A grown man opens a small box and finds the little silver spoon he pried from his mother's cabinet as a sickly child, and the memories pour out. Raised by a doting aunt who tells him tales and has him recite poems at bedtime, he drifts through shrines, festivals, schoolyard bullying and first friendships.
Books mentioned in The Silver Spoon (2)
Hyakunin Isshu by Fujiwara no Sadaie: “My aunt knew the whole Hyakunin Isshu by heart and, once in bed, would teach me a poem or two each night in her lonely sing-song voice; I also had a bound copy of the Hyakunin Isshu. [auto-translated]”
Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en: “Teacher Nakazawa, who told us that marvelous story of Journey to the West, who drew beautiful pictures licking his brush, who was so likable except for the palm-rope whip, I could never see his face again. [auto-translated]”