Glass no Usagi - Recommendations

• Movie (1 ep x 93 min)
• 1991

Kayoko is a cheerful girl who is growing up in war-time Tokyo. She has four elder brothers, doesn’t like music lessons, is frightened of her grandmother and is excited that a baby is on the way. When she grows up, Kayoko says, she wants to be a war nurse so she can tend to her uncle in the armed forces. As a child she’s a little prone to crying, but tries to be more mature when her younger brother is born. However, Kayoko’s typical childhood changes when the Americans begin to bomb Japan. Kayoko is sent into the countryside to live with her aunt, and soon she will have to face the reality of war.

• Movie (1 ep x 77 min)
• 1993

Young Chiko and her family live in Japanese occupied Korea during the height of World War II, an area soon to be reoccupied by the Russians when Japan loses the war. For Chiko and many other Japanese people, this means exile from their homes, and the only way to escape is to head south towards their families and safe haven. Now, with unfriendly faces all around them, Chiko, her family, and a number of others must set off on a journey to find their way to safety through countless hardships, guided by the light of the stars...

• Movie (1 ep x 83 min)
• 1983

The year is 1945, and the Japanese war effort is grinding to a halt. In Hiroshima, the Nakaoka family is working hard to survive in the midst of poverty and persecution. With his father constantly working, six year old Gen has been left in charge of his family, yet stays relentlessly optimistic in the face of hardship. Then, on August 6th, the atomic bomb Little Boy detonated in the center of town, and the people's lives were changed forever. As Gen struggles to cope with the horrific event, his youthful innocence and refusal to give up brings a renewed sense of hope to those around him...

• Movie (1 ep x 88 min)
• 1988

With their father serving overseas in the Navy towards the end of the World War 2, Seita and his younger sister Setsuko are living as normally as they can. One day during a firebomb raid on the city their mother suffers fatal wounds and the two siblings' lives are turned upside down as they go to live with a relative. After suffering the cruel treatment of their aunt, who makes it clear that their very presence is a nuisance, Seita and Setsuko decide to leave and go to live in an abandoned bomb shelter. With no one else to rely on, Seita and Setsuko try their hardest to live from day to day. Though when food becomes ever more scarce and no one is willing to sell what little provisions they have, life for the pair is increasingly difficult. Then when Setsuko falls ill, Seita begins to realize just how fragile life is...

• Movie (1 ep x 102 min)
• 1995

Anne Frank is a Jewish girl living in German-occupied Amsterdam during World War 2. When Anne's father learns that his family is in inevitable danger, he gathers Anne and the family to live with four others in a secret, safe location. In these cramped and tight rooms, Anne and the rest live in darkness and with hushed voices, always in fear of discovery. For two years, Anne confides in Kitty, her diary in which she confesses her dreams and wishes, and documents her life in the cellar. As supplies begin to dwindle and relationships grow more complex and heated, Anne continues to write, dreaming of a life in which she is free. 

• TV Special (1 ep)
• 1979

• Movie (1 ep)
• 1982

• OVA (1 ep)
• 1997

• OVA (32 eps)
• 1993 - 2003

An alternate retelling of the Pacific War during World War II, with Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto leading Japan to victory against the USA.

• Movie (1 ep)
• 1990