shuna's journey book

Shuna's Journey

Hayao miyazaki , alex dudok de wit  ( translator ).

160 pages, Hardcover

First published June 15, 1983

About the author

Hayao Miyazaki

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Children’s books

Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘Shuna’s Journey,’ Finally Translated Into English

First published in Japan in 1983, this picture book from the fabled animator is eerie, enchanting and surpassingly strange.

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By Susan Napier

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SHUNA’S JOURNEY, by Hayao Miyazaki

“Shuna’s Journey” is an eerie and enchanting book, a voyage into a delicately mythic realm of beauty and heartbreak. Here a traditional Tibetan folk tale about a search for fruitful seeds is interwoven with scenes of surpassing strangeness, ranging from an encounter with a vast ship made of rock — its floors formed by human bones that crunch underfoot — to a giant silvery moon that hurtles across the sky guiding a youth toward a “land of the god-folk.” It is a place in which resilient and resolute young people, both male and female, lead their elders into a better future. This visionary space has been created by the legendary Japanese artist, animator and director Hayao Miyazaki .

The world knows Miyazaki as the maker of such masterpieces as “My Neighbor Totoro,” “ Princess Mononoke ” and “ Spirited Away. ” These films feature radiant, painstakingly detailed animation highlighting three-dimensional characters who venture into supernatural realms that are sometimes dark and dangerous but also — frequently — sublime.

What many filmgoers may not know is that Miyazaki started drawing in early childhood and by high school was dreaming of becoming a manga artist. This ambition startled his conservative parents, who hoped that their son would bring in a decent living as a respectable salaried executive. Miyazaki dutifully went to college and studied economics, but he dedicated his free time to a children’s literature study group that read cherished works, often by Western authors, such as Jules Verne’s science fiction adventure “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea” and Frances Hodgson Burnett’s “The Secret Garden,” in which children toil to help a withered garden bloom again. Adventures and gardens feature prominently in Miyazaki’s films, and it is no surprise that he would be attracted to the ancient Tibetan folk tale about a young prince on a quest for barley that inspired “Shuna’s Journey.”

The book, first published in Japan in 1983, is only just now appearing in an excellent English translation by Alex Dudok de Wit that captures the unexpectedly ethereal beauty of Miyazaki’s written words. More of a picture book with narration than a manga, it opens with Miyazaki’s description of a human settlement: “At the bottom of an ancient valley carved out by a glacier, there was a small kingdom which time had abandoned.” Spread out around these words is a two-page visual rendition of the ancient valley, the snowy mountains and fissured cliffs overwhelming the tiny medieval-looking kingdom. This is Miyazaki’s world, a place where nature, animals, gods and humans interact.

Shuna, the book’s hero, is a young prince trying to help his kingdom survive in this severe but beautiful space. A mysterious old man bequeaths him some dead seed husks and, with his final words, a summons to adventure. But Shuna’s is not a traditional quest for a sword or treasure. Instead it is a journey to find living seeds, with the power to grow new crops for generations to come.

Astride his gentle soft-eyed steed, a red elk known as a yakul, Shuna sets out alone across mountains, deserts and oceans. The adventures he encounters are memorable but sometimes troubling, most notably a skirmish with a caravan of slave traders who sell their captives to alien creatures in return for seeds. Perhaps inspired by his study of economics, Miyazaki limns a society based on a ruthless and barren form of exchange, where human beings are bartered for seeds that cannot be sown but only consumed.

Shuna’s skirmish with the slave traders allows him to perform a heroic action. He rescues two young sisters, the older of whom, Thea, will return the favor, pulling him back to life after Shuna’s travels take him into the mysterious world of the god-folk and he is almost destroyed. Thea and her sister, we discover later on, are refugees whose home village was burned to the ground, a chilling reminder of our contemporary world.

Shuna’s story is an uplifting one, and children will appreciate its adventure, mystery and above all the immersive world that the book draws us into. At the same time, its depiction of the barter system offers a tutorial in economics, while its emphasis on the need for living seed is a lesson in sustainability. Older Miyazaki fans will appreciate the story as a compendium of some of the most important elements in the director’s later oeuvre, especially as seen in Thea. In a manner that would become typical of Miyazaki, she is given voice and agency unusual for a girl protagonist in the 1980s, culminating in her evolution into caretaker and then partner as she helps Shuna plant the priceless grains.

But it is Thea’s nameless and voiceless little sister who ultimately conveys the story’s most important message of courage and hope. We see her in a full-page illustration dancing across green seedlings, her hair flying in the sunlight. The text describes her “joyous laugh,” noting that “the girl hadn’t laughed once since the manhunters had set her homeland ablaze, but now she was twirling all about.”

Susan Napier is the Goldthwaite professor of rhetoric and Japanese at Tufts University. She is the author of five books, most recently “Miyazakiworld: A Life in Art.” She is currently working on a book comparing Studio Ghibli with Walt Disney Animation Studios.

SHUNA’S JOURNEY | By Hayao Miyazaki | Translated by Alex Dudok de Wit | 160 pp. | First Second Books | $27.99 | All ages

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Shuna's Journey Hardcover – Nov. 1 2022

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December 2022 New York Times Bestseller Winner of the 2023 Eisner for Best U.S. Edition of International Material―Asia From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes Shuna's Journey , a new manga classic about a prince on a quest for a golden grain that would save his land, never before published in English! Shuna, the prince of a poor land, watches in despair as his people work themselves to death harvesting the little grain that grows there. And so, when a traveler presents him with a sample of seeds from a mysterious western land, he sets out to find the source of the golden grain, dreaming of a better life for his subjects. It is not long before he meets a proud girl named Thea. After freeing her from captivity, he is pursued by her enemies, and while Thea escapes north, Shuna continues toward the west, finally reaching the Land of the God-Folk. Will Shuna ever see Thea again? And will he make it back home from his quest for the golden grain? Films by Hayao Miyazaki / Studio Ghibli include: - T he Boy and The Heron - My Neighbor Totoro - Spirited Away - Howl's Moving Castle - Kiki's Delivery Service - Princess Mononoke

• Print length 160 pages
• Language English
• Publisher First Second
• Publication date Nov. 1 2022
• Reading age Baby - 18 years
• Dimensions 16.26 x 1.91 x 22.23 cm
• ISBN-10 1250846528
• ISBN-13 978-1250846525
• See all details

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A Junior Library Guild selection "Every scene in this cinematic work stands apart with breathtaking watercolors aided by expert staging and blocking... A reimagined folktale as grand as its painted visuals are sublime."― Kirkus, starred review "This book was published decades ago in ­Japanese, but is now finally published in English, and it will inspire some long-overdue ­appreciation...For Miyazaki fans, as well as any readers who would enjoy fantastic stories that unfold in surprising ways."― School Library Journal, starred review. "Gorgeous... Shuna's Journey foreshadows much of Miyazaki's later work while still managing to be a complete standalone story in its own right." ― Entertainment Weekly "Though aimed at and certainly appropriate for younger readers, Shuna’s Journey is a delight for any graphic novel or manga fan. Beyond that, the arrival of this book is a publishing event that should be broadly celebrated." ― Forbes “Eerie, enchanting and surpassingly strange.”― The New York Times "Beautiful...we rely on the children in his stories to explain his beautiful, broken worlds to us and to assure us that they will fix them.”― The New Yorker online

About the Author

Product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ First Second (Nov. 1 2022)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 160 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1250846528
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250846525
• Item weight ‏ : ‎ 463 g
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16.26 x 1.91 x 22.23 cm
• #181 in Superhero Manga

About the author

Hayao miyazaki.

Hayao Miyazaki is the prominent director of many popular animated feature films. He is also the co-founder of Studio Ghibli, the award-winning Japanese animation studio and production company behind worldwide hits such as PRINCESS MONONOKE, HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE and SPIRITED AWAY.

Photo by Thomas Schulz detengase @ Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/t_p_s/2842706001/) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

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Shuna’s Journey

From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes a new manga classic about a prince on a quest for a golden grain that would save his land, never before published in English!

Shuna, the prince of a poor land, watches in despair as his people work themselves to death harvesting the little grain that grows there. And so, when a traveler presents him with a sample of seeds from a mysterious western land, he sets out to find the source of the golden grain, dreaming of a better life for his subjects. It is not long before he meets a proud girl named Thea. After freeing her from captivity, he is pursued by her enemies, and while Thea escapes north, Shuna continues toward the west, finally reaching the Land of the God-Folk. Will Shuna ever see Thea again? And will he make it back home from his quest for the golden grain?

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Shuna's Journey

By hayao miyazaki & translated by alex dudok de wit, recommendations from our site.

Shuna’s Journey — published in 1983, before the launch of Studio Ghibli — is finally available in English. There are seeds of themes and characters which fans will recognise from more famous later works, and similarities with Nausicaä  in particular. But Shuna’s Journey is unique, a stand-alone graphic novel based on a Tibetan folk tale called The Prince Who Turned into a Dog . Shuna travels through a breathtaking variety of landscapes and the watercolour art makes it a visual feast. Much of the scenery is inspired by Tibet but there are also ocean and primeval forest. The traditional folk tale is about the people’s gratitude towards barley, their staple crop; Miyazaki envelops it in a narrative about slavery and people consumed by greed and estranged from nature.

Best Books for Teens of 2022

This graphic novel is an early work by the iconic Hayao Miyazaki, available in English for the first time. With simple language and not much text, children as young as 10 can enjoy it although it is primarily aimed at young adults. Read more about it in our selection of best books of 2022 for teens .

Best Kids' Books of 2022

This graphic novel is an early work by the iconic Hayao Miyazaki, available in English for the first time. With simple language and not much text, children as young as 10 can enjoy it although it is primarily aimed at young adults. Read more about it in our selection of  best books of 2023 for teens .

Other books by Hayao Miyazaki and translated by Alex Dudok de Wit

Nausicaä of the valley of the wind by hayao miyazaki, ponyo by hayao miyazaki, our most recommended books, the lord of the rings by j r r tolkien, pride and prejudice (book) by jane austen, mortal questions by thomas nagel, black beauty by anna sewell, a good girl's guide to murder by holly jackson, jane eyre by charlotte brontë.

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Shuna's Journey

By hayao miyazaki, this title was previously available on netgalley and is now archived., send netgalley books directly to your kindle or kindle app, to read on a kindle or kindle app, please add [email protected] as an approved email address to receive files in your amazon account. click here for step-by-step instructions., also find your kindle email address within your amazon account, and enter it here., pub date 01 nov 2022 | archive date 01 nov 2022, first second books | first second, comics, graphic novels, manga | sci fi & fantasy, description.

December 2022 New York Times Bestseller Winner of the 2023 Eisner for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes Shuna's Journey , a new manga classic about a prince on a quest for a golden grain that would save his land, never before published in English! Shuna, the prince of a poor land, watches in despair as his people work themselves to death harvesting the little grain that grows there. And so, when a traveler presents him with a sample of seeds from a mysterious western land, he sets out to find the source of the golden grain, dreaming of a better life for his subjects. It is not long before he meets a proud girl named Thea. After freeing her from captivity, he is pursued by her enemies, and while Thea escapes north, Shuna continues toward the west, finally reaching the Land of the God-Folk. Will Shuna ever see Thea again? And will he make it back home from his quest for the golden grain? Films by Hayao Miyazaki / Studio Ghibli include: - T he Boy and The Heron - My Neighbor Totoro - Spirited Away - Howl's Moving Castle - Kiki's Delivery Service - Princess Mononoke

December 2022 New York Times Bestseller Winner of the 2023 Eisner for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes Shuna's Journey , a new manga classic...

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SHUNA'S JOURNEY

by Hayao Miyazaki ; translated by Alex Dudok de Wit ; illustrated by Hayao Miyazaki ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2022

A reimagined folktale as grand as its painted visuals are sublime.

A dangerous quest to feed an impoverished land leads to chance encounters and awe-inspiring sights.

Shuna, the prince of a humble, struggling country, acts on the advice of a dying traveler from an Eastern land to seek out seeds that will grow bountiful grains. What he finds is a hostile city built on greed with an active slave trade. After meeting Thea and her little sister, Shuna fights to free them from enslavers. Every scene in this cinematic work stands apart with breathtaking watercolors aided by expert staging and blocking. The sights along Shuna’s journey range from a derelict ship in a treacherous desert to supernatural creatures and settings. The certainty and simplicity of Shuna’s motivations along with Thea’s own narrative arc allow the story to move nimbly from one larger-than-life spectacle to another. The pages read right-to-left manga style, while large panels and minimal dialogue create an immediate, immersive experience for readers. The narration sits outside or along the edges of panels, allowing the lush visuals maximum room to impress. Afterwords from the author and translator describe the story’s roots in a Tibetan folktale as well as comparisons to Miyazaki’s later animated works; this story, translated from Japanese, was originally published in Japan in 1983 before Miyazaki rose to fame with Studio Ghibli. The story’s cultural origins are cued through characters’ garb and other visual elements.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-250-84652-5

Page Count: 160

Publisher: First Second

Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | MANGA | SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY

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More About This Book

PERSPECTIVES

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

From the manga classics series.

by William Shakespeare ; adapted by Crystal S. Chan ; illustrated by Poe Tse ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 16, 2019

Shakespeare’s fantastical dream in an appealing format that can be shared with a wider audience.

Manga that brings to life Shakespeare’s classic romantic comedy.

This third entry in Manga Classics’ adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays maintains their practice of reproducing the full text of the original. The black-and-white illustrations allow readers to easily follow the plot while also picking up on subtle themes that are significant to understanding the play. For example, the abundant imagery surrounding the moon is emphasized by the moon’s presence in the backgrounds of many panels throughout the book, drawing readers’ attention. Long dialogues are also explained visually, which allows young readers to grasp what is being discussed without the need for a glossary or translation into modern English. The nobility is portrayed in a typical manga fashion with large eyes, small noses, and well-defined ears—but with appropriate Grecian clothing—while the commoners are easily visually distinguishable from them in style. The guide to reading manga at the beginning unfortunately describes the right-to-left reading order as “backwards from the normal books you know,” a strangely judgment-laden description for a book using manga to broaden the cultural exposure of young readers. However, the creators’ notes at the end offer fascinating insights into the adaptation process and may inspire budding manga artists to attempt their own works.

Pub Date: April 16, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-947808-10-2

Page Count: 400

Publisher: Manga Classics

Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2019

GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | MANGA

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ALWAYS HUMAN

by Ari North ; illustrated by Ari North ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 19, 2020

A warm, sweet, lovely tale of a world readers will want to live in.

In a not-so-distant future where changing one’s physical features is as easy as purchasing nanobot mods, Sunati falls for Austen, a girl who always looks the same.

Since Austen never changes, Sunati admires what she assumes is her bravery and confidence. As Sunati and Austen chat more, Austen bluntly asks Sunati if she only wants to get to know her more because of her medical condition, which prevents her from using mods. As they gradually grow closer, Sunati learns how to interact more respectfully with those who have overactive immune systems as well as to share her feelings more honestly. Austen, in turn, learns to trust Sunati. This beautifully illustrated slice-of-life tale that shows two young women of color getting to know each other and creating a relationship is so warm and charming that readers will hardly notice how much they are learning about how to better interact with folx who are different from themselves and the importance of not making assumptions. The story also successfully weaves in agender, genderfluid, and asexual characters as well as the subjects of parenting and colorism into the natural arc of Sunati and Austen’s developing story. The soft, romantic artwork evokes hazy watercolors. The speech bubbles are predominantly pink and blue, and the varied layout will maintain readers’ interest.

Pub Date: May 19, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-4998-1110-0

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Little Bee Books

Review Posted Online: March 24, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020

SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | ROMANCE | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY

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Shuna's Journey : Book summary and reviews of Shuna's Journey by Hayao Miyazaki

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Shuna's Journey

by Hayao Miyazaki

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Published Nov 2022 160 pages Genre: Graphic Novels Publication Information

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Book summary.

From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes Shuna's Journey , a new manga classic about a prince on a quest for a golden grain that would save his land, never before published in English!

Shuna, the prince of a poor land, watches in despair as his people work themselves to death harvesting the little grain that grows there. And so, when a traveler presents him with a sample of seeds from a mysterious western land, he sets out to find the source of the golden grain, dreaming of a better life for his subjects. It is not long before he meets a proud girl named Thea. After freeing her from captivity, he is pursued by her enemies, and while Thea escapes north, Shuna continues toward the west, finally reaching the Land of the God-Folk. Will Shuna ever see Thea again? And will he make it back home from his quest for the golden grain?

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Media Reviews

Reader reviews.

"Animator Miyazaki ( Spirited Away ) has released only a few comics in his career; this lush fantasy, available in English for the first time, is cause for celebration...Miyazaki's art has a timeless beauty, and the theme of small human kindnesses redeeming a cruel and dehumanizing world feels more relevant than ever. Don't miss this one." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A reimagined folktale as grand as its painted visuals are sublime." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Gorgeous... Shuna's Journey foreshadows much of Miyazaki's later work while still managing to be a complete standalone story in its own right." - Entertainment Weekly

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More Information

Born in 1941 in Tokyo, Japan, Hayao Miyazaki cofounded Studio Ghibli in 1985 with Isao Takahata. Among his eleven animated features, Spirited Away (2001) broke every box-office record in Japan, and won the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival and the 75th Academy Awards for Animated Feature Film. Howl's Moving Castle (2004) received the Golden Osella award at the 2004 Venice International Film Festival. Miyazaki was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 2005 Venice International Film Festival. The Wind Rises (2013) was nominated for the 86th Academy Award for Animated Feature Film. In 2014, the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented him with a Governors Award for lifetime achievement. He is currently working on a new production. Alex Dudok de Wit is the Associate Editor at Cartoon Brew. He is an animation correspondent for Sight & Sound. His writing has also appeared in Vulture, Little White Lies, The Telegraph, The i, The Independent, Time Out, Index on Censorship and elsewhere, including specialist animation publications like Skwigly and ASIFA Magazine . He also translates from Japanese as part of Art Translators Collective. He is based in London, UK.

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Narrative of a Journey from Heraut to Khiva, Moscow, and St. Petersburgh, During the Late Russian Invasion of Khiva Paperback – April 6, 2009

• Print length 184 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Bibliolife
• Publication date April 6, 2009
• Dimensions 5 x 0.39 x 7.99 inches
• ISBN-10 110394214X
• ISBN-13 978-1103942145
• See all details

Product details

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bibliolife (April 6, 2009)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 184 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 110394214X
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1103942145
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.6 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.39 x 7.99 inches

About the author

Sir james abbott.

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