Ichiro

Ichiro lives in New York City with his mom who is Japanese. His father, an American Marine, was killed in Iraq when Ichi was very young. But now his mom has decided they should move back to Japan. So Ichi and his mom board a plane and take the seventeen hour flight to Japan, where Ichi will live with his grandfather, a man Ichi barely knows, while his mom finds a place for them to settle in. Grandpa becomes Ichi's tour guide, taking him around to temples as well as the Hiroshima war memorial, where Ichi starts to question the nature of war. The image of his father as a war hero looms large in Ichi's mind, but when he's faced with what bombs and guns actually do to people, he begins to question his belief in good guys and bad guys. His grandfather tries to explain to him that who's good and who's bad depends on what side you're on, and that actually, everyone is a bit of both. When Ichi and Grandpa travel to Grandpa's country house, neighbors tell them a raccoon is stealing the persimmons. Ichi decides to catch the raccoon. So one night, he makes a trap and ties the end of a rope meant to snare the raccoon to his arm. It's a success! Ichi catches the raccoon and has him by the foot! The only problem is, it's not a raccoon. It's a tanuki, a mythological Japanese creature that's able to change its shape at will. Frightened, the tanuki transforms into a giant and takes off into the woods, dragging Ichi behind him. Townspeople come out and chase after the monster. Now completely terrified, the tanuki digs a hole to escape and drags Ichi in it with him. When Ichi wakes up, he's no longer in the mortal world. He's entered the land of the gods. Ichi must face his fears if he is to get back home. By so doing, he learns about the nature of man, of gods, and of war. He also learns there are no easy answers and that war and ugliness are inevitable--for gods and men. But there is still beauty in this world if you are open to it.