BOOKS

YA Fiction
How do you know if you’re responsible? After a bullied classmate commits suicide, Kana Goldberg is sent to her family’s home in Japan for the summer. Kana wasn’t the bully, not exactly, but she didn’t do anything to stop what happened, either. As Kana begins to process the pain and guilt she feels, news from home sends her world spinning out of orbit all over again. Delacorte/Random House, February 2011. “A fast-paced page-turner that explores the rippling effects of suicide.” –Kirkus Reviews 2012 APALA Asian/Pacific Award for Literature
Tomo (meaning “friend” in Japanese) is an anthology of young adult short fiction in prose, verse and graphic art set in or related to Japan. This collection for readers age 12 and up features thirty-six stories—including ten in translation and two graphic narratives—contributed by authors and artists from around the world, all of whom share a connection to Japan. Tales of friendship, mystery, love, ghosts, magic, sci-fi and history will take readers to Japan past and present and to Japanese communities abroad. Proceeds from the sales will go to organizations that assist teens affected by the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. Stone Bridge Press, March, 2012.
Children's
Bicultural Nanami goes seaweed gathering with her Japanese and American grandmothers. While translating for the two women she comes to understand they were at war when they were her age. "A heartwarming example of how being from different cultures, countries, and races and speaking another language are not really barriers to appreciation and acceptance..." --Multicultural Review
Adult Fiction
"A wonderfully insightful novel about a young woman living within two cultures. Thompson adeptly explores the lasting bonds of friendship and the courage needed to face the past in order to embrace the future."—Gail Tsukiyama, author of Women of the Silk and The Samurai’s Garden
Short Stories, Poems, Articles, Essays
Where to find short stories, poems, articles and essays by Holly Thompson

Tomo: Friendship Through Fiction--An Anthology of Japan Teen Stories

Tomo (meaning “friend” in Japanese) is an anthology of young adult short fiction in prose,
verse and graphic art set in or related to Japan. This collection for readers age 12 and up
features thirty-six stories—including ten in translation and two graphic narratives—
contributed by authors and artists from around the world, all of whom share a connection
to Japan. English-language readers will be able to connect with Japan through a wide
variety of unique stories, including tales of friendship, mystery, fantasy, science fiction and
history.

By sharing “friendship through fiction,” Tomo aims to bring Japan stories to readers
worldwide, and in doing so, to help support young people affected or displaced by the
March 11, 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami disasters. Proceeds from the sales of this book will go directly toward long-term relief efforts for teens in Tohoku, the area most affected by the disasters, in the northeast region of Japan’s main island, Honshu. To begin with, Tomo fund donations will go to the Japan-based NPO Hope for Tomorrow (hopetomorrow.jp), which in addition to providing educational expenses (including university entrance exam fees, travel costs to exam centers, etc.) also provides mentoring, tutoring, and foreign language support to high school
students in hard-hit areas of Tohoku.

Edited and with a Foreword by Holly Thompson, Tomo contributing authors and artists include Andrew Fukuda (Crossing), Liza Dalby (The Tale of Murasaki), Tak Toyoshima (Secret Asian Man syndicated comic), Alan Gratz (The Brooklyn Nine), Wendy Nelson Tokunaga (Love in Translation), Deni Y. Béchard (Vandal Love), Debbie Ridpath Ohi (illustrator of I’m Bored), Graham Salisbury (Under the Blood-Red Sun), Naoko Awa (The Fox’s Window and Other Stories), Suzanne Kamata
(The Beautiful One Has Come) and Shogo Oketani (J-Boys), among others. Visit the contributors, learn how proceeds from the sales of the book will be used to help teens in Japan and more.