Onibi: Diary of a Yokai Ghost Hunter - by Atelier Sento & Cecile Brun & Olivier Pichard (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

*Winner Japan International Manga Award*

*Honorable Mention for 2018 Freeman Book Awards for Children's and Young Adult's Literature on East and Southeast Asia*

*Short-listed for the 2019 Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids' Comics*

Part fantasy, part travelogue--this graphic novel transports readers to the intersection of the natural and supernatural worlds.

Onibi: Diary of a Yokai Ghost Hunter follows the adventures of two young foreigners as they travel to a remote and mysterious corner of Japan. Along the way, they purchase an old camera that has the unique ability to capture images of Japan's invisible spirit world. Armed with their magical camera, they explore the countryside and meet people who tell them about the forgotten ghosts, ghouls and demons who lie in wait ready to play tricks on them. These Yokai, or supernatural beings, are sometimes kind, sometimes mischievous, and sometimes downright dangerous!

Readers young and old will enjoy following along on this journey of mystery and discovery. The comic book format will appeal to anime and manga fans, while introducing the ancient spirit world that is such an important part of Japanese culture.

With the help of Atelier Sento's gorgeous watercolor and colored pencil artwork, you can't help but feel immersed in this fantasy.

Review Quotes

"Onibi: Diary of a Yokai Ghost Hunter is a gorgeous book, its pages full of lovingly rendered food, vistas, and people. Atelier Sento use traditional materials, and these are some of the loveliest watercolors I've seen in a comic to date." --SequentialState.com

"As a charming and offbeat guide to some of the lesser-known parts of Japan and their sometimes strange but typically generous human inhabitants, Onibi is charming and effective." --Foreword Magazine

"Basing their adventure on real people and places in Japan, [Brun and Prichard] create a spooky yet intriguing spirit world overlaid on our reality. Using a combination of watercolor and colored pencil, the illustrations are done in a beautiful traditional Japanese style...A must for anyone intrigued by the hidden spirit world and how it crosses over into ours." --Kirkus

"Brun and Pichard deploy watercolors in soft hues that often bleed into one another--a perfect visual metaphor for a story about the blurry separation between natural and supernatural." --Publishers Weekly

"Like a love letter to traditional Japan, this graphic novel takes readers off the beaten path to explore the mountains, coast, and small towns of Niigata prefecture alongside a pair of adventure-seeking French tourists...brimming with charm, this stunning volume will enchant ghost story enthusiasts and those interested in Japan." --School Library Journal

"The creative team's pencils and watercolors give great expressiveness to faces, colors, and light, and make every page a pleasure to read and reread." --LibraryComic.com

"The story is a wonderful combination of today's life with the history of Japanese folklore. The story is engaging and interesting. And, the graphic artwork is fantastic with loads of detail." --In Our Spare Time blog

"Welcoming locals, mysterious strangers, toothsome meals, and spooky legends all lead the intrepid duo through otherworldly adventures in this fantasy travelogue...Aided by Velde's smooth, succinct translation, the duo 'share a Japan that's uncommon' in panels rich with cultural details and sensitive representation, with just enough chill-factor to ensure entertainment along the way." --Booklist

About the Author

Cecile Brun & Olivier Pichard are French comic book artists known collectively as Atelier Sento. Through traditional techniques using watercolors and colored pencils, their work conveys an unusual side of Japan--of small villages in the mountains, colorful matsuri festivals and forgotten spirits of an ancient world.

Marie Velde is a freelance photographer and translator in Santa Monica, CA. She is the translator of Tokyo on Foot, My First Book of Chinese Calligraphy and other books.