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CM . . . .
Volume V Number 12 . . . . February 12, 1999
Gifted author and illustrator Song Nan Zhang, winner of the Mr. Christie award
for A Little Tiger in the Chinese Night, has enriched the tale with
wonderfully vivid paints depicting the ancient Wolong Valley in Springtime.
Inspired by his experiences while traveling the Silk Road, the artist has
created nine beautifully detailed double-spread pages which are certain to hold
the attention of young viewers.
Granfield seems to have an unerring instinct for subjects that fascinate young
people. She has combined her love of history with a storyteller's imagination
to create outstanding books like In Flanders Fields:
the Story of the Poem by John McCrae [1995] and Amazing Grace:
the Story of the Hymn [1997]. However, The Legend of the Panda,
with its blend of folklore and information, is not quite so successful. The
narrative belongs rather to Dolma than to the pandas, and the episode at the
end of the story when her sisters choose to join Dolma in death will be
puzzling and disturbing to five and six year olds.
The author has augmented the book with two pages of information about the giant
panda in which she mentions the efforts undertaken by the World Wildlife Fund
to save the endangered animal. The reading level of this segment of the book
is considerably more advanced than the narrative preceding it, thereby
presenting a minor difficulty in ascertaining the intended audience for this
picture book. This little essay is definitely too difficult to be read aloud
to primary students; however, it could prove useful resource for students in
upper elementary grades who are often required to do projects on endangered
species.
Recommended.
Valerie Nielsen, a recently retired teacher-librarian, lives in Winnipeg,
MB, and co-chairs the committee responsible for the Manitoba Young Reader's
Choice Award.
To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.
Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association.
Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice
is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without
permission.
Published by
TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THIS ISSUE - FEBRUARY 12, 1999.
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Children are
particularly fond of legends which explain how animals came to be the way they
are. In her retelling of The Legend of the Panda, Linda Granfield,
award-winning author of 15 non-fiction books for young readers, has given her
audience a simple and moving story of how the panda came to have its black and
white coat. Dolma is a beautiful young shepherdess who tends her sheep on the
steep slopes of the mountains surrounding the Wolong Valley in China. When a
small white panda cub, known as a "Beishung," joins the flock, Dolma is
delighted to watch him nibble bamboo shoots and frolic with her sheep and
lambs. One day, returning from gathering herbs, Dolma surprises a snow leopard
attacking the defenseless Beishung. Without a thought for her own safety,
Dolma rushes forward and attempts to beat off the attacker. Although she saves
the panda cub, Dolma is killed by the snow leopard. The Beishung, out of their
deep love for Dolma, join the grieving villagers in smearing themselves with
ashes. As the pandas wipe their eyes and hug themselves, they stain their
thick white fur with black.