Temple Alley Summer

By: Sachiko Kashiwaba, Avery Fischer Udagawa - translator

Narrated by: Traci Kato-Kiriyama

From renowned Japanese children’s author Sachiko Kashiwaba, Temple Alley Summer is a fantastical and mysterious adventure filled with the living dead, a magical pearl, and a suspiciously nosy black cat named Kiriko .

Kazu knows something odd is going on when he sees a girl in a white kimono sneak out of his house in the middle of the night - was he dreaming? Did he see a ghost? Things get even stranger when he shows up to school the next day to see the very same figure sitting in his classroom. No one else thinks it’s weird, and even though Kazu doesn’t remember ever seeing her before, they all seem convinced that the ghost-girl Akari has been their friend for years!

When Kazu’s summer project to learn about Kimyo Temple draws the meddling attention of his mysterious neighbor Ms. Minakami and his secretive new classmate Akari, Kazu soon learns that not everything is as it seems in his hometown. Kazu discovers that Kimyo Temple is linked to a long-forgotten legend about bringing the dead to life, which could explain Akari’s sudden appearance - is she a zombie or a ghost? Kazu and Akari join forces to find and protect the source of the temple's power. An unfinished story in a magazine from Akari’s youth might just hold the key to keeping Akari in the world of the living, and it’s up to them to find the story’s ending and solve the mystery as the adults around them conspire to stop them from finding the truth.

©2011 Sachiko Kashiwaba (P)2021 Yonder

Critic reviews

“A humorous yet thoughtful mystery chock-full of the fantastical, this is a must-read for young fans of Studio Ghibli - an especially warranted comparison, as another book by Kashiwaba served as inspiration for Spirited Away. Lovingly translated into English from the original 2011 text, this version is completely accessible to an English-language audience while retaining a classic Japanese sensibility and storytelling style.... Highly recommended.” (School Library Journal)

“When an author and an illustrator with ties to books adapted into renowned Studio Ghibli masterpieces such as Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away join forces on a middle-grade fantasy adventure, you can count on it being something truly special.... Heartwarming with a supernatural touch, this beautifully captures the magic of childhood.” (Kristina Pino, Booklist, starred review)

“Imbued with a delightfully old-fashioned atmosphere, Temple Alley Summer gives its readers a wonderful glimpse of Japanese culture and traditions. And while the inner story has its scary moments, the outer one does not. The two tales form a satisfying and surprisingly deep whole that addresses questions of life, death, meaning, and friendship, all wrapped up in a supernatural summertime mystery.” (Nanette McGuinness, Global Literature in Libraries Initiative)

Introspective and Fun

This is the book I wish I found ten years ago, and hope to read again ten years from now. There's something magical about it. I feel like if I stumble upon reading it again - after enough time has passed - it'll feel at once like reading for the first time, and also returning to an old friend.

Great story

I loved this story! Warms your heart and makes you believe in humanity! Great little plot. awesome

A different sort of ghost tale

Very enjoyable story. I liked the way the mystery of Akari slowly unfolded. The layers of Japanese lifestyle is fun to observe too.

Story Within a Story

There was a lot going on in this book...like a few subplots. But I think that is just the style of that culture. It was originally written in Japanese and was translated to English. That being said, I thought it translated very well, and all of the plots were interesting and original. Probably best suited to middle grade readers, but I can see it appealing to pretty much all ages. Narration was great, but at first I thought the protagonist was a girl since the reader is female. The main character is actually a young boy. But that came apparent early on in the story.