The Boy From the Dragon Palace
by Margaret Read MacDonald illustrated by Sachiko Yoshikawa
Bibliographic citation:
Publisher: Albert Whitman and Company ©2011
32 pages
ISBN 978-0-8075-7513-0
Age recommendation: 4 years and up
Format: Picture Book / Hardcover
Awards/Selection lists:
Annotation: A magical boy grants a poor flower-seller's every wish until the greedy and ungrateful man grows tired of the boy’s unpleasant behavior and sends him away.
Review: An adaption of an ancient Japanese folktale, the story about the Boy from the Dragon Palace cautions against greed and selfishness in humans. With silly humor and vibrant, animated illustrations by Sachiko Yoshikawa, we meet a failed flower peddler who gives up his blossoms to the Dragon King who lives at the bottom of the sea. To thank the man for his offer to the Dragon King, a woman emerges from the sea with a small, snotty nosed boy. Promising to bring the peddler luck on the condition he feed the boy shrimp everyday, the woman gives the boy away and disappears. When the man discovers how easy the task is in return for whatever he wishes, he begins to wish for more and more and more fortune. The more he gets, the less interested he is in feeding the boy. Once he has everything, he no longer needs the boy and casts him off. We can guess what happens to the peddler's fortune and how gratitude and kindness always win out over greed and selfishness.
The watercolor collage illustrations are digitally enhanced and they have a Japanese art sensibility in detail and form. Young readers will love the exaggerated angles (really making the peddler like a big headed man) and of course, the snotty nose of the boy and the magic and fortune his sneezes produce. Overall, this folktale adaptation delivers a good laugh, and even a better message.
Themes/Issues: Folklore from Japan; Kindness wins over greed.
Early Literacy Skill Value:
Print Motivation: Young readers will enjoy this folktale with its exaggerated and humorous illustrations.
Vocabulary: Encourages vocabulary learning through clear and familiar representations of objects.
Print Awareness: Clear, readable text on contrasted background encourages print awareness.
Narrative Skills: The descriptive illustrations encourage children's understanding to tell the story.
Phonological Awareness: N/A
Letter Knowledge: N/A
Author/illustrator website: http://www.margaretreadmacdonald.com
by Margaret Read MacDonald illustrated by Sachiko Yoshikawa
Bibliographic citation:
Publisher: Albert Whitman and Company ©2011
32 pages
ISBN 978-0-8075-7513-0
Age recommendation: 4 years and up
Format: Picture Book / Hardcover
Awards/Selection lists:
Annotation: A magical boy grants a poor flower-seller's every wish until the greedy and ungrateful man grows tired of the boy’s unpleasant behavior and sends him away.
Review: An adaption of an ancient Japanese folktale, the story about the Boy from the Dragon Palace cautions against greed and selfishness in humans. With silly humor and vibrant, animated illustrations by Sachiko Yoshikawa, we meet a failed flower peddler who gives up his blossoms to the Dragon King who lives at the bottom of the sea. To thank the man for his offer to the Dragon King, a woman emerges from the sea with a small, snotty nosed boy. Promising to bring the peddler luck on the condition he feed the boy shrimp everyday, the woman gives the boy away and disappears. When the man discovers how easy the task is in return for whatever he wishes, he begins to wish for more and more and more fortune. The more he gets, the less interested he is in feeding the boy. Once he has everything, he no longer needs the boy and casts him off. We can guess what happens to the peddler's fortune and how gratitude and kindness always win out over greed and selfishness.
The watercolor collage illustrations are digitally enhanced and they have a Japanese art sensibility in detail and form. Young readers will love the exaggerated angles (really making the peddler like a big headed man) and of course, the snotty nose of the boy and the magic and fortune his sneezes produce. Overall, this folktale adaptation delivers a good laugh, and even a better message.
Themes/Issues: Folklore from Japan; Kindness wins over greed.
Early Literacy Skill Value:
Print Motivation: Young readers will enjoy this folktale with its exaggerated and humorous illustrations.
Vocabulary: Encourages vocabulary learning through clear and familiar representations of objects.
Print Awareness: Clear, readable text on contrasted background encourages print awareness.
Narrative Skills: The descriptive illustrations encourage children's understanding to tell the story.
Phonological Awareness: N/A
Letter Knowledge: N/A
Author/illustrator website: http://www.margaretreadmacdonald.com