Grace Chang (author)
Chong Chang (illustrator)
Jin Jin the Dragon
Enchanted Lion, 2007
Born of a 1000-year old egg, a young hatchling asks nearby animals who he is. They recognize parts of themselves in the creature whose golden color inspires them to dub him Jin Jin, but they cannot answer his question. Thus, Jin Jin begins a quest to learn his identity. Along the way, he encounters more friendly animals and deciphers clues in the form of early Chinese script. At tale's end, Jin Jin saves a village from drought and in the process realizes that he is a water-breathing dragon. Readers learn a little Chinese and the true, beneficent nature of Chinese long 龍, or dragons.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Stealthy bravura
J. C. Phillipps
Wink: The Ninja Who Wanted to Be Noticed
Viking, 2000
Wink-chan has boundless energy and an exuberant personality, so the training to become a stealthy and invisible ninja proves an ill fit. By a chance encounter with a family of circus performers gives Wink his big opportunity. Bright collages give artistic flair to this charming adventure into martial entertainment.
Wink: The Ninja Who Wanted to Be Noticed
Viking, 2000
Wink-chan has boundless energy and an exuberant personality, so the training to become a stealthy and invisible ninja proves an ill fit. By a chance encounter with a family of circus performers gives Wink his big opportunity. Bright collages give artistic flair to this charming adventure into martial entertainment.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Wish upon a Tree
Roseanne Thong (author)
Connie McLennan (illustrator)
The Wishing Tree
Shen's Books, 2004
Ming and his grandmother share a ritual, making a wish at the village's wishing tree, which blooms with brightly colored wishes tied to orange weights. As Ming grows up, we see the arc of his wishes shift from focusing on himself (growing big and strong) to concern for loved ones (a speedy recovery from illness for Grandmother). When the wishing tree disappoints him, Ming feels resentment. But, as he matures, he sees differently and returns to express gratitude to the tree. Roseanne Thong's story is based on a real wishing tree in Hong Kong.
Connie McLennan (illustrator)
The Wishing Tree
Shen's Books, 2004
Ming and his grandmother share a ritual, making a wish at the village's wishing tree, which blooms with brightly colored wishes tied to orange weights. As Ming grows up, we see the arc of his wishes shift from focusing on himself (growing big and strong) to concern for loved ones (a speedy recovery from illness for Grandmother). When the wishing tree disappoints him, Ming feels resentment. But, as he matures, he sees differently and returns to express gratitude to the tree. Roseanne Thong's story is based on a real wishing tree in Hong Kong.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
More Compassion
Elizabeth Coatsworth (author)
Lynd Ward (illustrator)
The Cat Who Went to Heaven
MacMillan, 1958 (1st edition, 1930)
Elizabeth Coatsworth's tale of an old Japanese painter, his elderly housekeeper, and their sensitive cat, Good Fortune, is one of the most beautiful and deeply satisfying children's books I've read. Poor as they are, each member of this modest family demonstrates sincere concern for the others. After Good Fortune joins the household, a Buddhist priest comes to commission a painting on the subject of the death of Buddha. Over several days, the painter meditates, imagining himself as the Buddha, living a life of extraordinary privilege followed by strenuous seeking and finally awakening and teaching before expiring. Only after experiencing as fully as possible his subject, does the painter begin his artwork. In succeeding days, he imagines himself as the animals who come to witness Buddha's passage into nothingness. Again, the painter imagines himself as each creature before setting brush to silk. With each imagining, we are transported sympathetically into the world of sentient animals. At last, out of compassion for his dear cat Good Fortune, the painter adds the feline's image to the painting, going against tradition. When the priest sees the completed painting, he reacts with intense dissatisfaction. But ultimately, the painter's compassion is rewarded.
Coatsworth's writing, both poems in the housekeeper's voice and prose, is finely crafted, precise and loving. Here is a short excerpt: "He [the painter] thought of the fierceness and cruelty of tigers, he imagined them lying in the striped shadows of the jungle, with their eyes of fire. They were the danger by the water hole; the killers among the reeds." But soon, the painter sees a way to compassion for the beast. "It may be that this [the tiger's devotion to its cub] is the narrow pathway by which the tiger reaches to the Buddha. It may be that there is a fierceness in love, and love in fierceness." [51] Insights such as these abound in Coatsworth's wise and elegant words.
Lynd Ward (illustrator)
The Cat Who Went to Heaven
MacMillan, 1958 (1st edition, 1930)
Elizabeth Coatsworth's tale of an old Japanese painter, his elderly housekeeper, and their sensitive cat, Good Fortune, is one of the most beautiful and deeply satisfying children's books I've read. Poor as they are, each member of this modest family demonstrates sincere concern for the others. After Good Fortune joins the household, a Buddhist priest comes to commission a painting on the subject of the death of Buddha. Over several days, the painter meditates, imagining himself as the Buddha, living a life of extraordinary privilege followed by strenuous seeking and finally awakening and teaching before expiring. Only after experiencing as fully as possible his subject, does the painter begin his artwork. In succeeding days, he imagines himself as the animals who come to witness Buddha's passage into nothingness. Again, the painter imagines himself as each creature before setting brush to silk. With each imagining, we are transported sympathetically into the world of sentient animals. At last, out of compassion for his dear cat Good Fortune, the painter adds the feline's image to the painting, going against tradition. When the priest sees the completed painting, he reacts with intense dissatisfaction. But ultimately, the painter's compassion is rewarded.
Coatsworth's writing, both poems in the housekeeper's voice and prose, is finely crafted, precise and loving. Here is a short excerpt: "He [the painter] thought of the fierceness and cruelty of tigers, he imagined them lying in the striped shadows of the jungle, with their eyes of fire. They were the danger by the water hole; the killers among the reeds." But soon, the painter sees a way to compassion for the beast. "It may be that this [the tiger's devotion to its cub] is the narrow pathway by which the tiger reaches to the Buddha. It may be that there is a fierceness in love, and love in fierceness." [51] Insights such as these abound in Coatsworth's wise and elegant words.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Enlightened One
Demi
Buddha
Henry Holt, 1996
Biographies of Prince Siddhartha who became the Buddha and founded one of the major religions of the world must inspire, and Demi's is no exception. Common anecdotes from the hagiography, like Queen Maya's dream of a white elephant, read alongside Demi's whimsical and rich illustrations. She does not shirk from the difficult parts about witnessing illness and death, which propel Siddhartha from the luxury of palace living to seek Truth in the wider world. Suffering and trials follow, but ultimately he achieves enlightenment, becoming the Buddha. Demi's biography does not end with this triumph, but continues with Buddha's teachings, and the last image of a multitude of monks accompanies a more general message to "be your own light."
Buddha
Henry Holt, 1996
Biographies of Prince Siddhartha who became the Buddha and founded one of the major religions of the world must inspire, and Demi's is no exception. Common anecdotes from the hagiography, like Queen Maya's dream of a white elephant, read alongside Demi's whimsical and rich illustrations. She does not shirk from the difficult parts about witnessing illness and death, which propel Siddhartha from the luxury of palace living to seek Truth in the wider world. Suffering and trials follow, but ultimately he achieves enlightenment, becoming the Buddha. Demi's biography does not end with this triumph, but continues with Buddha's teachings, and the last image of a multitude of monks accompanies a more general message to "be your own light."
Monday, March 21, 2011
Adoption stories
Janet Morgan Stoeke
Waiting for May
Dutton, 2005
Jean Davies Okimoto and Elaine M. Aoki (authors)
Meilo So (illustrator)
The White Swan Express: A Story about Adoption
Clarion, 2002
Janet Morgan Stoeke's story of adopting a Chinese girl is told from the point of view of a soon-to-be big brother. The boy's voice is yearning, patient, eager, and gentle. He is also inquisitive, asking his mother all sorts of questions about the adoption process, and he wonders about whether his sister is well cared for. His mother's answers are optimistic and thoughtful. Stoeke emphasizes the capacity to love someone you haven't yet met.
Jean Davies Okimoto and Elaine M. Aoki take a different approach. They simultaneously tell the stories of four Chinese girl orphans and the North Americans who will be adopting them. Apart from the joy experienced by all the characters, the authors pay special attention to diversity. Lewis and Beth Maynard are from Miami; Andrea Lee and Charlotte Appleford live on an island near Seattle; Rebecca Mandel hails from the midwest where she lives with her cat, Ralph; and Howard and Jessica Suzuki call Toronto home. The parents meet aboard the bus dubbed "White Swan Express," which takes them to the hotel where they are to meet their daughters, Wu Li, Li Shen, Qian Ye, and Chun Mei Ni. The families continue to correspond, celebrating their familial good fortune.
Not having experienced an adoption, I am unable to comment on the accuracy of these stories, whether the logistics of adopting or the emotional portions. Both of them were effective in tugging at my heart. I invite readers with more experience to comment.
Waiting for May
Dutton, 2005
Jean Davies Okimoto and Elaine M. Aoki (authors)
Meilo So (illustrator)
The White Swan Express: A Story about Adoption
Clarion, 2002
Janet Morgan Stoeke's story of adopting a Chinese girl is told from the point of view of a soon-to-be big brother. The boy's voice is yearning, patient, eager, and gentle. He is also inquisitive, asking his mother all sorts of questions about the adoption process, and he wonders about whether his sister is well cared for. His mother's answers are optimistic and thoughtful. Stoeke emphasizes the capacity to love someone you haven't yet met.
Jean Davies Okimoto and Elaine M. Aoki take a different approach. They simultaneously tell the stories of four Chinese girl orphans and the North Americans who will be adopting them. Apart from the joy experienced by all the characters, the authors pay special attention to diversity. Lewis and Beth Maynard are from Miami; Andrea Lee and Charlotte Appleford live on an island near Seattle; Rebecca Mandel hails from the midwest where she lives with her cat, Ralph; and Howard and Jessica Suzuki call Toronto home. The parents meet aboard the bus dubbed "White Swan Express," which takes them to the hotel where they are to meet their daughters, Wu Li, Li Shen, Qian Ye, and Chun Mei Ni. The families continue to correspond, celebrating their familial good fortune.
Not having experienced an adoption, I am unable to comment on the accuracy of these stories, whether the logistics of adopting or the emotional portions. Both of them were effective in tugging at my heart. I invite readers with more experience to comment.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
HereKittyKitty
Lee Wardlaw (author)
Eugene Yelchin (illustrator)
Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku
Henry Holt, 2011
A sassy but sensitive stray kitty is adopted by a little boy who names it Won Ton. Playful and expressive illustrations accompany the story told entirely in senryu (a form of Japanese poetry) from Won Ton's point of view.
Eugene Yelchin (illustrator)
Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku
Henry Holt, 2011
A sassy but sensitive stray kitty is adopted by a little boy who names it Won Ton. Playful and expressive illustrations accompany the story told entirely in senryu (a form of Japanese poetry) from Won Ton's point of view.
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