First published in the United States of America
in 2019 by Chronicle Books LLC. Originally published in Japan in 2017 under the title
Tsumannai Tsumannai by HAKUSENSHA. Copyright Shinsuke Yoshitake 2017.
English translation copyright 2019 by Chronicle Books LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced
in any form without written permission from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Names: Yoshitake, Shinsuke, 1973- author, illustrator.
Title: The boring book / Shinsuke Yoshitake. Other titles: Tsumannai tsumannai. English Description: San Francisco, California : Chronicle Books LLC, 2019. | Originally published in Japan in 2017 under the title Tsumannai Tsumannai by HAKUSENSHA. | Summary: A child, bored by his toys, contemplates the
emotion and concept of boredom, and whether or not it is boring to be an adultor a child. | EmotionsJuvenile fiction. | CYAC: BoredomFiction. | LCGFT: Picture books. | LCGFT: Picture books.
Classification: LCC PZ7.Y82552 Bo 2019 | DDC [E]dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018037897 Chronicle Books LLC
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Shinsuke Yoshitake
Im bored. So bored! My toys are boring. Theres nothing to
watch on TV.
Hmm... Hmmm...
Hmm mmm... Mom, Im bored! What do you
want me to
do about it?
H m p h . SO BORING! Waitwhat makes
things boring? Why am I bored? What does boring
mean, anyway?
What if I were stuffed
into a big donut? That sounds like fun... but after being in there
for a while... Id probably be bored. Um, how much longer
will I be in here?
Maybe its boring to stay in
the same place.
Ill try it! So, what if I constantly
changed how I sit? Rustle Rustle Hey, this is kind of fun! Rustle
Rustle Rustle Rustle Rustle But... Rustle Rustle only... kind of.
Maybe its fun
to be unique. The more different,
the more fun!
A park like this looks fun. But a park like this is boring.
Maybe its fun
when things are crowded.
Maybe its boring when things
have nothing to do with you. This grass is
delicious! Do you want some?
Maybe its boring when things
dont go as planned. Ah, I see! A hippo!
I wonder if a pill bug ever
thinks,
Im bored. How about a
vending machine? Or a rock
on the street? Or my
teddy bear? What about a
straw wrapper? Or an air
conditioner?
Or the shoes I never
wear because they
hurt my feet? Or the carrots I didnt
eat because they
were undercooked? Or a pencil that needs
to be sharpened? Or a random component
that fell off something?
I wonder what the worlds most boring
amusement park is like. The Ferris
wheel is low.
The roller coaster
is slow. Most of the rides
are closed for
repairs.
The games are
too easy. The haunted house
isnt scary. The drinks
are lukewarm.
No way! That would be awful! Id
never go to an
amusement park
like that! But, wait!
How strange... its actually fun to think
about boring things. its actually fun to think
about boring things.
I mean, theyre boring,
but theyre also fun. Weird!
Can everything in the world be
divided into fun and boring? This is fun! This is boring! Huh?
Sometimes, Im not bored
or having
fun. Im actually not thinking about
anything at all. Like when Im
changing my clothes, or when Im in
the bathroom, or when Im
brushing my teeth, or when
Im waiting
for the light
to change.
I wouldnt say that doing those things is fun, but
it isn't boring, either. I wonder if theres a word for
that experience.
Like when Im peeling
a hard-boiled egg, or when I wake up
earlier than usual, or when Im
riding the bus.
Who came up with the word boring anyway? Was that person bored?
Is it fun when 300 bored people get together? Or is it 300 times