcHAIKU has a neighbor in the Indiana woods who titled her book "Swimming with Frogs" (isbn: # 0253217563) You will greatly enjoy her tribute to Nature in Brown County, and find a true urge to write HAIKU down in these hills. And a verse of Issa's will amuse you with his humorous explanation as to why people shouldn't come near melons!

The best introduction to haiku, by way of the life of Issa, that I have read thus far in my study of haiku. This is an illustrated picture book aimed at children, but it captures the essence of the haiku moment beautifully, and for the beginner, the illustrations open up the words and provide an image -- one way to appreciate the connection between the words and the experiential moment. The translations are fresh and not syllable-bound, thankfully, with an added bonus of the haiku in Japanese cursive along the sides of the pages.This book is a perfect combination of concept, design, and execution, with engaging text and tender, whimsical, and astonishingly apt illustrations. The pictures of the Buddhas at New Years was startling, and the one of the dove and the owl was emotionally piercing. No flaws, nothing could be improved in this fine book.

This book is lovely. In it, Matthew Gollub explores the life of Issa, one of Japan's most beloved poets. The prose is interspersed with translations of some of Issa's haiku, with the originals printed in Japanese script along the edge of the page. The illustrations are sensitive and sometimes comic. This book is targetted towards children with a reading age of 4-8. I am an adult woman, aged 40 ! But it doesn't matter at all : lovely books are lovely books. I'm looking forward to encountering more of Issa's beautiful poetry

海外からの輸送が大幅に減便し、当初予定から一月以上遅れましたが無事届き、綺麗な仕様で安心しました。販売店さんも対応にご苦労されたことと思います。