Tales of tiny people living underfoot have inspired us for centuries. From legends of pixies to the 1952 novel The Borrowers, we have a long history of such legends. Studio Ghibli’s 2010 film The Secret World of Arrietty shows the worldwide love of such lore. And Yuki Kamba’s 2022 manga Sheeta’s Little Big World takes us once again to a world where tiny humans build societies and evade the dangers of the bigger world.
An English-language translation of the series kicks off next month from Kodansha. Before it goes live, join us for a look into the world of the Littlefolk. Meet Sheeta and his friends, and discover what it’s like to live in a world far bigger than yourself.
The World of the Littlefolk
Sheeta’s Little Big World starts in a Littlefolk community deep in the forest. Five years ago, Sheeta’s father left him with this new community and disappeared. Fortunately, he’s made friends, including a boy his own age named Nala. Together with their fellow Littlefolk, they live a simple life gathering food and avoiding predators.
The worldbuilding details in this story are especially fascinating, as Kamba goes to great lengths to demonstrate how Littlefolk live. A camping scene demonstrates both how to build an oil-and-wick “campfire” and how to make frog soup. One group of Littlefolk lives at the base of a maple tree, harvesting its syrup but set upon by ants. And Sheeta’s last gift from his father? A box of “magic wands”—or a matchbox, to you and me.
Sheeta’s Adventure
The action of Sheeta’s Little Big World kicks off when Nala suggests the pair journey out to find Sheeta’s father. After Sheeta turns the idea down (the world is dangerous, after all!), he awakes to discover that Nala has gone off on his own. The village calls off the search after a day. Again, the world is dangerous. And it’s highly unlikely for a runaway Littlefolk to survive in the wild for more than a day.
Thus begins Sheeta’s adventure. Armed with his father’s matchbox, he sets out to find his friend. But along the way, he’ll meet more than just Nala. Some are Littlefolk who live very differently from himself. And others also happen to be looking for Sheeta’s father… for very different reasons.
Strange Allies
Sheeta’s Little Big World is three volumes long in total, so expect the cast to grow quickly in the first volume alone. The first Littlefolk Sheeta runs into is Izuna, who is hunting an escaped criminal. And that “criminal” just happens to be Sheeta’s missing father!
Fortunately, the two aren’t alone for long. As the volume comes to a close, they meet Kugel: a princess from another Littlefolk society. These are the aforementioned maple tree dwellers. Sheeta and Izuna take a slight detour to help with their ant infestation, which is a much bigger deal when you’re tiny. Watching this little big world grow quickly across ten chapters is exciting, and shows a degree of worldbuilding that promises a lot for the second and third volumes. While we’re still waiting to hear what exactly Sheeta’s father did, it looks like the journey will be a fun one.