Author(s): Peter Carey

Asia

For Peter Carey, a trip to Japan with his twelve-year-old son Charley would be a unique opportunity to share and learn something about his son's passion for Japanese comics and animated film, otherwise known as manga and anime. Convinced that there is 'a whole history and culture hidden between the frames', Carey hopes that this journey will help him to break the skin of Japanese culture. Charley, on the other hand, simply wants to buy cool manga. Either way, Carey looks forward to forging some indelible memories with his thoughtful, reticent son. And while some of the memories they create are not those that Carey might have wished for - such as Charley's ill-concealed boredom when forced to sit through four hours of traditional Japanese theatre, and Carey's own less-than-joyful reaction to Sega World - nonetheless it's an unforgettable and precious time, a time Carey considers a privilege, most especially for the pleasure of sharing his son's enchanted response to the adventure.