Doors to the World - China

What the Rat Told Me: A Legend of the Chinese Zodiac

dnoto — Fri, 15 Dec 2017 17:59:08 +0000

Synopsis:

Translated from French, the book What the Rat Told Me is a retelling of a folktale about the creation of the Chinese Zodiac. This is a story of a trickster—the rat—and how each animal was chosen for the zodiac. As the Emperor, ruler of Heaven and Earth, invites all the animals to visit him before sunrise at the top of Jade Mountain, the clever rat devises a plan—he tricks the cat into sleeping late with a promise to wake her up in the morning. The rat cleverly ignores his promise, and hops on the ox to ride up Jade Mountain to be the first to reach the emperor. Each animal that arrives at the mountain top is rewarded with a year for all time. Since the cat remained asleep, she has been left out of the Chinese calendar. And this, the reader is informed, is why the cat and the rat are not friends.

The illustrators used bold colors of black, white, and red, in calligraphy and linoleum prints, to tell the story. The back matter includes the Chinese calendar, a zodiac wheel, and a glossary of characters written in Chinese, linoleum block print, and English.

Publisher:

NorthSouth Books

ISBN#:

9780735822207

Author:

Marie Sellier

Illustrator:

Language:

Multimodal Resource:

What the Rat Told Me: A Legend of the Chinese Zodiac

Place:

Asia and the Pacific

Country:

China

Publisher URL:

http://northsouth.com/

Medium:

Printmaking

Genre2:

Traditional Literature

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Credit Line:

Heather Brougham-Cook and Linda Prothers

Theme:

Traditions

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What the Rat Told Me: A Legend of the Chinese Zodiac

Father's Chinese Opera

dnoto — Sun, 10 Dec 2017 22:09:24 +0000

Synopsis:

Author and illustrator Rich Lo shows us the components of the Chinese opera as seen through the eyes of a young boy. In Father’s Chinese Opera we learn about the boy's desire to perform after watching his father conduct the opera, and see the steps the boy takes towards his goal.

Publisher:

Sky Pony Press

ISBN#:

9781628736106

Author:

Rich Lo

Illustrator:

Rich Lo

Language:

English

Multimodal Resource:

Father's Chinese Opera

Place:

Country:

Publisher URL:

http://www.skyponypress.com/

Medium:

Water Color

Genre2:

Realistic Fiction

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Theme:

Traditions

Art

Families

Cultural practices

Perseverance

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Father's Chinese Opera

Round is a Mooncake: A Book of Shapes

srlombard — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 06:13:53 +0000

Synopsis:

A little girl's neighborhood becomes a discovery ground of things round, square and rectangular. Many of the objects are Asian in origin, other universal: round rice bowls and a found pebble, square dim sum and pizza boxes, rectangular Chinese lace and very special pencil case. Bright art accompanies this lively introduction to shapes and short glossary explains the cultural significance of the objects featured in the book. Perfect for read-alouds or one-on-one sharing.

Source: http://www.chroniclebooks.com/titles/round-is-a-mooncake.html

Publisher:

Chronicle Books

ISBN#:

978-081182676

Author:

Roseanne Thong

Illustrator:

Grace Lin

Language:

English

Multimodal Resource:

Round is a Mooncake

Awards:

Round is a Mooncake

Place:

Country:

Publisher URL:

http://www.chroniclebooks.com/titles/round-is-a-mooncake.html

Genre2:

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Theme:

Neighborhood

Shapes

Grandfather Counts

srlombard — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 06:00:37 +0000

Synopsis:

Gong Gong (Grandfather) is coming from China to live with Helen's family. Helen is excited, but anxious. How will she and her siblings, who know only English, communicate with Gong Gong, who speaks only Chinese?

At first Gong Gong keeps to himself, reading the Chinese newspapers he brought with him. Then one day, as Helen sits outside watching for the train that runs behind her house, Gong Gong joins her. He starts counting the train cars in Chinese, and then teaches Helen the words. Helen reciprocates by teaching Gong Gong to count in English. Soon Helen and Gong Gong are teaching each other more words, and a special bond between them begins to develop and grow.

A moving intergenerational story, Grandfather Counts highlights the universality of the love shared between grandparent and grandchild, a love that helps them cross the boundaries of language and culture.

Source: https://www.leeandlow.com/books/2399

Publisher:

Lee & Low Books

ISBN#:

978-158430158

Author:

Andrea Cheng

Illustrator:

Ange Zhang

Language:

Multimodal Resource:

Grandfather Counts

Awards:

Grandfather Counts

Place:

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Publisher URL:

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/2399

Genre2:

Realistic Fiction

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Theme:

Grandfathers

Languages

I See the Sun in China

szachs — Wed, 08 Jul 2015 11:49:18 +0000

Synopsis:

The idea that children are our hope for promoting a more understanding world for all people is clearly evident in I See the Sun in China, where the text is presented through the eyes of a child, and reveals the child’s emotions and sensual experiences of her journey to the city from the rural area; also symbolizing a journey of appreciation from the past /old China to the present and new. The author has an agenda to promote cultural understanding that we may all live in different parts of the world yet we all reside beneath the same sun; the sun is a symbol that connects us all.
As the child journeys through her day she meets people of all ages and she shares her appreciation for her cultural identity, history, the adults she encounters, and ends with her hopes for the future in the modern China.

This book presents a glimpse of China through the eyes of a little girl, as opposed to traditional travel books that presents a country through adult eyes, thus having more appeal and connection with younger people.

Another outstanding feature of these series is that the books are presented in both English and the language of the country .Visually; the publishers have gone against the norm and presented the text with the host language written first on the page above the English. The importance of this is that it may positively affect how the reader is positioned when he or she engages with this book. A Chinese student in an English dominant classroom or an English Language Learner may feel even more validated by seeing this book. It is an opportunity for the English language learner to acquire new vocabulary while feeling at ease (their affective filter is diminished) because of the familiar content. Chinese terms and phrases are used authentically in the text, and the book features a glossary in both languages .

The publishers suggest that the books would appeal to ages four and up. The genre is certainly realistic fiction, but the reference to actual places and facts about life in China makes this a good introduction to informational texts for younger people.

Publisher:

Satya House Publications, 2010

ISBN#:

9780981872056

Author:

Dedie King

Illustrator:

Judith Inglese

Language:

Multimodal Resource:

I See the Sun in China

Mini Unit:

I See the Sun in China

Awards:

I See the Sun in China

Place:

Asia and the Pacific

Country:

China

Publisher URL:

http://www.satyahouse.com/china.htm

Medium:

Collage

Genre2:

Realistic Fiction

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Theme:

Families

Rural vs Urban

Travel

Mini Unit New:

I See the Sun in China

A New Year's Reunion

szachs — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 20:42:03 +0000

Synopsis:

A Chinese migrant worker returns home to his wife and daughter to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Told in the voice of his toddler daughter, she is at first uncomfortable seeing him after so long but then warms up to him. She describes the close family celebration during their few days together before he leaves again for another year. A custom using a lucky coin leads to a heartwarming ending between father and daughter.