By d. emerson eddy — I'm an avid reader of folklore and fairy tales from around the world. I find it fascinating to learn about a culture through the stories that it uses to scare itself, to explain the inexplicable around itself, and to impart various cultural and moral teachings to children and adults alike through fable. Many are often just entertaining tales in their own right as well. Tono Monogatari, or the Tales of Tono, is one of Japan's more notable collections of yokai stories. Originally written by Kunio Yanagita and Kizen Sasaki, it was adapted into comics by Shigeru Mizuki, and it is now translated here into English by Zack Davisson (and published by Drawn and Quarterly).

What I love about this new translation is that it preserves the kind of passed down storytelling nature of the work that was seemingly present even when it was originally published in prose. Just as the tales of the region of Tono were related by relatives through Sasaki to Yanagita — then presented by Mizuki in the manga as he inserted himself into the link of storytellers — we get a similar new link in the chain of storytelling through Davisson.

Davisson provides a historical and cultural grounding in the introduction, as well as some reference points for the various different types of yokai that appear in the stories, but otherwise it keeps the conversational approach that Mizuki used in the text. And it's really this tone, of being told a story, or rather a good number of stories, passed down from storyteller to storyteller, that I find particularly enthralling.

There are more 100 tales in this collection, some only being a few panels recounting something small about a locale, others pages in length detailing more involved spooky happenings. Each of them delivered with the charm of Mizuki telling the story, sometimes inserting himself physically into the artwork. Towards the end the narrative takes on even more of a form that blends reality and fiction as Mizuki travels parts of Tono to meet Kunio Yanagita, and then imparts one last tale about dragons.

Among my favorites are some that I've seen adapted in other ways, including the strangely abandoned house adorned with anything you could possibly want and a number of tales of household and ancestor spirits. Many of them imparting a kind of moral lesson of how to treat the yokai, how to respect locations, and what to watch out for.

What really puts Tono Monogatari over the top is Mizuki's artwork. He uses a fairly simple, cartoon-like style for his characters, putting an emphasis on facial expressions to really tell the mood of the story. This simplicity, though, is across a backdrop of highly detailed, lush architecture and landscapes that give you a real sense of place when it comes to the regions around Tono. For a book that was ostensibly meant for Japanese travelers living abroad to remind themselves of home, I think that the attention to detail when it comes to depicting Tono really achieves this goal.

Overall, Tono Monogatari by Shigeru Mizuki, as translated by Zack Davisson, is a wonderful collection of stories. Some may be familiar, some strange, but all of them are imparted with what feels like a love of storytelling and keeping cultural ideas and tales alive.

GRAPHIC NOVEL REVIEW: Tono Monogatari

Tono Monogatari
Writer & Artist: Shigeru Mizuki
Translator: Zack Davisson
Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly
Shigeru Mizuki—Japan’s grand master of yokai comics—adapts one of the most important works of supernatural literature into comic book form. The cultural equivalent of Brothers Grimm’s fairy tales, Tono Monogatari is a defining text of Japanese folklore and one of the country’s most important works of literature. This graphic novel was created during the later stage of Mizuki’s career, after he had retired from the daily grind of commercial comics to create personal, lasting works of art.
Originally written in 1910 by folklorists and field researchers Kunio Yanagita and Kizen Sasaki, Tono Monogatari celebrates and archives legends from the Tono region. These stories were recorded as Japan’s rapid modernization led to the disappearance of traditional culture. This adaptation mingles the original text with autobiography: Mizuki attempts to retrace Yanagita and Sasaki’s path, but finds his old body is not quite up to the challenge of following in their footsteps. As Mizuki wanders through Tono he retells some of the most famous legends, manifesting a host of monsters, dragons, and foxes. In the finale, Mizuki meets Yanagita himself and the two sit down to discuss their works.
Translated with additional essays by Mizuki scholar and English-language translator Zack Davisson, Tono Monogatari displays Mizuki at his finest, exploring the world he most cherished.
Release Date: March 9, 2021
Price: $19.99
Read It Digitally: Tono Monogatari via comiXology
Order It Physically: Tono Monogatari via Amazon

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d. emerson eddy is a student and writer of things. He fell in love with comics during Moore, Bissette, & Totleben's run on Swamp Thing and it has been a torrid affair ever since. His madness typically manifests itself on Twitter @93418.