A Smart and Courageous Child

A Smart and Courageous Child

Winner of the 24th Manga Division Excellence Award at the 2020 Japan Media Arts Festival

A Smart and Courageous Child. Every young couple has high hopes for their unborn child, and Sara and Kouta Takano are no different. But only days away from giving birth, Sara learns about the tragedy of Malala Yousafzai’s attempted assassination at the hands of the Taliban, and her pure and innocent belief in the future is shaken.

If such a smart and courageous child can be hurt so badly by the world, how can she keep her own baby safe? With Sara now in a state of shock, will the young couple be able to bridge the widening gap between them, or will it tear their family apart?

The reality of this world, as seen through the eyes of an author that has spent years illustrating the women and their lives.

Biographical Notes:

Miki Yamamoto is a manga artist and assistant professor at Tsukuba University, Faculty of Art and Design. She debuted with Bakudan to Ribon (“A Ribbon and a Bomb”) in 2011 (Sansai Books). In 2012 she released Sunny Sunny Ann! (Kodansha) and received the 17th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize New Face Award. The same was published in French in 2018 and was officially selected for the 2019 Angoulême International Comics Festival.

Title Notes:

“This book brilliantly captures the anxieties held by people of today. Sara embodies the joyful anticipation of a mother-to-be, until an international story breaks and expands her list of hopes and fears in the information-flooded world. A modern audience can relate to her distrust in the times, and Sara’s anguish is universal in its resonance. The work devotes numerous techniques to express its intentions but remains accessible.

Colored pencils bring the story to life, at different times injecting turbulence and warmth. Through a small but striking backlist, the artist has secured a singular presence in the industry. What does it mean to be wise and brave? How do we resist and reverse the cruelties of the world? The artist plumbs this fathomless question and offers a powerful response.” — Kazuko Kawahara, Japan Media Arts Festival

More details on Miki Yamamoto:

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Miki Yamamoto’s Official page

More works by Miki Yamamoto

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