The seven Chinese sisters

Tucker, Kathy. The seven Chinese sisters, Morton Grove, III. : A. Whitman, 2003

A Chinese traditional folktale narrates a story of how six talented Chinese sisters rescue their youngest sister from a dragon. This is a picture book for children aged 0-8 years old. A long time ago, there were seven Chinese sisters who lived together happily in the countryside. Each of them has a unique talent: The eldest sister rides a scooter as fast as the wind; the second eldest knows karate; the third can count to 500 and beyond; the fourth can talk to dogs; the fifth sister can catch any balls; the sixth can cook delicious noodle soup, all, except the youngest baby’s talent has been discovered. One day, a hungry red dragon from faraway smells the noodle soup and flies to their house. The dragon snatches the seventh sister for his dinner instead of the noodle soup so the six sisters go off to rescue her. Each of the sisters utilizes their unique skills in the rescue mission such as the fifth sister using her dog talking ability to communicate with the dragon.

Lon Po Po: a red-riding hood story from China

Young, Ed. Lon Po Po: a red-riding hood story from China, New York: Philomel, 1989.

The author, Ed Young, is a very famous Chinese illustrator who is well-know for drawing beautiful children’s picture books. This book was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1990. The genre of this book is a cautionary Chinese folktale and verse. An example of nonsexist children’s literature with a suspenseful tone, It describes three sisters who stay at home alone and a hungry wolf which sees them and tries to work out various methods in order to enter the house to eat them. The wolf disguises itself as their grandmother and knocks at the door. The clever elder sister discovers the wolf’s deception and thinks up a smart plan to capture the wolf and save her sisters and herself.