From School Library Journal
PreS-Gr 1—This Japanese import is the first in a series featuring two nearly identical rosy-cheeked girls. Dressed in black leggings and button-down cardigans, they spend a day cycling through the forest, straight black hair billowing behind them. The sound of the bicycles—"dring-dring, dring-dring!"—signals each leg of their journey. Every establishment they visit accommodates creatures of varying sizes, so at the tidy woodland café, "they sit at a table that's just right for them." Children who love to imagine inhabiting a parallel animal realm will be enchanted by the mouthwatering concoctions and friendly interactions—drinking acorn coffee from the hollowed nut while conversing with the bee sipping violet tea, or later watching a rabbit select carrot buns with lemon jam at the roadside bakery. After an afternoon swim, the duo pedal to a cozy hotel where a deer welcomes them. The climax portrays a warmly lit view of clusters of animals on their individual balconies singing along with the orchestra in the courtyard below. Curving compositions and sweeping greenery rendered in colored pencil, combined with the white (negative) space swirling around each image on the page, recall the harmonious designs in Virginia Lee Burton's The Little House. While there's nary an adult in sight, this charming picture book is completely in touch with childhood desires and logic. VERDICT A sweet and safe selection to nourish children's spirits and fuel fantasies, best shared one-on-one so they can pore over the artwork.—Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library
Review
"Chirri & Chirra is an utterly charming series of children's picture books...low on the angst scale and high on the charm meter. Doi is known for her softly styled drawings on rich creamy paper. She creates the illustrations in these books with colored pencils, pastels, and crayons, crafting them to give an old-world feel, a time of innocence and simplicity. The exquisite art radiates joy and has a dreamy quality to it that reflects how children imagine their ideal world to be. These delightful books are a welcome escape for young children from their anxieties." --International Examiner
"Vibrant, lively, and astonishingly sweet in a pure, unsentimental way, these pages present us with relatable children, small animals, lots of food, atmosphere, and many mysteries."--Indigo Bridge Books & Cafe
★"'What a perfect day, ' says Chirri as this story begins, and she's right. Chirri and her sister Chirra go on a day-long bike ride through a gently rolling pastoral world. Amenities appear just when they need them: the forest café and the bakery, the bridge over the stream, the tree (perfect for napping under), and, finally, the forest hotel, where an animal symphony concert takes place. Adult humans are completely absent, which leaves room for the fox waiter, the raccoon baker, the pig flautist, and all the other animals of this peaceable kingdom. Creatures of all sizes are accommodated, with tiny teacups for honeybees to drink their sweet violet tea and hotel rooms suitable for all travelers, from lizards to bears. The crayon/ pastel illustrations in gentle, saturated colors on delicious creamy paper are reminiscent of Marie Hall Ets in In the Forest. There's no tension here, no roadblocks, no problems for the girls to solve, just a summer idyll for those kids who cannot resist making acorns into hats for fairies and whose favorite part of any story is the description of what the characters ate. What does the rabbit have for lunch? Carrot buns with lemon jam. Of course."--Sarah Ellis, STARRED REVIEW, The Horn Book Magazine
"Doi creates her illustrations with colored pencil, pastel, and crayon, crafting them to look like mid-20th-century lithographs. A serene, feel-good outing with a cozy, old-fashioned feel." --Kirkus Reviews
"Doi's illustrations are a large part of the appeal of this book. The two girls are matching except for the buttons on their dresses. The illustrations celebrate the different sizes of creatures and also the food and drink that the girls have along the way. Just the acorn coffee and clover tea will have your mouth watering. Expect plenty of tea parties and sandwiches after reading this." --Waking Brain Cells
"...charm and whimsy at its best."--Julie Danielson, Kirkus Reviews
"With a sweet story and darling illustrations, softly drawn and softly tinted on creamy paper, Kaya Doi's U.S. debut picture book, Chirri & Chirra (Enchanted Lion, 40 pages, $15.95), takes 3- to 8-year-olds into a magical forest filled with genial animals and scrumptious things to eat. [...] A day of happy adventure ends with the girls checking into a forest hotel and joining their fellow guests in a starlit serenade in this charming first volume of a planned three-book series." --Meghan Cox Gurdon, The Wall Street Journal
"We are thrilled to share this utterly delightful book by well-loved Japanese author and illustrator, Kaya Doi. It's an overwhelmingly charming and quirky read, as only the Japanese know how. This beautifully perfect oblong tome contains the most adorable and warm illustrations." --Picture Books Blogger
About the Author
Born in Tokyo, Kaya Doi graduated with a degree in design from Tokyo Zokei University. She got her start in picture books by attending the Atosaki Juku Workshop, a program at a Tokyo bookshop specializing in illustrated books. Since then she has created many picture books with her softly styled, color-pencil drawings
She now lives in Chiba Prefecture and maintains a strong interest in environmental and animal welfare issues. Since the earthquake of March 2011 she has been active in recovery and shelter efforts for abandoned pets.
Yuki Kaneko was born and educated in Japan. She is a sculptor, a translator, an urban naturalist, and a botanist. She works on New York City's High Line and lives in Brooklyn with her family.
