The Map of My Body

The collection The Map of My Body is dedicated to various interesting parts of the human body, which, despite being familiar to everyone, they tend to stay out of conversations and have not been greatly discussed in books. The texts and illustrations, aimed at children of all ages, but not exclusively, are by the Japanese author Genichiro Yagyu, who, in some special cases, has counted with the advice of specialist doctors.

Genichiro's books are somewhere between informative and fiction, and are very popular in Japan, where they were first published in the eighties. They have been translated to multiple languages and are known in many countries today. Although each country has its own geography, with its mountains, its lakes and its seas, every inhabitant of the world has a common map of the body. We are lucky it is this way, since the better we know ourselves, the better we will get to know the rest of human beings, no matter how different they may seem or how far they may live from us.

It is possible that until now we had not stopped to think about nostrils, but if we do, we may discover they can be as fascinating as a speleological expedition. Genichiro describes them with humour, and could draw them with his eyes closed. Throughout his long life, the author has not only been attentive of his own and other's nostrils, but has also observed his belly button; from here, he invites readers to do the same, although not for too long, unless someone wishes to write their own book.

Drawing by Genichiro Yagyu