Ruth Stiles Gannett, author of the My Father’s Dragon trilogy, passed away on June 11 at the age of 100. I can’t overstate how important she was to my early childhood.
My elementary school was part of a program to encourage reading, and we could choose one book to take home. I was in first grade, and I decided on The Dragons of Blueland (the third in the trilogy after Elmer and the Dragon) despite the fact that it was meant for sixth graders—I think I wanted to show that I was smart enough to tackle a tougher book. It ended up being the very first novel I ever finished, as well as the first book I could truly call my own.
I probably would not have written about Gannett’s death for this blog, but I’ve come to learn that Gannett is actually quite beloved in Japan—possibly even more than in the United States, where she was born.
I actually first learned about Gannett’s passing because I was browsing Twitter and saw Gaogaigar director Yonetani Yoshitomo post an image of a large statue depicting the titular dragon, Boris. It was quoting another tweet mentioning the news. When I tried to look for a source, the only ones showing up were Japanese sites.
It turns out that My Father’s Dragon was published in Japan in 1963 as Elmer no Bouken (“Elmer’s Adventure”), 15 years after it was originally released in English. In 1966, it was adapted into a puppet play for the NHK show Ningyougeki (“Puppet Theater”), and then into an anime film in 1997. Yonetani’s photo above came from a My Father’s Dragon exhibit that’s been touring Japan. And just looking through Youtube, someone created and uploaded their own puppet show version in 2010, which has a lot of views for a very small channel.
As an aside, there’s also a 2022 Netflix film from the makers of The Secret of Kells. I haven’t see it, though.
When I was in first grade, I hadn’t yet developed a keen interest in Japanese culture. Looking back, I do find it funny that this author who made such a huge impact on my life would be so celebrated in a country whose media has literally changed my life. I haven’t gone back to The Dragons of Blueland or the other books in a very long time, but I might just take some time to revisit my childhood.
Thank you, Ruth. You were a big part of why I loved reading as a kid, and Dragons of Blueland introduced me to so many wonderful things (not least of which was Fig Newtons). I hope your books continue to inspire imagination in people young and old.
OGIUE MANIAX 