Saturday, January 23, 2016

Little White Duck: A Childhood in China

 by Na Liu and Andres Vera Martinez
2012. Minneapolis, MN. Graphic Universe. Autobiography.
Lexile Measure: 710L
Graphic Novel. Middle School. Diverse Protagonist. Bilingual. Written in last 4 years.


Little White Duck: A Childhood In China explores childhood experiences of Na Liu (referred to as Da Qin in the book meaning big piano) growing up in Wuhan China. She takes the reader on a journey through 8 stories that give us a look into the memories that she has growing up in China in the form of a graphic novel.

I enjoyed some parts of this book more than others, but overall it was a good read. I would give this book a 26/32 (Children's Literature Evaluation). 

One thing that I really do like about this book is that it gives some history about China, and some background about some traditions such as the Chinese New Year, as well as a glimpse into how political and economical events effected her parents life and her own life growing up. In the book, Liu describes the cultural revolution that happened in China between the 1940's and 1980's as being beneficial to her parents, however, according to some, this only tells one side of the story, which may be problematic. However, this book is definitely worth considering looking into and having discussions about if using this as a classroom text to study China's history, while keeping different perspectives in mind.

The illustrations in this book are really interesting and lovely, and there are Chinese words and writing throughout the book, as well as translations in the back. The author also has a biography in the back of the book in which she explains why she decided to write this book, and how we each have a unique experience growing up and that it is important to preserve these experiences as the world continues to change. 

I would recommend this book for grades 5 through 8, as there are some topics that may not be appropriate, or may scare children of a younger age, such as the killing of animals (the four pests and chopping a chicken's neck). This would be a great book to use to help understand some major events in the last century in China, as well as traditions.

Some literary elements to discuss with children:

Autobiography: After reading this story, children could pick out 8 individual experiences of their own from their childhood that are important and significant to them, and that they would want to include in their own autobiography.

Graphic Novels: Students could use this book to help them understand graphic novels, and maybe try writing one of their own. 

Theme: At the end of the story, Da Qin realizes that she is much better off than many other children, and at first she had mixed feelings because she didn't want them to touch her coat, and she had a hard time understanding the games that they played, but at the same time, she feels empathy for them because she has much nicer things than they do. This is something that students can probably relate to, and it can help students to understand the authors message or theme in a story.


Social Justice Theme: Poverty




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