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The Bee and the Dream: A Japanese Tale
Shin buys his friend Tasuke's dream from him and goes in search of the predicted fortune, only to be disappointed until, upon returning home, he receives a wonderful surprise.
- GenresJapan
40 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 15, 2022
A folktale where the good-at-heart are rewarded.
April 29, 2024
Expected a bit more dramatic flashes of reaction from the journey to the rich man’s house. But overall the story lesson was great!
March 27, 2025
A (4 years old):
I don’t know that I like the book because I don’t like when bees fly around me.
I don’t know that I like the book because I don’t like when bees fly around me.
August 28, 2008
The Bee and the Dream is a Cultrual Folktale from Japan. I think this story would be appropriate for second or third grade children.
Shin and Tasuke were peasants who worked together gathering branches to sell. One day, Shin was tired and so he and Tasuke laid down for a nap. Shin could not fall asleep so he watched his friend. Suddenly, a bee flew out of Tasuke's nose. Tasuke woke up after that and told Shin of his amazing dream about finding gold in Naniwa on a rich man's land. Shin was fascinated and tried to get Tasuke to travel to Naniwa to retrieve the gold. When Tasuke refused, Shin offered to buy his dream and travel to Naniwa himself. Shin went home that night and shared his plan with his wife. Shin borrowed money from friends to travel to Naniwa with the promise of repaying them with the gold he found there. When he arrived, he told Taro, the rich man, that he needed to dig on his land. Taro told him to rest and to dig in the morning. While Shin was sleeping that night, Taro sent his servants out on the land to find the gold. All they found was a jar filled with bees. They replanted the jar and left it for Shin to dig back up in the morning. When Shin did so, all he found was an empty jar. He was defeated and ashamed and had no money to repay his friends. When he arrived home his wife could not wait to share with him the strange thing that happened to her. A swarm of bees flew in their house and left gold coins, silk, coral, jade, and other treasures. The moral of the story is: If good fortune is meant for you, no matter what happens, it will be yours.
Activities:
1. Before reading the students the moral of the story, they should come up with their own. The students should write a couple of sentences explaining their moral of the story. Then read the author's moral of the story and discuss it. Compare and contrast it to other ideas in the class.
2. The students should create a story pyramid for The Bee and the Dream.
Shin and Tasuke were peasants who worked together gathering branches to sell. One day, Shin was tired and so he and Tasuke laid down for a nap. Shin could not fall asleep so he watched his friend. Suddenly, a bee flew out of Tasuke's nose. Tasuke woke up after that and told Shin of his amazing dream about finding gold in Naniwa on a rich man's land. Shin was fascinated and tried to get Tasuke to travel to Naniwa to retrieve the gold. When Tasuke refused, Shin offered to buy his dream and travel to Naniwa himself. Shin went home that night and shared his plan with his wife. Shin borrowed money from friends to travel to Naniwa with the promise of repaying them with the gold he found there. When he arrived, he told Taro, the rich man, that he needed to dig on his land. Taro told him to rest and to dig in the morning. While Shin was sleeping that night, Taro sent his servants out on the land to find the gold. All they found was a jar filled with bees. They replanted the jar and left it for Shin to dig back up in the morning. When Shin did so, all he found was an empty jar. He was defeated and ashamed and had no money to repay his friends. When he arrived home his wife could not wait to share with him the strange thing that happened to her. A swarm of bees flew in their house and left gold coins, silk, coral, jade, and other treasures. The moral of the story is: If good fortune is meant for you, no matter what happens, it will be yours.
Activities:
1. Before reading the students the moral of the story, they should come up with their own. The students should write a couple of sentences explaining their moral of the story. Then read the author's moral of the story and discuss it. Compare and contrast it to other ideas in the class.
2. The students should create a story pyramid for The Bee and the Dream.
June 15, 2016
This is a tale based on a Japanese proverb, when you see a bee fly from your nose, good fortune will be yours. It is an interesting story, and it introduces some Japanese words. It also has pictures that are likely to spark questions and attention. Use with a cultural unit about the Asian countries.
November 18, 2016
In Japan there is an old saying: When you see a bee fly from someone's nose, good fortune will be yours.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews