| Greg Mortenson received life-saving aid from local Pakistani villagers during a thwarted mountain climb and promised to build them a school for girls in thanks. His one-time project evolved into a series of girls’ schools in the region that would change hearts, minds, and political sentiments. THREE CUPS OF TEA was a stunning book and is even more key as a young adult account now, offering advanced elementary to middle school readers the opportunity to hear and learn from his story. A ’must’ for both school and community library collections.Three Cups of Tea Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Reun Buy for HK$ 136 from ShopInHK.Com |
Jan Renolds Buy from ShopInHK.Com for HK$ 176.00Set on the island of Bali in Southeast Asia, Cycle of Rice Cycle of Life: A Story of Sustainable Farming is a picturebook about how people survive by living closely in tune and harmony with the natural cycles of the water and soil. Through water sharing and crop rotation systems that have been in effect for more than a thousand years, Balinese rice farmers preserve the health and yield of their farmland, which in turn provides for them. Illustrated with beautiful photographs throughout, Cycle of Rice Cycle of Life highly recommended as a glimpse into the positive traditions of Balinese agriculture, and the universal message of responsible stewardship. “After the harvest, the field is fallow, or without crops, but there is still work to be done. Putu waves a long bamboo pole to herd the family’s ducks to the spot where he wants them to settle down and eat… The ducks play a crucial role in allowing the cycle of rice to continue, year after year.” |
Rob D Walker Buy from ShopInHK.Com for HK$ 136.00“Mama Says” is a beautiful children’s book of inspiring thoughts spoken from mothers to sons in twelve different languages and cultural settings. “Mama Says” is beautifully illustrated by award-winning artists Leo and Diane Dillon, with a small square of fabric as a symbol for each mother of each nationality on the lower left side of each page of sayings. In addition to the beautiful colorful illustrations of twelve different cultural backgrounds, each saying is also flawlessly presented in the appropriate language of the culture, alongside the English version. Thus we have not only a picture of another culture’s background and traditions, we also get to see its actual script and written language. The languages and cultures presented include Cherokee, Russian, Amharic, Japanese, Hindi, Inuktitut, Hebrew, English, Korean, Arabic, Quechua, and Danish. Further enhancing the racial and cultural diversity, the English example shows a handsome young black boy with his mother, walking carrying books against a background of signshakers reading “hate.” The English saying is “Mama says/To be on time/ Mama says/ Be neat/ Mama says/ To walk with pride/ And never drag my feet (p. 20).” The final two page illustration shows all twelve boys together, grown up, with hands on each others’ shoulders. The saying is “I listened to what Mama said/ And now I am a man (p.29-30).” “Mama Says” is a children’s book so compellingly moving and beautiful that it made me weep. Teaching children the strong underlying message of respect and honor for our diversity is stunningly accomplished in “Mama Says.” Strongly recommended for ages preschool through second grade (3-8). |
Jez Alborough Buy from ShopInHK.Com for HK$ 128.00 “Super Duck” is the latest in a series of humorous “Duck” books written and illustrated by Jez Alborough for children ages 3-7. Filled with wonderful colorful pictures of Duck and his friends Goat, Sheep, and Frog, “Super Duck” is a fast paced tale of the well-intentioned hero Duck who comes (somewhat irregularly for a superhero) to the rescue of his friends and their flyaway kite. The cartoon-like illustrations leap and expand beyond their frames in a thoroughly loveable, enticing way. The rhyming couplets also help to keep the pace and interest at key pitch. “Super Duck” is a fable of gentle friendship, punctuated with joy and delight. Unlike some super heroes, Super Duck sometimes fails, but he keeps trying with the help of his friends! “Super Duck” will be a favorite read-aloud book for its generation. |
 Food For Thought: The History The Things We EatKen Robbins Buy from ShopInHK.Com for HK$ 144.00Featuring striking full-color photography, Food for Thought: The Stories Behind the Things We Eat is a picturebook filled cover to cover with amazing facts about fruits, vegetables, and mushrooms, from how an apple helped bring about the downfall of Troy to what “fresh-squeezed” really means. The text is sufficiently detailed to be best for young readers who are just about ready to move beyond picturebooks – indeed, even adults will thoroughly enjoy the lush imagery and informative text that does not talk down to the reader in the slightest. “A banana plant can grow incredibly fast – as tall as a man in just three months – and reach a height of 20 to 30 feet in a year. It’s not a tree, though, it’s a bush – admittedly a very tall bush. And it dies every year after producing just one bunch of bananas (that’s about a hundred per bunch).” Highly recommended for children’s school and public library collections, and perhaps also as a way to pique young people’s interest in eating more healthy fruits and vegetables as well as learning about them! |
Linda Zeman-Spaleny Buy from ShopInHK.Com for HK$ 160.00 Inspired by the author’s first experience witnessing Native American totem poles, Lord of the Sky is a children’s picturebook written in the style of a folktale. The story follows a young boy by the sea who befriends ravens by sharing his food. But some of the ravens are greedy, and other village boys slay them with arrows. When an endless darkness blankets the land, the sagacious village elder explains that only the Lord of the Sky can bring back the sun. And so the boy who considers ravens his friends sets out on an epic journey to see the Great Raven. The strikingly distinctive color artwork highlighting shades of gold distinguishes this memorable storybook, especially recommended for parents to read aloud to their children. |
Reviews originally published on Midwest Book Review