“Song Hai’s friend Go Ming runs to sit beside him. I see a wistful look flicker across Song Hai’s face. He places his bun back on its wrapping, then tears it in half.
‘Here Go Ming,’ he says. ‘Please share my snack. It’s too much for me to eat alone.'”
Double Tap to ZOOM to enlarge type
Fully Illustrated Version
Picture Book for reading with the younger child – ages 3-6
This version of THANK YOU, MEILING includes all the luminous illustrations just waiting to enchant children of any age, and especially the read-to set.
If the text-only version is better for your needs, then please click on THANK YOU, MEILING in the Text-Only Version for the serious young reader – ages 6-9.
Happy reading in either Version.
THANK YOU, MEILING will help promote courtesy in young readers’ daily lives as well as introduce them to Chinese culture.
COURTESY – THINKING OF OTHERS
Visit a Chinese village for lessons in common courtesy.
On the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, the Song household will celebrate the Chinese Moon Festival. In preparation for this event, the boy Song Hai sets off on a shopping expedition, accompanied by an ill-mannered duck named Meiling. So begins this story of far-away customs and everyday courtesy.
Song Hai and Meiling visit the bustling town market where eager shoppers buy paper lanterns, fat mooncakes, and baskets of melons, crab apples, grapes, and other fruits that are as round as the big harvest moon.
Meiling learns all about the coming Moon Festival as she follows Song Hai on his special errands. But more important, she learns a thing or two about common courtesy-waiting her turn, saying “please” and “thank you,” helping others, and sharing.
Author Linda Talley’s whimsical story is illustrated by award-winning artist Itoko Maeno whose vivid watercolors capture the sights of a small town in southeast China-the narrow residential lanes, the marketplace with its colorful stalls, and the tidy courtyard where Song Hai and his family celebrate the Moon Festival.
As the luminous full moon rises high into the sky on this special night, Meiling enjoys her own festival treat, but not before demonstrating that she has learned her lessons in courtesy. She has learned to “stop and think of others.”
A SURPRISE and added bonus is the “Enrichment Information” which includes lots of facts about The People’s Republic of China, Chinese Writing and Language, Chinese Names, as well as the Moon Festival, Phases of the Moon, Inhabitants of the Chinese Moon, and best of all, Mooncakes! This is fascinating detail that did not make it into the story itself, but is very rich in interesting description.
A second big plus is the “Letter to Parents and Educators” which includes many relevant questions and comments to facilitate conversation with young readers about the message of the story…the importance of courtesy to others.
LITERARY MERIT
This book is one of a series of 25 luminously illustrated children’s books, each with an animal protagonist, a compelling geographic location, an important life skills message and multicultural enrichment materials.
Each serious lesson is embedded in an exciting colorful adventurous story…subtle, indeed.
These books are cleverly written by published authors with a high level of literary talent and wit and have been proofed and re-proofed.
Vist www.childrensebooksbyjoan.com
