Infants and toddlers are prone to rapidly contracting illnesses, which are usually attributed to infectious diseases. Most nurseries and schools in Japan, however, refuse to accept children even with mild illnesses. For working parents, a sick child may therefore create new problems as the situation requires new day-care arrangements. To support such families, the Japanese government subsidizes...

Robertson enhances still further their considerable reputation. It shows with disturbing clarity that institutional care facilities just are not geared to meet the emotional needs of small children. A very vulnerable child perhaps we are all becoming immune to the daily diet or horror and misery, the scenes of Biafra, Vietnam and Spanish Harlem on television and in the press. The camera goes on...