"Images constructed of cut paper and collage embellish the artist's bilingual versions of stories connected with five familiar Chinese sayings. The sayings teach various lessons. A lazy farmer starves while idly waiting for good luck to repeat itself. A musician learns to play what is appropriate to his audience. A crane and clam engage in a battle of wills that both lose. An old horse, using its long memory, leads a general's army home. A man's professed love of dragons reveals itself to be deep-rooted fear. The proverbs mentioned in the title are printed only in Chinese. The English text does not translate them as short, pithy sayings, but instead amplifies each well-known proverb with stories that read like fables. Bilingual source notes referring to specific works of Chinese literature are appended. Xuan provides modern adaptations of traditional Chinese paper cuts that are striking."
School Library Journal
"Images constructed of cut paper and collage embellish the artist's bilingual versions of stories connected with five familiar Chinese sayings. The sayings teach various lessons. A lazy farmer starves while idly waiting for good luck to repeat itself. A musician learns to play what is appropriate to his audience. A crane and clam engage in a battle of wills that both lose. An old horse, using its long memory, leads a general's army home. A man's professed love of dragons reveals itself to be deep-rooted fear. The proverbs mentioned in the title are printed only in Chinese. The English text does not translate them as short, pithy sayings, but instead amplifies each well-known proverb with stories that read like fables. Bilingual source notes referring to specific works of Chinese literature are appended. Xuan provides modern adaptations of traditional Chinese paper cuts that are striking."
"Xuan's book bestows upon the reader the precious gift of both a fine collection of proverbs and amazingly lovely art."
-Pacific ReaderYong-Shen Xuan, a native of Shanghai, China, began his interest in the Chinese tradition of the delicate and sometimes tedious paper-cut technique at a very young age. He studied art at several prestigious institutes, including the Central Arts and Crafts University in Beijing. In 1990 Xuan moved to Regina, Saskatchewan, and later settled in Windsor, Ontario. His other children’s books include D is for Dragon Dance and The Story of Chopsticks.
Shen’s Books is a publisher of multicultural children’s literature that emphasizes cultural diversity and tolerance, with a focus on introducing children to the cultures of Asia.
Through books, we can share a world a stories, building greater understanding and tolerance within our increasingly diverse communities as well as throughout our continuously shrinking globe.


















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