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Material Type | Library | Call Number | Suggested Age | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book | Searching... Williamson Public Library | JE HIL | Juvenile | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
All his life, Chang has not been able to speak. The only sounds he can make are the squawks and caws of the cormorants his father trains for fishing. Chang loves the birds, and is thrilled when he is finally old enough to help raise a cormorant chick. But this is more challenging than Chang expects, for in the process he must learn hard lessons about untrustworthy friends and what it really means to prove himself. Elizabeth Starr Hill's poignant story, set on the Li River in southern China, is accompanied by the evocative illustrations of Taiwanese artist Lesley Liu.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-6Chang lives on a houseboat on Chinas Li River with his parents and their cormorants, great black birds trained to dive and retrieve fish for their owners. Though he has been mute since birth, he can make sounds the birds understand. Through short chapters and simple sentences, the author traces the boys growth as he helps his father during a night catch, copes with a bully named Jinan, and makes friends with Jinans sister. When Changs father decides he is old enough to raise and train a cormorant chick, the boy is overjoyed. Jinan almost causes the precious chicks death, but Chang stands up to his tormentor and emerges all the stronger for the conflict. This story does not reach the same heights of immediacy and engagement that Ann Cameron gives to The Most Beautiful Place in the World (Knopf, 1988). The conflict seems a bit contrived and the concluding sentence is a clich, but librarians should overlook these minor flaws to acquire a rare item: a realistic story set in modern China thats accessible to readers as young as second grade, yet not too juvenile for older readers with less skill. The black-and-white illustrations offer a glimpse of the Li Rivers wondrous landscape while portraying a loving family and the hardworking birds who bring them fish.Margaret A. Chang, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
This affecting slice-of-life story set in Southern China features a mute boy who lives on a houseboat where his family raises cormorants that catch fish for them to sell. Although Chang can't speak, "the birds seemed to understand his odd squawks and croaks," and so the local bully, Jiang, nicknames him "Bird Boy." Now old enough to go cormorant fishing with his father, Chang proves himself such a worthy helper that he is entrusted with raising the family's new chick. When Jiang kidnaps the baby bird and nearly kills it, it's up to Chang to rescue and nurse it back to health. Hill's (Evan's Corner) economical prose effortlessly weaves in multiple themes of courage, responsibility and friendship (between boy and birds as well as boy and Mei Mei, the bully's sister) while shedding light on a Chinese family's unique way of earning a living. With his cheerful and resourceful nature, Chang is a believable and sympathetic character; the small-scale domestic dramas around which Hill builds her tale create a pace and flow as rhythmic as the river where Chang makes his home. Final artwork not seen by PW. Ages 8-up. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Young Chang, who can make sounds but cannot form words, lives on a houseboat on a river, where his father uses trained cormorants to fish. Chang learns about friendship and trust when he is given the chance to raise a cormorant chick. Both text and illustrations in this chapter book provide clear pictures of the characters and the setting in southern China. From HORN BOOK Fall 1999, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Chang, mute from birth but able to imitate bird sounds, is thrilled when his father, a cormorant fisherman, decides he's old enough to help with the ""Big Catch,"" a night when thousands of fish gather in one particular spot on the Li River in southern China. Chang does so well that he is then allowed to help raise a cormorant chick. When a local bully, Jinan, steals it, Chang must stand up for himself, rescue the bird, nurse it back to life, and protect it. The story is almost incidental to the fascinating world the author depicts: Chang's family lives on a houseboat and uses trained cormorants to catch the fish for them. The details of this, and of the raising of the cormorant chick, are enthralling, and outside the experience and knowledge of most US children. As an introduction to a remote, intriguing world, this novella will capture the imagination and curiosity of young readers. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Gr. 2^-4. Chang, who was born mute, lives with his parents on a houseboat on the Li River in China. Perhaps because he was raised with the cormorants his family uses for fishing, he has developed a special relationship with the birds. Consequently, he's thrilled when his father finally agrees to let him help raise a cormorant chick. The experience is a life-changing one. Chang seems to blossom and grow right along with the chick, and his confidence is further boosted when he develops a friendship with the sister of a village boy who has always taunted him. Then comes a near-fatal error in judgment, and Chang learns the hard way that his friendship and trust must be given only to those who earn it. Youngsters, especially those with disabilities, will strongly identify with Chang, and Lesley Liu's detailed drawings capture the flavor of the Chinese landscape. Like the text, the pictures will increase readers' awareness of life in China. --Lauren Peterson
