The story of Sakidasu Shônengun was first serialized under the title of "Monkûfuon" ["(Mongolian) Gale in March"] on the evening edition of Manshû Nichinichi Shinbun [Manchu Daily Newspaper] in 1938. It is Ishimori Nobuo's first long story which won him distinction as a novelist. He was asked by the editor to write a story about Manchu children when he was teaching in a girls' high school in Dalian. The serialization was welcomed by the reader but came to an end when he was called back to Japan. After he came back to Tokyo, it was published as Sakidasu Shônengun by Shinchô-Sha, and received the third Shinchô-Sha Award.
The story is situated in Manchuria after the Sino-Japanese War had just
begun. Chinese, Mongolian, and Japanese children, as well as those of Russian
emigres, gradually make friends by overcoming many differences in their
habits or nature. The fiancee of the protagonist's elder sister is killed
in the war, familiar people are called up for military service ― these
episodes, together with the views of marriage in wartime told by Chinese
orphans and by friends of the sister, reflect the society of Manchuria
in those days. The nature and people's life in Manchuria depicted in the
story is rich in an exotic mood. Ishimori's unique humanistic views can
be seen in his description of war and life. On the other hand, his limits
are also exposed, since he wrote from his subjective impression, not from
the viewpoint of the Chinese people. |
