Poplar Publishing Co., Ltd. A middle school girl meets a blind and deaf young man What does it mean to be an equal friend? A YA novel recommended for adults too

【Poplar Publishing Co., Ltd.】【A middle school girl meets a deaf-blind young man】What does it mean to be equal friends? A YA novel
recommended for adults as well ​
Poplar Co., Ltd. Press release: October 21, 2025 To Members of the Press [A middle school girl meets a deaf-blind young man] What does it mean to be equal friends? YA novels recommended for adults as well Poplar Publishing Co., Ltd. released the novel “When I Learned That the Stars Shine Even at Noon” (written by Nashiya Arie) on Monday, October 20, 2025. This book is the first new work in five years from the author of the hit novel “Being Aware of Your Existence,” which depicts children with visual disabilities such as dyslexia and chemical sensitivity. Centered around an encounter with a deaf-blind person, this work explores awareness of disabilities and relationships with others, using the author’s unique approach based on her experience as a certified social worker.
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Realizing the assumption that “there are no people with disabilities around me” Our protagonist, Natsurin, is often described as “weird.” In order to attract the attention of her newly-formed best friend, she keeps watch over the area in front of the nearest station, searching for the young man with a white cane she saw on the train the other day. Although I didn’t meet the young man that day, I did see several people using white canes and wheelchairs. And while I had vaguely assumed there were no people with disabilities in this town, I realized that this wasn’t the case. Through further interactions, I began to think about and learn about the difficulties of being blind, deaf, unable to move, and having a disability. A story that conveys that there is a world that cannot be seen unless one is ignorant. Natsurin initially thought the young man was a fraud because she was unaware of the disability “deaf-blindness.” However, as she “learns,” her world gradually opens up to her. Eventually, she begins to face the loneliness she secretly felt because she is different from those around her. The title, “I Learned That the Stars Shine Even at Noon,” suggests that stars shine even in broad daylight. If we didn’t know, we would think they didn’t exist, but if we did, we could recognize their existence even when we couldn’t see them. At the end of the story, it leads to Natsurin’s first tanka poem, and the moment readers read it, they will sense a new world opening up before them and be overcome with warm emotion. Learn how to communicate with deafblind people The book also depicts a scene in which the protagonist and his friends attend a study group for deafblind people in order to meet the young man. One of the book’s significances is that it raises awareness of the existence of such groups in various regions. The book explains that communication with deaf-blind people is done through tactile sign language and finger braille. A braille chart is provided at the beginning of the book, and finger alphabet and finger braille charts are provided at the end. This is a book I would recommend to a wide range of people, from teenagers to adults.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/31579/1112/31579-1112-47468103ac9cde4a9057fa77836a7867-1748×1240.png Synopsis A young man that Natsurin, a second-year junior high school student, saw on the train was using a white cane, but when she offered him her seat, he sat down and started looking at his smartphone. Scam? An unexpected exchange began when Natsurin approached him to complain. Natsurin’s grandmother says that Helen Keller, who was blind, deaf, and mute, suffered from a “triple handicap,” but when Hasebe, who turns out to be deaf and blind, sees him differently, he doesn’t see it that way. Meanwhile, her dear best friend, Mashiro, tells her, “If you have a disability, you can’t be equal friends,” and she’s deeply shaken by his words. This is because, just the day before, she had heard that she, too, had been diagnosed with a developmental disorder as a child. When Natsurin reunites with Hasebe, she asks him, “Is it difficult to be deaf-blind?” and “Do you think that if you have a disability, you can’t be equal friends?” He shares his thoughts with her. Author Profile Nashiya Arie Born in Tochigi Prefecture, she currently resides in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. She won the 39th Kodansha Children’s Literature Newcomer Award for “Deliverly Age,” the 33rd Japan Children’s Writers Association Newcomer Award for “Pianissimo,” and “Conscious of Your Existence” was selected for the IBBY (International Board on Books for Young People) Honor List 2020, won the 7th JBBY (International Board on Books for Young People in Japan) Award, and was included in the International Children’s Library’s international recommended children’s book catalog, “White Ravens 2020.” Her other works include “Looking for Miss Elise,” “Kizunakiss,” “Nobody Cries for You,” “The Laughing Yellow Demon,” and “Kokoroya.” She is an adjunct lecturer at Hosei University and a visiting professor at Kyoritsu Women’s Junior College. She is a certified social worker and has passed the National Sign Language Proficiency Test Level 1. In Tokyo and Kanagawa, we hold reading groups for YA works and “sign language reading sessions for book lovers.”
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/31579/1112/31579-1112-e58783606f45faed6f38f63362295f3f-1244×1947.jpg s☆ Bibliographic information Title: “I Learned That the Stars Shine Even in the Middle of the Day” Author: Nashiya Arie Price: 1,760 yen (including 10% tax) Release date: Monday, October 20, 2025
Bibliography page:
https://www.poplar.co.jp/book/search/result/archive/8001070.html Amazon: https://amzn.asia/d/abtQ43h