An original picture book by Hatsuyama Shigeru. It is notable that such
a nonsense picture book was published when Japanese society was adopting
a war regime.
Pictures, text, and colored background are so well-balanced and artistic that even grown-ups never feel tired of looking at them. The story is about Ton-chan, a pig, who is always hungry and thinking about food. Ton-chan scavenges for wastes, drinks water of soap bubbles, swallows a ball, eats heartily, and lies down on a heap of cakes. The daily life of greedy Ton-chan is described humorously. The monologue of Ton-chan and his dialogue with a girl are poetically phrased. In the end Ton-chan is sold to a restaurant which serves breaded pork cutlets. The abrupt ending reflects Hatsuyama's nihilism. He had serialized an illustrated story in The Tokyo Asahi Shinbun (Newspaper) titled "Peko Pon Pon" ["Starving Tummy"] in 1934, in which the hungry protagonist tries to shoot his stomach at the end. Both stories are of a different nature from other picture stories for children. Hatsuyama is known as a picture book artist and illustrator who remained aloof from his contemporaries. Taberu Ton-Chan reflects his position and views of life. A reprint of the original was published by Holp Shuppan in 1980. |
