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YA
From the film by Hirokazu Kore-Eda. Twelve-year-old Akira's childish mom goes away and returns at whim, soon abandoning her children for good, leaving the far more responsible Akira in charge. The tragic ending is devastating but leaves readers free to hope (against hope) for the siblings' survival. Black-and-white photographic stills from the Japanese film on which this is based deepen the novel's breathtaking realism.