Princess and the Peas by Rachel Himes
In Princess and the Peas, Rachel Himes puts her own twist on Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Princess and the Pea”. This book is #ownvoices for African-American representation. It’s the 1950s in South Carolina, and Ma Sally has begun to worry about her son John marrying a girl who can’t cook as well as Ma. She decides to host a cooking competition – whoever can cook the best black eyed peas can marry John. Three eager young women completely fail at the task, but then Princess, the new girl in town, arrives to give it a shot. She cooks the best peas Ma’s ever tasted and Ma is happy to have her marry John. But Princess has her own plans in mind.
Himes’ retelling does with away the inane concept of a princess being disturbed by a pea and replaces that determining factor with a practical skill. She also gives the ‘princess’ agency by having her not immediately agree to marriage but instead ask what John can do for her. The marriage only takes place after Princess and John have had time to get to know each other. Princess and the Peas exemplifies what a good feminist fairy tale retelling can look like.
By centring African-American characters, Himes tells not just a fairy tale but also a story grounded in a real culture and history. In an author’s note, Himes acknowledges, “I wanted to represent an African-American community full of vibrant individuals”. With so few picture book representations of African-Americans (particularly in books written by African-Americans), this book becomes especially important. The colourful illustrations contribute to the book’s intended meaning by helping to convey that community full of vibrant individuals, with large and positive depictions of Ma Sally, John, Princess, and a variety of other community members.
Extension activities could include making the recipe for black eyed peas found in the back of the book, sharing family favourite recipes, or retelling other fairy tales to set them in a different time period or to transform the traditional roles of the characters.
Dear Juno by Soyung Pak (illustrated by Susan Kathleen Hartun)
Juno loves receiving letters from his grandmother who lives far away in Korea, though he cannot read her language. When his parents are too busy to read the letter to Juno, he ‘reads’ it himself. He understands the letter’s contents from the additional items his grandmother includes. Juno decides to write a letter back, in his own way that she’ll be able to understand. The story concludes with the promise of Juno’s grandmother coming to visit. This book is #ownvoices for Korean-American representation.
The narrative demonstrates a creative way in which communication barriers can be overcome. Juno takes initiative in the letter exchange (instead of waiting for his parents to translate), as he draws pictures that convey what he wants to tell his grandmother. It also highlights the value of intergenerational communication by depicting the positive manner in which Juno and his grandmother communicate. The book could be used in discussions about communicating with people who speak different languages, or keeping in touch with family who live far away.
The soft and warmly lit illustrations (created by oil paint glazes that were “blotted and manipulated to create different effects”) invoke the sense of a loving family, including Juno, his dog, his parents, his grandmother, and his grandmother’s cat, even though distance separates them. Three illustrations depict Juno’s smiling grandmother – in her garden during summer, reading Juno’s letters, and in her garden during winter. These illustrations give the reader a glimpse into both of their lives, even though the story is told from Juno’s perspective. The illustrations extend the story’s meaning by showing how Juno’s communication with his grandmother has a positive effect on her, even when they are so far apart.
Extensive activities could include planning a day with a relative who has come to visit (or with Juno’s grandmother), ‘writing’ a letter like Juno’s (drawing to convey a specific message) to a penpal, or mapping distances between home and other countries.
Grandma Lives in a Perfume Village by Fang Suzhen (illustrated by Sonja Danowski)
Xiao Le’s Grandma lives far away and he hasn’t seen her in a long time. When Xiao Le and his mother take the train to visit Grandma, Xiao Le is at first shy to be around her, because she is ill and looks much older than he remembers. Xiao Le eventually takes to his Grandma, enjoying his visit with her. Xiao Le does not visit Grandma again, as Mom tells him, “Grandma has left Perfume Village and moved into heaven.” Xiao Le comforts Mom by noticing her grief and commenting on what Grandma is doing in heaven. Xiao Le and Mom find solace in the idea that Grandma now lives in a Perfume Village that is too far to visit by train. This book is #ownvoices for Taiwanese representation.
The illustrations in this book are delicate and lovely, full of realistic detail that conveys a strong sense of place and people. The colour palette gives the book a nostalgic, wistful mood. The expressions of Xiao Le, Mom, and Grandma convey clear emotions, including fear, confusion, happiness, and love. In particular, the evolution of Xiao Le and Mom’s expressions after Grandma’s passing help convey the book’s message that grief is a process.
This book could be used with very young children (Xiao Le appears to be around four years old) in order to gently introduce the concept of losing a loved one. Parallels might be drawn between a child’s terminally ill family member and Grandma. While Xiao Le is too young to experience the same kind of pain that Mom feels, he also thinks about where Grandma has gone. The story does not use the word death, but focuses on the concept of being unable to ever visit someone again – something that a young reader can more readily understand than simply saying someone has died. The final page also addresses a child’s concern that another person they love might go to heaven.
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