Born deep in the mountains of Kumano, the puppy arrived at the Kubo family after a long train journey. Named Maya, the puppy became best friends with the crybaby Jiro. Together, they grew up alongside the kitten Perle and the chicken Pipi. Around the same time, Japan entered a war with America and Britain, and shortages began. Even in the Kubo household, days came when they could only eat porridge. Jiro would share his own food with the always-hungry Maya. As winter approached one day, an order came: "With no food for humans, feeding a dog is a luxury," and Maya was to be killed... Directed by Seijiro Koyama, known for "The Story of Hachiko" and "Distant Sunset," this film adapts Hatju Muku's original work "Maya's Life," a long-held wish of the director. The original story, published in Showa 45, is considered one of Muku's masterpieces and a timeless classic of children's literature, still used as supplementary reading in elementary school textbooks today. Based on Muku's real-life experiences, it took 25 years after the war for this story to finally be written, a testament to the depth of its sorrow.