Henry & The Kite Dragon - Hardcover

Hall, Bruce Edward

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0399237275 ISBN 13: 9780399237270

Publisher: Philomel Books, 2004

Synopsis

Everyone knows that kids from Chinatown don't go to the park when the kids from Little Italy are there. They're rough, they're big, and they don't like Chinese kids. That's okay-Henry doesn't like them, either.

But what Henry does like are kites. He loves them. Even more, he loves to help his friend Grandfather Chin make them, and fly them over Chinatown and the park. But when Tony Guglione and his friends from Little Italy keep throwing rocks and destroying their beautiful creations, Henry and his friends decide enough is enough!

In this touching story based on true 1920's events, two rival groups of children representing two different cultures come face to face, and when they do, they find they share much more than just the same sky.

About this title

About the Author:

Bruce Edward Hall, a fourth-generation Chinese American, is the author of Tea That Burns: A Family Memoir of Chinatown, as well as other books. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, New York magazine, and American Heritage, among others. Besides his writing career, Mr. Hall also served as the head puppeteer on the televsion show Romper Room, and a principal puppeteer in The Muppets Take Manhattan. Mr. Hall lives in New York City.

William Low is a first-generation Chinese American who grew up in the Bronx. A graduate of Parsons School of Design, Mr. Low has studied in Paris and teaches at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. His beautiful work has been exhibited at galleries and museums, including the Society of Illustrators, the Museum of the City of New York, and the American Museum of Folk Art. Mr. Low lives in Huntington, New York.

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 4–Henry Chu lives in New York City's Chinatown in the 1920s. He loves everything about it, from eating tasty dumplings to making and flying kites with his neighbor, Grandfather Chin. One day when Grandfather's spectacular butterfly kite is chasing a pigeon, Tony Guglione and his friends from Little Italy throw rocks at it and destroy it. Then they ruin his magnificent caterpillar. When they attack Grandfather's dragon kite, Henry and his companions confront them. The children almost come to blows, but when the dragon appears in the sky, again chasing a pigeon, the root of the discord comes to light. Tony and his pals raise homing pigeons, and the kites are frightening their pets. A compromise is reached–kites fly in the morning, birds in the afternoon–and new friendships are formed. Hall's story includes descriptions and details that ground it firmly in time and place, and the plot serves as an excellent vehicle for discussing how seeing things from someone else's perspective is essential for peaceful relations. Low's heavily textured and brilliantly colored kites soar across the pages with energy and grace. This gentle and satisfying tale, which is particularly effective for group sharing, will be widely appreciated.–Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
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About this edition

• Publisher: Philomel Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0399237275
• ISBN 13: 9780399237270
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 40
• Illustrator: Low William