Why Digital Displays Cannot Replace Paper

Why Digital Displays Cannot Replace Paper

Author: Hirohito Shibata

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2020-11-11

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 9811594767

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From readability to operability, this book presents a number of experiments to analyze the characteristics of paper and digital displays in reading and writing. Why is it easy to read on paper? Why is it easy to concentrate on reading on paper? Why is it easy to think while writing or drawing on paper? This book answers these questions based on cognitive experiments on media. Paper is easy to read because it is easy to handle. If we emphasize the strengths of paper, paper is an operation media rather than a presentation media. These experiments also indicate how to develop digital media for reading and writing. This book will interest those who want to gain a scientific understanding of reading and writing on paper, those who want to work more effectively by selectively using paper and digital tools (e.g. knowledge workers and educators), and those who develop digital devices or services for reading and writing.


Book Synopsis Why Digital Displays Cannot Replace Paper by : Hirohito Shibata

Download or read book Why Digital Displays Cannot Replace Paper written by Hirohito Shibata and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-11-11 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From readability to operability, this book presents a number of experiments to analyze the characteristics of paper and digital displays in reading and writing. Why is it easy to read on paper? Why is it easy to concentrate on reading on paper? Why is it easy to think while writing or drawing on paper? This book answers these questions based on cognitive experiments on media. Paper is easy to read because it is easy to handle. If we emphasize the strengths of paper, paper is an operation media rather than a presentation media. These experiments also indicate how to develop digital media for reading and writing. This book will interest those who want to gain a scientific understanding of reading and writing on paper, those who want to work more effectively by selectively using paper and digital tools (e.g. knowledge workers and educators), and those who develop digital devices or services for reading and writing.

Case Study Research in the Digital Age

Case Study Research in the Digital Age

Author: John R. Gallagher

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2024-03-04

Total Pages: 164

ISBN-13: 1003860389

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Case Study Research in the Digital Age is an in-depth exploration of the case study method as applied to social media, algorithms, digital networks, artificial intelligence, and online life. By applying and adapting case study theory to digital phenomena, Case Study Research in the Digital Age argues for a fundamental change to the unit of analysis in case study research: the entity. It uses this change as a jumping off point for an overview of case study work as applied to a variety of digital phenomena, including online discussions, social media communities, and artificial intelligence. Written in an accessible way, this book presents a rigorous theoretical discussion of the very definitions of a case study while providing guidance on case study definitions, research design, data collection, analysis, ethics, and case reporting. Case Study Research in the Digital Age can be used by a wide array of scholars, from novice to seasoned case study researchers, as well as a variety of disciplines, including but not limited to anthropology, communication, education, history, information science, psychology, and sociology.


Book Synopsis Case Study Research in the Digital Age by : John R. Gallagher

Download or read book Case Study Research in the Digital Age written by John R. Gallagher and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2024-03-04 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Case Study Research in the Digital Age is an in-depth exploration of the case study method as applied to social media, algorithms, digital networks, artificial intelligence, and online life. By applying and adapting case study theory to digital phenomena, Case Study Research in the Digital Age argues for a fundamental change to the unit of analysis in case study research: the entity. It uses this change as a jumping off point for an overview of case study work as applied to a variety of digital phenomena, including online discussions, social media communities, and artificial intelligence. Written in an accessible way, this book presents a rigorous theoretical discussion of the very definitions of a case study while providing guidance on case study definitions, research design, data collection, analysis, ethics, and case reporting. Case Study Research in the Digital Age can be used by a wide array of scholars, from novice to seasoned case study researchers, as well as a variety of disciplines, including but not limited to anthropology, communication, education, history, information science, psychology, and sociology.

Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments

Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments

Author: Silva, Susana

Publisher: IGI Global

Published: 2022-12-29

Total Pages: 357

ISBN-13: 1668460726

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All over the world, educational institutions confronted emergency policy changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to this, academic activities were provided mostly by remote teaching and learning solutions. The transition to emergency remote teaching and learning raised some challenges regarding technical, pedagogical, and organizational issues. It is important for higher education institutions to prepare themselves to deal with future emergency scenarios, promoting an in-depth reflection about the future challenges in the post-pandemic era. Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments supports creating and promoting an education-as-a-business strategy for higher education institutions by sharing possible business models. It provides a collection of different approaches to online education in the perspective of the future of education environments. Covering topics such as distance learning experiences, online practice improvement, and remote testing, this premier reference source is an excellent resource for educators and administrators of higher education, pre-service educators, IT professionals, librarians, researchers, and academicians.


Book Synopsis Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments by : Silva, Susana

Download or read book Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments written by Silva, Susana and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2022-12-29 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: All over the world, educational institutions confronted emergency policy changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to this, academic activities were provided mostly by remote teaching and learning solutions. The transition to emergency remote teaching and learning raised some challenges regarding technical, pedagogical, and organizational issues. It is important for higher education institutions to prepare themselves to deal with future emergency scenarios, promoting an in-depth reflection about the future challenges in the post-pandemic era. Developing Curriculum for Emergency Remote Learning Environments supports creating and promoting an education-as-a-business strategy for higher education institutions by sharing possible business models. It provides a collection of different approaches to online education in the perspective of the future of education environments. Covering topics such as distance learning experiences, online practice improvement, and remote testing, this premier reference source is an excellent resource for educators and administrators of higher education, pre-service educators, IT professionals, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

The Myth of the Paperless Office

The Myth of the Paperless Office

Author: Abigail J. Sellen

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2003-02-28

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 0262250497

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An examination of why paper continues to fill our offices and a proposal for better coordination of the paper and digital worlds. Over the past thirty years, many people have proclaimed the imminent arrival of the paperless office. Yet even the World Wide Web, which allows almost any computer to read and display another computer's documents, has increased the amount of printing done. The use of e-mail in an organization causes an average 40 percent increase in paper consumption. In The Myth of the Paperless Office, Abigail Sellen and Richard Harper use the study of paper as a way to understand the work that people do and the reasons they do it the way they do. Using the tools of ethnography and cognitive psychology, they look at paper use from the level of the individual up to that of organizational culture. Central to Sellen and Harper's investigation is the concept of "affordances"—the activities that an object allows, or affords. The physical properties of paper (its being thin, light, porous, opaque, and flexible) afford the human actions of grasping, carrying, folding, writing, and so on. The concept of affordance allows them to compare the affordances of paper with those of existing digital devices. They can then ask what kinds of devices or systems would make new kinds of activities possible or better support current activities. The authors argue that paper will continue to play an important role in office life. Rather than pursue the ideal of the paperless office, we should work toward a future in which paper and electronic document tools work in concert and organizational processes make optimal use of both.


Book Synopsis The Myth of the Paperless Office by : Abigail J. Sellen

Download or read book The Myth of the Paperless Office written by Abigail J. Sellen and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2003-02-28 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An examination of why paper continues to fill our offices and a proposal for better coordination of the paper and digital worlds. Over the past thirty years, many people have proclaimed the imminent arrival of the paperless office. Yet even the World Wide Web, which allows almost any computer to read and display another computer's documents, has increased the amount of printing done. The use of e-mail in an organization causes an average 40 percent increase in paper consumption. In The Myth of the Paperless Office, Abigail Sellen and Richard Harper use the study of paper as a way to understand the work that people do and the reasons they do it the way they do. Using the tools of ethnography and cognitive psychology, they look at paper use from the level of the individual up to that of organizational culture. Central to Sellen and Harper's investigation is the concept of "affordances"—the activities that an object allows, or affords. The physical properties of paper (its being thin, light, porous, opaque, and flexible) afford the human actions of grasping, carrying, folding, writing, and so on. The concept of affordance allows them to compare the affordances of paper with those of existing digital devices. They can then ask what kinds of devices or systems would make new kinds of activities possible or better support current activities. The authors argue that paper will continue to play an important role in office life. Rather than pursue the ideal of the paperless office, we should work toward a future in which paper and electronic document tools work in concert and organizational processes make optimal use of both.

Words Onscreen

Words Onscreen

Author: Naomi S. Baron

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2015-01-09

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 0199315787

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People have been reading on computer screens for several decades now, predating popularization of personal computers and widespread use of the internet. But it was the rise of eReaders and tablets that caused digital reading to explode. In 2007, Amazon introduced its first Kindle. Three years later, Apple debuted the iPad. Meanwhile, as mobile phone technology improved and smartphones proliferated, the phone became another vital reading platform. In Words Onscreen, Naomi Baron, an expert on language and technology, explores how technology is reshaping our understanding of what it means to read. Digital reading is increasingly popular. Reading onscreen has many virtues, including convenience, potential cost-savings, and the opportunity to bring free access to books and other written materials to people around the world. Yet, Baron argues, the virtues of eReading are matched with drawbacks. Users are easily distracted by other temptations on their devices, multitasking is rampant, and screens coax us to skim rather than read in-depth. What is more, if the way we read is changing, so is the way we write. In response to changing reading habits, many authors and publishers are producing shorter works and ones that don't require reflection or close reading. In her tour through the new world of eReading, Baron weights the value of reading physical print versus online text, including the question of what long-standing benefits of reading might be lost if we go overwhelmingly digital. She also probes how the internet is shifting reading from being a solitary experience to a social one, and the reasons why eReading has taken off in some countries, especially the United States and United Kingdom, but not others, like France and Japan. Reaching past the hype on both sides of the discussion, Baron draws upon her own cross-cultural studies to offer a clear-eyed and balanced analysis of the ways technology is affecting the ways we read today--and what the future might bring.


Book Synopsis Words Onscreen by : Naomi S. Baron

Download or read book Words Onscreen written by Naomi S. Baron and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2015-01-09 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: People have been reading on computer screens for several decades now, predating popularization of personal computers and widespread use of the internet. But it was the rise of eReaders and tablets that caused digital reading to explode. In 2007, Amazon introduced its first Kindle. Three years later, Apple debuted the iPad. Meanwhile, as mobile phone technology improved and smartphones proliferated, the phone became another vital reading platform. In Words Onscreen, Naomi Baron, an expert on language and technology, explores how technology is reshaping our understanding of what it means to read. Digital reading is increasingly popular. Reading onscreen has many virtues, including convenience, potential cost-savings, and the opportunity to bring free access to books and other written materials to people around the world. Yet, Baron argues, the virtues of eReading are matched with drawbacks. Users are easily distracted by other temptations on their devices, multitasking is rampant, and screens coax us to skim rather than read in-depth. What is more, if the way we read is changing, so is the way we write. In response to changing reading habits, many authors and publishers are producing shorter works and ones that don't require reflection or close reading. In her tour through the new world of eReading, Baron weights the value of reading physical print versus online text, including the question of what long-standing benefits of reading might be lost if we go overwhelmingly digital. She also probes how the internet is shifting reading from being a solitary experience to a social one, and the reasons why eReading has taken off in some countries, especially the United States and United Kingdom, but not others, like France and Japan. Reaching past the hype on both sides of the discussion, Baron draws upon her own cross-cultural studies to offer a clear-eyed and balanced analysis of the ways technology is affecting the ways we read today--and what the future might bring.

HCI International 2015 - Posters’ Extended Abstracts

HCI International 2015 - Posters’ Extended Abstracts

Author: Constantine Stephanidis

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-07-20

Total Pages: 730

ISBN-13: 3319213830

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This is the second volume of the two-volume set (CCIS 528 and CCIS 529) that contains extended abstracts of the posters presented during the 17th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, HCII 2015, held in Heraklion, Crete, Greece in August 2015. The total of 1462 papers and 246 posters presented at the HCII 2015 conferences was carefully reviewed and selected from 4843 submissions. These papers address the latest research and development efforts and highlight the human aspects of design and use of computing systems. The papers thoroughly cover the entire field of human-computer interaction, addressing major advances in knowledge and effective use of computers in a variety of application areas. The papers included in this volume are organized in the following topical sections: mobile interaction and smart devices; social media; HCI in business and innovation; learning technologies; HCI in health; assistive technologies and environments; fitness and well-being applications; location and context awareness; urban interaction; automotive and aviation; design and user studies.


Book Synopsis HCI International 2015 - Posters’ Extended Abstracts by : Constantine Stephanidis

Download or read book HCI International 2015 - Posters’ Extended Abstracts written by Constantine Stephanidis and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-07-20 with total page 730 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the second volume of the two-volume set (CCIS 528 and CCIS 529) that contains extended abstracts of the posters presented during the 17th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, HCII 2015, held in Heraklion, Crete, Greece in August 2015. The total of 1462 papers and 246 posters presented at the HCII 2015 conferences was carefully reviewed and selected from 4843 submissions. These papers address the latest research and development efforts and highlight the human aspects of design and use of computing systems. The papers thoroughly cover the entire field of human-computer interaction, addressing major advances in knowledge and effective use of computers in a variety of application areas. The papers included in this volume are organized in the following topical sections: mobile interaction and smart devices; social media; HCI in business and innovation; learning technologies; HCI in health; assistive technologies and environments; fitness and well-being applications; location and context awareness; urban interaction; automotive and aviation; design and user studies.

Fool's Gold

Fool's Gold

Author: Mark Y. Herring

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2015-01-09

Total Pages: 201

ISBN-13: 0786453931

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This work skeptically explores the notion that the internet will soon obviate any need for traditional print-based academic libraries. It makes a case for the library's staying power in the face of technological advancements (television, microfilm, and CD-ROM's were all once predicted as the contemporary library's heir-apparent), and devotes individual chapters to the pitfalls and prevarications of popular search engines, e-books, and the mass digitization of traditional print material.


Book Synopsis Fool's Gold by : Mark Y. Herring

Download or read book Fool's Gold written by Mark Y. Herring and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2015-01-09 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work skeptically explores the notion that the internet will soon obviate any need for traditional print-based academic libraries. It makes a case for the library's staying power in the face of technological advancements (television, microfilm, and CD-ROM's were all once predicted as the contemporary library's heir-apparent), and devotes individual chapters to the pitfalls and prevarications of popular search engines, e-books, and the mass digitization of traditional print material.

The Coldest Winter

The Coldest Winter

Author: Paula Fox

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2006-10-17

Total Pages: 137

ISBN-13: 1466802383

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In this elegant and affecting companion to her "extraordinary" memoir, Borrowed Finery, a young writer flings herself into a Europe ravaged by the Second World War (The Boston Globe) In 1946, Paula Fox walked up the gangplank of a partly reconverted Liberty with the classic American hope of finding experience—or perhaps salvation—in Europe. She was twenty-two years old, and would spend the next year moving among the ruins of London, Warsaw, Paris, Prague, Madrid, and other cities as a stringer for a small British news service. In this lucid, affecting memoir, Fox describes her movements across Europe's scrambled borders: unplanned trips to empty castles and ruined cathedrals, a stint in bombed-out Warsaw in the midst of the Communist election takeovers, and nights spent in apartments here and there with distant relatives, friends of friends, and in shabby pensions with little heat, each place echoing with the horrors of the war. A young woman alone, with neither a plan nor a reliable paycheck, Fox made her way with the rest of Europe as the continent rebuilt and rediscovered itself among the ruins. Long revered as a novelist, Fox won over a new generation of readers with her previous memoir, Borrowed Finery. Now, with The Coldest Winter, she recounts another chapter of a life seemingly filled with stories—a rare, unsentimental glimpse of the world as seen by a writer at the beginning of an illustrious career.


Book Synopsis The Coldest Winter by : Paula Fox

Download or read book The Coldest Winter written by Paula Fox and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2006-10-17 with total page 137 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this elegant and affecting companion to her "extraordinary" memoir, Borrowed Finery, a young writer flings herself into a Europe ravaged by the Second World War (The Boston Globe) In 1946, Paula Fox walked up the gangplank of a partly reconverted Liberty with the classic American hope of finding experience—or perhaps salvation—in Europe. She was twenty-two years old, and would spend the next year moving among the ruins of London, Warsaw, Paris, Prague, Madrid, and other cities as a stringer for a small British news service. In this lucid, affecting memoir, Fox describes her movements across Europe's scrambled borders: unplanned trips to empty castles and ruined cathedrals, a stint in bombed-out Warsaw in the midst of the Communist election takeovers, and nights spent in apartments here and there with distant relatives, friends of friends, and in shabby pensions with little heat, each place echoing with the horrors of the war. A young woman alone, with neither a plan nor a reliable paycheck, Fox made her way with the rest of Europe as the continent rebuilt and rediscovered itself among the ruins. Long revered as a novelist, Fox won over a new generation of readers with her previous memoir, Borrowed Finery. Now, with The Coldest Winter, she recounts another chapter of a life seemingly filled with stories—a rare, unsentimental glimpse of the world as seen by a writer at the beginning of an illustrious career.

Reader, Come Home

Reader, Come Home

Author: Maryanne Wolf

Publisher: HarperCollins

Published: 2018-08-14

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 0062388797

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The author of the acclaimed Proust and the Squid follows up with a lively, ambitious, and deeply informative book that considers the future of the reading brain and our capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and reflection as we become increasingly dependent on digital technologies. A decade ago, Maryanne Wolf’s Proust and the Squid revealed what we know about how the brain learns to read and how reading changes the way we think and feel. Since then, the ways we process written language have changed dramatically with many concerned about both their own changes and that of children. New research on the reading brain chronicles these changes in the brains of children and adults as they learn to read while immersed in a digitally dominated medium. Drawing deeply on this research, this book comprises a series of letters Wolf writes to us—her beloved readers—to describe her concerns and her hopes about what is happening to the reading brain as it unavoidably changes to adapt to digital mediums. Wolf raises difficult questions, including: Will children learn to incorporate the full range of "deep reading" processes that are at the core of the expert reading brain? Will the mix of a seemingly infinite set of distractions for children’s attention and their quick access to immediate, voluminous information alter their ability to think for themselves? With information at their fingertips, will the next generation learn to build their own storehouse of knowledge, which could impede the ability to make analogies and draw inferences from what they know? Will all these influences change the formation in children and the use in adults of "slower" cognitive processes like critical thinking, personal reflection, imagination, and empathy that comprise deep reading and that influence both how we think and how we live our lives? How can we preserve deep reading processes in future iterations of the reading brain? Concerns about attention span, critical reasoning, and over-reliance on technology are never just about children—Wolf herself has found that, though she is a reading expert, her ability to read deeply has been impacted as she has become increasingly dependent on screens. Wolf draws on neuroscience, literature, education, and philosophy and blends historical, literary, and scientific facts with down-to-earth examples and warm anecdotes to illuminate complex ideas that culminate in a proposal for a biliterate reading brain. Provocative and intriguing, Reader, Come Home is a roadmap that provides a cautionary but hopeful perspective on the impact of technology on our brains and our most essential intellectual capacities—and what this could mean for our future.


Book Synopsis Reader, Come Home by : Maryanne Wolf

Download or read book Reader, Come Home written by Maryanne Wolf and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2018-08-14 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of the acclaimed Proust and the Squid follows up with a lively, ambitious, and deeply informative book that considers the future of the reading brain and our capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and reflection as we become increasingly dependent on digital technologies. A decade ago, Maryanne Wolf’s Proust and the Squid revealed what we know about how the brain learns to read and how reading changes the way we think and feel. Since then, the ways we process written language have changed dramatically with many concerned about both their own changes and that of children. New research on the reading brain chronicles these changes in the brains of children and adults as they learn to read while immersed in a digitally dominated medium. Drawing deeply on this research, this book comprises a series of letters Wolf writes to us—her beloved readers—to describe her concerns and her hopes about what is happening to the reading brain as it unavoidably changes to adapt to digital mediums. Wolf raises difficult questions, including: Will children learn to incorporate the full range of "deep reading" processes that are at the core of the expert reading brain? Will the mix of a seemingly infinite set of distractions for children’s attention and their quick access to immediate, voluminous information alter their ability to think for themselves? With information at their fingertips, will the next generation learn to build their own storehouse of knowledge, which could impede the ability to make analogies and draw inferences from what they know? Will all these influences change the formation in children and the use in adults of "slower" cognitive processes like critical thinking, personal reflection, imagination, and empathy that comprise deep reading and that influence both how we think and how we live our lives? How can we preserve deep reading processes in future iterations of the reading brain? Concerns about attention span, critical reasoning, and over-reliance on technology are never just about children—Wolf herself has found that, though she is a reading expert, her ability to read deeply has been impacted as she has become increasingly dependent on screens. Wolf draws on neuroscience, literature, education, and philosophy and blends historical, literary, and scientific facts with down-to-earth examples and warm anecdotes to illuminate complex ideas that culminate in a proposal for a biliterate reading brain. Provocative and intriguing, Reader, Come Home is a roadmap that provides a cautionary but hopeful perspective on the impact of technology on our brains and our most essential intellectual capacities—and what this could mean for our future.

Risuko

Risuko

Author: David Kudler

Publisher: Stillpoint Digital Press

Published: 2016-06-15

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 1938808339

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Samurai, assassins, warlords -- and a girl who likes to climb A historical coming-of-age tale of a young girl who is purchased away from her family to become an assassin. Can she come to terms with who she must be? Though Japan has been devastated by a century of civil war, Risuko just wants to climb trees. Growing up far from the battlefields and court intrigues, the fatherless girl finds herself pulled into a plot that may reunite Japan -- or may destroy it. She is torn from her home and what is left of her family, but finds new friends at a school that may not be what it seems. One of the students — or perhaps one of the teachers — is playing the kitsune. The mischievous fox spirit is searching for… something. What do they want? And what will they do to find it? Magical but historical, Risuko follows her along the first dangerous steps to discovering who she truly is. The first volume of the Seasons of the Sword series! Can one girl win a war? Kano Murasaki, called Risuko (Squirrel) is a young, fatherless girl, more comfortable climbing trees than down on the ground. Yet she finds herself enmeshed in a game where the board is the whole nation of Japan, where the pieces are armies, moved by scheming lords, and a single girl couldn't possibly have the power to change the outcome. Or could she? Historical adventure fiction appropriate for teen readers As featured in Kirkus, Foreword, and on the cover of Publishers Weekly! Tight, exciting, and thoughtful... The characters are nicely varied and all the pieces fit into place deftly. -- Kirkus Reviews Risuko is an artfully crafted novel that evokes a heavy sense of place and enchantment.... Risuko's development and evolution are fascinating to watch in this powerful and relentless coming-of-age adventure. -- Foreword Reviews (spotlight review) Vividly portrayed, flush with cultural detail, and smoothly written. -- BookLife


Book Synopsis Risuko by : David Kudler

Download or read book Risuko written by David Kudler and published by Stillpoint Digital Press. This book was released on 2016-06-15 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Samurai, assassins, warlords -- and a girl who likes to climb A historical coming-of-age tale of a young girl who is purchased away from her family to become an assassin. Can she come to terms with who she must be? Though Japan has been devastated by a century of civil war, Risuko just wants to climb trees. Growing up far from the battlefields and court intrigues, the fatherless girl finds herself pulled into a plot that may reunite Japan -- or may destroy it. She is torn from her home and what is left of her family, but finds new friends at a school that may not be what it seems. One of the students — or perhaps one of the teachers — is playing the kitsune. The mischievous fox spirit is searching for… something. What do they want? And what will they do to find it? Magical but historical, Risuko follows her along the first dangerous steps to discovering who she truly is. The first volume of the Seasons of the Sword series! Can one girl win a war? Kano Murasaki, called Risuko (Squirrel) is a young, fatherless girl, more comfortable climbing trees than down on the ground. Yet she finds herself enmeshed in a game where the board is the whole nation of Japan, where the pieces are armies, moved by scheming lords, and a single girl couldn't possibly have the power to change the outcome. Or could she? Historical adventure fiction appropriate for teen readers As featured in Kirkus, Foreword, and on the cover of Publishers Weekly! Tight, exciting, and thoughtful... The characters are nicely varied and all the pieces fit into place deftly. -- Kirkus Reviews Risuko is an artfully crafted novel that evokes a heavy sense of place and enchantment.... Risuko's development and evolution are fascinating to watch in this powerful and relentless coming-of-age adventure. -- Foreword Reviews (spotlight review) Vividly portrayed, flush with cultural detail, and smoothly written. -- BookLife