The Night Parade

Title:

The Night Parade

Author:

Tanquary, Kathryn

Subject:

Fantasy

Juvenile Literature

Mythology

Juvenile Fiction

Description:

For fans of Coraline and Spirited Away comes a diverse fantasy debut steeped in Japanese mythology about a girl and a deadly curse.The last thing thirteen-year-old Saki Yamamoto wants to do for her summer vacation is trade in exciting Tokyo for the antiquated rituals and bad cell reception of her grandmother's village. Preparing for the Obon ceremony is boring. Then the local kids take interest in Saki and she sees an opportunity for some fun, even if it means disrespecting her family's ancestral shrine on a malicious dare.But as Saki rings the sacred bell, the darkness shifts. A death curse has been invoked...and Saki has three nights to undo it. With the help of three spirit guides and some unexpected friends, Saki must prove her worth—or say goodbye to the world of the living forever...The Night Parade is perfect for:Fantasy fans and kids 11 to 14 who love Spirited AwayKids and teens looking for creepy, suspenseful storiesAdults looking for diverse books for kidsMythology fans and kids 12 to 14A 2017 Bank Street Best Children's Book of the YearA Kids' Indie Next PickA Junior Library Guild SelectionA 2017 Freeman Book Award Winner

Publisher:

Sourcebooks Young Readers

Sourcebooks

Date:

2016/01/05

Digital Format:

READ IN BROWSER

ADOBE EPUB

KINDLE

Language:

English

ISBN:

9781492623250

Summary

For fans of Coraline and Spirited Away comes a diverse fantasy debut steeped in Japanese mythology about a girl and a deadly curse.

The last thing thirteen-year-old Saki Yamamoto wants to do for her summer vacation is trade in exciting Tokyo for the antiquated rituals and bad cell reception of her grandmother's village. Preparing for the Obon ceremony is boring. Then the local kids take interest in Saki and she sees an opportunity for some fun, even if it means disrespecting her family's ancestral shrine on a malicious dare.

But as Saki rings the sacred bell, the darkness shifts. A death curse has been invoked...and Saki has three nights to undo it. With the help of three spirit guides and some unexpected friends, Saki must prove her worth--or say goodbye to the world of the living forever...

The Night Parade is perfect for:

Fantasy fans and kids 11 to 14 who love Spirited Away

Kids and teens looking for creepy, suspenseful stories

Adults looking for diverse books for kids

Mythology fans and kids 12 to 14

A 2017 Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year

A Kids' Indie Next Pick

A Junior Library Guild Selection

A 2017 Freeman Book Award Winner

Reviews (3)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 5-7-A young teen learns to appreciate tradition and think more of others than herself after some unsettling interactions with magical beings. Nascent mean girl (or at least uncaring follower) Saki would much rather hang out with her-for lack of a better term-"friends" in Tokyo than accompany her parents and younger brother to her grandmother's tiny mountain village during summer vacation, but she has no choice. Almost immediately, she falls in with the wrong crowd, who goad her into a disrespectful act at her family's ancestral shrine, which, combined with lazy, uncaring preparations for the Obon ceremony, gets her in deep trouble with the spirits. Now Saki has three nights to undo the death curse she's brought down on her family. Her guides in the Night Parade include an untrustworthy four-tailed fox, a feathered tengu (a heavenly doglike creature), and a mischievous tanuki (a subspecies of raccoon dog) in the shape of a furry teapot. Saki has adventures of all sorts-funny, scary, dangerous, disgusting-and ultimately prevails, though not without whining, backsliding, giving up, and then starting over again and again. She is smug, sarcastic, and basically unlikable at the start but in the end is potentially nicer and more respectful, both of herself and others. VERDICT An entertaining mix of Japanese folklore and teen angst, suitable for larger collections.-Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

Wonder and imagination abound in Tanquary's debut, a fantasy set in a contemporary Japanese mountain village; filled with respect and admiration for cultural tradition, it evokes both Grimm's fairy tales and Miyazaki's films. Saki, a city girl from Tokyo, isn't looking forward to traveling with her family to her grandmother's remote village for the festival of Obon, which celebrates the spirits of the dead. She quickly finds herself in trouble-and fighting a "death curse"-after playing a dangerous game with a group of local kids in her ancestors' graveyard. The next three nights find Saki as part of the Night Parade, the spirit tradition running parallel to the Obon festival-and her only chance for redemption, if she can survive her encounters with three spirit guides. Saki's decided love for technology (she's glued to her phone) is a perfect foil for an examination of how the present can be influenced by the past, and vice versa, with both coexisting peacefully. Vivid details and realistic situations ensure accessibility, and subtle teaching moments are wrapped in wide-eyed enchantment. Ages 10-14. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

Saki Yamamoto is a Tokyo girl through and through, and the last thing she wants is to be dragged to her grandmother's tiny mountain village for the summer partly because it sounds boring, and partly because she dreads the fallout of being separated from her mean-girl friends. But when Saki defaces one of her family's ancestral shrines, she brings a death curse down upon her family, and life is about to be anything but boring. Over the next three nights, Saki is visited by Japanese spirits who guide her through their world as she tries to undo the curse or pay the ultimate price. Saki, initially a spoiled, self-involved girl who must learn a valuable lesson, is a quintessential fable heroine, and the use of Japanese myths and history provides a rich background. Though there are several missed opportunities, either for whimsy or for creepiness, this has significant shades of Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away, and it will appeal especially to readers with an interest in adventure stories and Japanese folklore.--Reagan, Maggie Copyright 2016 Booklist

Excerpts

"I thought you might sleep through it." The creature smiled. Saki's voice was little more than a whisper. "Sleep through what?" It leaned over. She stared into its will-o'-the-wisp eyes. "The Night Parade, of course." The last thing Saki Yamamoto wants to do for her summer vacation is trade in exciting Tokyo for the antiquated rituals and bad cell reception of her grandmother's village. Preparing for the Obon ceremony is boring. Then the local kids take interest in Saki and she sees an opportunity for some fun, even if it means disrespecting her family's ancestral shrine on a malicious dare. But as Saki rings the sacred bell, the darkness shifts. A death curse has been invoked...and Saki has three nights to undo it. With the help of three spirit guides and some unexpected friends, Saki must prove her worth-or say goodbye to the world of the living forever... Excerpted from The Night Parade by Kathryn Tanquary All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.