Kenta and The Big Wave

While Kenta and the Big Wave is technically about the tsunami that devastated the east coast of Japan two years ago, the real heart of it is the concept of peaceful practices. Kenta and his family are spared when the wave hits, but they lose all their belongings, including Kenta’s soccer ball. They also lose their home which is not salvageable after the water recedes. An American boy playing on the beach finds Kenta’s soccer ball–The country is actually never named but the illustrations suggest the USA. The boy is not able to read the kanji which identifies the ball as Kenta’s, so he brings it to a librarian who helps translate the symbols. The boy then ships the packaged ball back to the unsuspecting owner. The story of this simple act of goodness is told as a storyteller might relate it, simple language with big themes.

Ruth Ohi created both the text and illustrations. The book will serve as a good read-aloud for pre-readers and as a suitable text for early readers. Kenta and the Big Wave is published by Annick Press and has 32 pages comprised mostly of bright watercolors.