Translator Ginny Tapley Takemori: On Whales, Blue Glass, War and Young People

Translator Ginny Tapley Takemori will discuss two children’s books she translated from Japanese into English, both of which are due out from Pushkin Children’s Books this year: The Whale That Fell In Love With a Submarine by Akiyuki Nosaka and The Secret of the Blue Glass by Tomiko Inui.

Both titles explore sobering themes of war, suffering and loss through intriguing characters: a whale who courts a military submarine, a mother who becomes a kite, a family of Little People who sleep in cigarette boxes and craft their shoes out of book jackets. Takemori will describe how she came to translate the two books and discuss some specific translation issues that she grappled with in the process.

The event will be in English, and requires an RSVP.

When: Saturday, June 20, 2015, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Where: Tokyo Women’s Plaza, Conference Room 2
5-53-67 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
(near the United Nations University; map)

Event fee: SCBWI members 800 yen; nonmembers 1,200 yen

RSVP: To reserve a place, email japan (at) scbwi.org by Friday, June 19

For more information on the event and its participants, go here.