Vendor
china@hercules Z.H. Chen
Original language
Chinese
Categories
Children’s, Teenage & Educational

Smoke

Rong Yu Wenxuan Cao

In poetic language, this book tells a story about understanding and tolerance. Mr Pang lives on the east side of the river and Mr Shou lives on the west. They argue over trivial things and forbid their children to play with each other, and in turn, even the children stop their dogs playing with each other. They are always fighting over something until one morning, when the two families are cooking breakfast. The family on the east side of the river is using wet firewood, giving off black smoke, while the family on the east side is using dried firewood, giving off white smoke. The black smoke and white smoke float gently up into the air towards each other...and things start to change... Cao Wenxuan is the Winner of Hans Christian Andersen Award.

Author: Cao Wenxuan

Hans Christian Andersen Award （2016）, Peking University professor, and member of the Chinese Writers Association’s national committee Cao Wenxuan is one of China’s most influential authors of children’s books. He has written over fifty books, and won over forty awards. His works have been translated into many languages, including English, German, French, Russian, Swedish, Spanish, Japanese and Korean. In recent years he has been working on picture books for Chinese children, and has written Feather, Silly Chicken, Chrysanthemum Doll, Big Fish Travels to the Sea, The Last Leopard, and Streetlamp No. 8. His words are at once beautifully poetic and deeply philosophical, and he is a far reaching figure in the field of original Chinese picture books. The international rights for his books have been sold to countries such as France, Japan, Sweden, Korea, Brazil, and the books have twice won the Outstanding Book Award from the China General Administration of Press and Publication. In 2013, six of his books, including Chrysanthemum Doll, were recipients of the Chinese Government Award for Publishing. Feather was voted “Children’s Book of the Year”, whilst Call of the Sky was one of the “50 Books Most Loved by the Public”.

Illustrator: Yu Rong

A British Chinese artist and graduate of the Royal College of Art, her picture books have been published all over the world: in the UK, the US, Italy, Holland, Japan and Korea. She has recently begun working with Chinese publishers. Her illustrations for The Cloud-like Myna won a Golden Apple award at the 24th Biennial of Illustration Bratislava, and the work won a golden windmill for best children’s book at the 2013 Shanghai International Book Fair, and has also been entered into consideration for “China’s most beautiful book 2013”. Yu Rong currently lives in rural Cambridgeshire with her husband, Donkey, her three children, Caterpillar, Chili Pepper and Bean, and their German spaniel, Detective Sniffy.

Available products
Book Published by 21st Century Publishing House , ISBN: 9787539186559 Main content page count: 48 Pages ISBN: 9787539186559

Available products

Book

Published by 21st Century Publishing House , ISBN: 9787539186559

Main content page count: 48 Pages

ISBN: 9787539186559

Comments

SMOKE is a picture book of rare quality. Author and illustrator combine seamlessly to explore their topic of suspicion, barrier-building and conflict, and how they are overcome to create harmony and peaceful coexistence. Every millimeter of the page is carefully considered in terms of its graphic potential. Word and image are beautifully integrated to deliver an important, universal message.

I really enjoy reading powerful picture books to older students, especially those that focus on conflict resolution. Smoke would be an excellent book to use with any Primary class.

Mr Shou and Mr Pang live in nearly identical houses on different sides of the river. An argument on a bridge sets off their feud. Each father returns home :

"From now on, you aren't to go over to the west of the river to play with Beanpole! That whole family are so ugly, thin as rakes, all of them."
"From now on, you aren't to go over to the east of the river to play with Butterball! That whole family is so ugly, fat as pigs, all of them."

The two fathers also ban the dogs from playing so Pointy Ears and Floppy Ears are forced sit on each side of the river desperate to have fun. Eventually the dogs just need to play and so they jump in and frolic before returning to sit under the apple trees. Time passes until one day both families are cooking near the river. One uses wet firewood and so the smoke is black and the other uses dry firewood and so the smoke is white. As the smoke drifts into the air it intermingles.

"they hugged like two friends meeting. They twirled happily in the sky ... like two ribbons of silk, one black, one white."

The dogs chase the smoke, the boys then jump into the river and climb into a boat to chase the plumes of smoke. Finally everything settles down, the smoke disappears out of sight and the boys return to their respective sides of the river. Now comes the important turning point. Mr Pang compliments Mr Shou about his apples and Mr Shou compliments Mr Pang. Apples fly from one side to the other.
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