Mina’s Matchbox

In 1972, Tamoko, 12, goes to live with her wealthy aunt and uncle and their daughter, Mina, who is 11. Mina’s mother spends her days smoking, drinking, and finding typos in any publication on hand, while the girl’s father is president of a soft-drink company and is often away from home. They have a huge house and own a pygmy hippo. Mina collects matchboxes and creates charming stories about the pictures on them; she then becomes an avid volleyball fan and the whole household follows suit. As the Japanese volleyball team prepares for the Olympics, Mina and Tamoko learn the nuances of the game. Tamoko takes everything about this unusual household in stride until she begins to seek answers to its many mysteries. Ogawa crafts the story of a formative year in the life of her characters, capturing the ability of children to accept even the oddest situations at face value. Translator Snyder maintains the meaning and nuance in the story, and Nanako Mizushima narrates aptly, capturing the innocence and curiosity of the preteen years.