A Bird of a Different Feather: A Picture Book

Designing a Beautiful and Unique English-Language Picture Book

"A Bird of a Different Feather: A Picture Book" is an abridged translation of Izumi Kyoka's 1897 short story "Kecho" with illustrations by Nakagawa Gaku. In this English-language version, we have striven to create not only an attractive book but an attractive material object, as well, in terms of visual design, details of materiality like paper choice and printing method, and the stylistic interplay between word and image on the page. For example, we chose a paper type whose special texture is reminiscent of materials from the Meiji Period (1868-1912).

The cover of the book features foil stamping and blind embossing, evoking the spreading of a bird's wings. The illustrations, created by Gaku Nakagawa using Adobe Illustrator on a Mac, are delicate and intricate, providing a brilliant and sparkling fantastic world. The book's typography utilizes the Times New Roman Regular font, maintaining a classic and timeless feel.

The book, with a size of B5 (W257mm x H182mm), consists of 74 pages and is printed by Cforce Inc. The bookbinding is done by Book-Art Inc., using a case bind with a flat (square) back. The ISBN for the book is 978-4-336-06208-6. The retail price is 2000 yen.

"A Bird of a Different Feather: A Picture Book" is designed to be read by both children (elementary school and up) as well as adults interested in Japanese art and literature. It provides an opportunity to explore the beauty of Izumi Kyoka's storytelling and Nakagawa Gaku's illustrations.

This picture book was planned and produced in 2012 as a commemorative publication for the 40th anniversary of the Izumi Kyoka Prize for Literature. In 2017, an English version of the book was created to celebrate the prize's 45th anniversary, resulting in "A Bird of a Different Feather: A Picture Book."

The design team behind this project includes Kyoka Izumi as the original story writer, Gaku Nakagawa as the illustrator, Hiroki Izumiya as the book designer, Peter Bernard as the translator, Hiroshi Ueta as the calligrapher for the title, and the Izumi Kyoka Kinenkan Museum as the project planner. The publisher is Kokushokankokai Inc.

"A Bird of a Different Feather: A Picture Book" received the Iron A' Design Award in 2019 in the Print and Published Media Design category. This award recognizes well-designed, practical, and innovative creations that meet professional and industrial requirements. The book's design integrates industry best practices and competent technical characteristics, providing fulfillment and positive feelings to readers.