Abstract

Junsei and Mikoto are both fifth-graders who attend an after-school children's club. Both live alone with their mothers. Junsei's parents divorced when he was young, and he has no memory of his father. He secretly wishes to meet his father, but he can't tell his mother. Mikoto feels anxious about living alone with her sickly mother, and she finds herself increasingly overwhelmed by things she can't handle. When Junsei continues to refuse to write a wish on a Tanabata paper strip, Mikoto senses that there might be a reason for it and begins to take an interest in him... The feelings of these two girls, who care for each other, intertwine in the dazzling summer light.

Author’s Information

Born in Mie Prefecture. She won the 37th Japan Children's Literature Association Newcomer Award for "Kamekichi's Free Research Project" (Iwasaki Shoten). She has also received numerous other awards, including the 17th Hirosuke Children's Story Award for "The Refrigerator's Summer Vacation" (PHP Institute), the 53rd Noma Children's Literature Award for "Singing is Picking Up Small Lives" (Kodansha), and the 70th Sankei Children's Publishing Culture Award Nippon Broadcasting Award for "The Me I Want to Be" (Froebel-kan). She is active in a wide range of genres, from children's books to general fiction and essays.