Taro Gomi is a Japanese picture book creator whose works have spread across the world and into many languages. He has hundreds of books under his belt.
They’re distinguished by his one-of-a-kind visual and verbal style that makes for colorful, playful books.
More like games sometimes than books, Gomi invites us to engage with patterns and things out of place, questions and mind tricks. Gomi’s books are simple and smart and so much fun!!
Some of my favorites?
My Friends/Mis Amigos (1989;2006).
A girl learns things from what’s around her: animals, books, teachers, and friends. It has a bit of an I Can Fly quality and a super sweet ending.
Spring is Here (1989;1999).
This one features all the seasons with that calf as star and has a wonderful zooming in and out quality.
Everyone Poops (1977;1993).
While everyone poops, not everybody loves this book. But I do.
Here’s Gomi’s insight into its origin:
“…I got [to the zoo] before it opened, so most of the cages weren’t cleaned yet. There was a lot of poop around. It was a cold winter morning, and steam was coming out from each pile as the morning sunshine streamed down on it. It was such a vivid scene. I was so impressed that on my way back home, I made up my mind to draw a book about poop. However, when I brought a draft of Minna Unchi to the publisher, the editors had an argument about whether or not to publish it. But there was one woman who loved the book and convinced the others to do it. When the book was published, I received an incredible response from children who said, “I look at poop, too.” I think they were so surprised and happy that some strange man drew a book about poop–something their parents had scolded them not to talk about. But they had also seen this weird thing coming from their bodies. Or, if there was a baby at home, they’d seen poop in its diapers. It was a funny, curious, and interesting thing for them. One boy who loved the book sent me cards entitled “Today’s Poop” almost every day for six months. There were many kids like that.”
Santa Through the Window (1995).
I love this one because of the non-traditional Christmas colors—hot pink instead of red. And for the way Gomi plays with the idea of Santa making mistakes. Gomi is always questioning the status quo and making us think, as he does with the guessing game aspect of this book.
Who Ate It? (1991).
This is a book but also a game. You are asked who ate the cherries and then shown a picture of elephants. But if you look closely, one of them has a cherry-stemmed tail. It’s delightful! (And it shows Gomi’s ability to challenge and amuse perfectly.)
I Lost My Dad (2001;2005).
A lift the flap book that follows a boy looking for his father in a shopping center and all the red herrings he sees instead.
Play All Day (2010).
Gomi has many doodle, scribble, and activity books. This one has the extra special element of characters and worlds you can punch out and create your own stories with.
You might be interested in my last Their Picture Book Life installment too: Ruth Krauss!
Or my 15 fabulously interactive books for kids featuring one of Taro Gomi’s!
