1001 Cranes

I became a fan of Hirahara a few years ago when I began reading her Mas Arai stories. They brought back many found memories of my childhood: Little Tokyo, the Far East Cafe, Gardners Association in downtown LA and WLA. Not living in LA anymore these places and stories were a great journey. This story was another well written story that I enjoyed greatly. I will keep looking forward to all future books written by Hirahara.

Edgar-winning author Naomi Hirahara has proven herself to be a master story teller with her Mas Arai series. Now, with 1001 Cranes, her first young adult novel, she continues to display her considerable talents. Beautifully written, 1001 Cranes is touching, sad, delightful, and even funny. I highly recommend this book for all teens and tweens and adults who love them.

Naomi Hirahara's 1001 CRANES tells of pre-teen Angela, who arrives in a small town outside of Los Angeles but wants to be home in Northern California with her friends. She's being sent away to be shielded from the pain of her parents' possible divorce - but she feels no better at her grandparents' house, until plans for her help in their flower shop change her life. A heart-warming story of adjustment, this is recommended for advanced elementary through middle school age groups. An excellent leisure read for middle school readers.

Full disclosure: I know Naomi from the mystery world, where she's an Edgar Award winner. So I was excited to read 1001 CRANES and see what she had up her sleeve when it came to telling a story through the eyes of a 12-year-old. Needless to say, I was not disappointed. Angie Kato is an engaging protagonist going through a tough time. Her parents are splitting up, and she's sent to stay with her grandparents in LA for the summer. As if that's not hard enough, she's got to learn how to make Grade-A origami cranes for wedding displays. Angie's a tough cookie with a soft core (kind of like a Tootsie Pop), so she's easy for the reader to root for. The writing style is modern and charming at once. I'm hardly a tween, but I simply loved this book.

What a delightful book! I could hardly put it down, and laughed and cried in all the right places. Naomi Hirahara has a wonderful grasp on the 12-year-old mind set, emotions and viewpoint, and easily reveals it in her prose and dialogue. Her descriptions of Angie's grandparents' home and lifestyle are very visual. They brought to mind homes and businesses that I've be in years ago. Readers will learn a lot about Japanese culture, especially about the 1001 origami crane displays (why/how they are made) as part of the story. I was pleased by the descriptions of the neighbor's religious convictions and what all happened at her church when Angie visited there. Tender, truthful, but without preaching. The issues that Angie encounters during the summer she stays with her grandparents - parental divorce, adoption, pre-teen boy/girl relationships, keeping secrets (both good and bad), infidelity, cancer, familial conflict - are the kinds of things kids face every day. Ms Hirahara treats them with honesty, compassion, and even a touch of humor. Ms Hirahara is already an accomplished and Edgar-Award-winning author of adult mystery fiction, but I hope "1001 Cranes" will be only the first of many Young Adult books that she writes. I definitly recommend it to teen and pre-teen girls, and to moms or grandmas looking for a good book to give as a gift.