''Hachiko Waits'' is a

children's book Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

, written by

Lesléa Newman Lesléa Newman (born November 5, 1955 in Brooklyn, New York City) is an American author, editor, and feminist. Four of her young adult novels have been finalists for the Lambda Literary Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature, making her ...

and illustrated by Machiyo Kodaira. It uses the true story of

Hachikō was a Japanese Akita dog remembered for his remarkable loyalty to his owner, Hidesaburō Ueno, for whom he continued to wait for over nine years following Ueno's death. Hachikō was born on November 10, 1923, at a farm near the city of Ōdate, ...

the

Akita is a Japanese name and may refer to: Places * 8182 Akita, a main-belt asteroid * Akita Castle, a Nara period fortified settlement in Akita, Japan * Akita Domain, also known as Kubota Domain, feudal domain in Edo period Japan * Akita, Kumamoto, ...

dog from

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and adds Yasuo, a young boy, to the story. It won several awards.

Plot summary

Professor

Hidesaburō Ueno (January 19, 1872 – May 21, 1925) was a Japanese agricultural scientist, famous in Japan as the guardian of Hachikō, a devoted Akita (dog), Akita dog. Life and career Ueno was born on January 19, 1872, in Hisai, Mie, Hisai-shi (present-day Ts ...

and his dog

follow the same schedule every day. In April 1924, when Hachikō was six months old, he got out the gate and followed the Professor to the train station, despite the Professor's commanding him to go back home. At the train station, the Station Master, Mr. Yoshikawa, agrees to watch Hachikō until the Professor returns. There Yasuo, a six-year-old boy, meets Hachikō. The dog waits until five minutes to three o'clock, when the Professor's train arrives. This routine continues every day for a year. However, when the train arrives in the afternoon, the Professor is not on it. Yasuo discovers that he has suffered a heart attack and died. Hachikō waits in the station until the last train arrives at midnight; then Yasuo, with much difficulty, takes him to his house. However, Hachikō escapes the next morning; and at five minutes to three, he is in the station waiting for the Professor. Yasuo and the Station Master take care of Hachikō for the next ten years, as he comes to the station every afternoon to await the Professor's arrival. The newspaper writes an article about Hachikō, and he becomes famous throughout Japan. On the day Hachikō dies, the sixteen-year-old Yasuo meets a famous artist, who wants to carve a statue of the devoted dog. Once complete, the statue becomes famous as well; and by it, Yasuo meets the girl whom he marries ten years later.

Awards

* Winner, Dog Writer's Association of America Best Book of Fiction, 2005 * Winner, Alabama Emphasis on Reading Children's Choice Book Award, 2005–2006 * Third Place Winner, Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Award of Illinois, 2007–2008 * Honor Book, National Christian Schools Association Children's Crown Award, 2007–2008 * Honor Book, ASPCA Henry Bergh Award, 2005 * Honor Book, Kiriyama Prize, 2005 * Finalist, Indiana Young Hoosier Book Award, 2007–2008 * Finalist, Iowa Children's Choice Award 2007–2008 * Finalist, Kansas William Allen White Children's Book Award, 2006-2007 * Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year, 2005

References

{{Reflist 2004 American novels Non-fiction novels American children's novels Children's novels about dogs Novels set in Tokyo 2004 children's books Japan in non-Japanese culture Non-fiction books about dogs Children's books set in Japan