Ten of my Children’s Favorite Chinese Books
by Alice Wong
Finding books with quality content and illustrations can be a frustrating and time- consuming task. I usually fly to Taiwan, because I like to read books with Zhuyin, but the selection was overwhelming. When I found out that Bring Me A Book actually published a Guide to the best Chinese books for children, I simply just ordered the books over the internet.
My Western friends often ask me to recommend great Chinese books for the tutors to read to their children. It is even more difficult for them because the descriptions on the guide are in Chinese, and even in a shop they’ll have no idea what the books were about.
In this blog, I’ve selected just 10 of my children’s favorite books. Some are available in Chinese and English. This is great because you can enjoy reading the story too. For me, I would read the story in Chinese and then my husband would read it in English.
These are just a few of the ones they like now,
it changes all the time and not everyone will find the same book interesting. Isabella (2) has very different tastes to her brother Patito (4). Hope these books bring joy to your children too.
(1) I’ve turned into a Fire-Breathing Dragon! (ISBN: 986794250-7)
This is our all time favorite book and it comes with a CD of the story in both Chinese and English.
It’s about a mosquito who likes to bite really angry people and gives them a fire-breathing disease. One day he bit this dragon who turned into a fire-breathing dragon. He tried everything to extinguish the flames; jumping into a swimming pool, hiding in the refrigerator… but the flames kept on burning. He was hungry, tired and had no friends. In the end he manages to overcome the problem and you see the mosquito huffs off to find his next victim.
(2) The Little Pig that Can’t Fly! (ISBN: 978-986-774-236-0)
This is a cute story about a pig that felt unsatisfied with his life. He thinks that it must be more fun to be another animal. He tries all sorts of ways to transform himself, including painting stripes on his body and pretending to be a zebra. All attempts fail and in the end he discovers that being a pig and rolling about in the mud is the best feeling of all.
(3) I am a Tyrannosaurus ( ISBN: 978-986-718-836-6)
This is Patito’s favorite story. It is a touching story about how a little Peteinosaurus saves the life of a terrifying Tyrannosaurus. The Tyannosaurus was hurt and temporarily blind. Little Peteinosaurus pretended to be another Tyrannosaurus in order to get close and care for the Tyrannosaurus. One day the Tyrannosaurus wanted to return the favor but little Peteinosaurus fled because he thought that the Tyrannosaurus realized his true identity and wanted to eat him. Little did he know, the Tyrannosaurus knew all along and he just wanted to be friends.
(4) Guess How Much I Love You (ISBN: 957-762-068-X)
I personally love this book. Very sweet which makes you say “ahhhhh” at the end. It’s available in English as well.
The Little Hare and Big Hare enjoys a mini competition over who loves the other the most; As much as the length of their arms, as high as they can reach…Little Hare keeps loosing because big Hare is so much bigger. It ends with Little Hare falling asleep in Big Hare’s arms and Big Hare whispering, “ I love you right up to the moon AND BACK.”
(5) Guji Guji (ISBN: 986-161-017-0)
Julie Fowlkes first read this to me at our reading seminar, and I was sitting at the edge of my seat, completely engrossed in the story. I love this story. The English translation is in the back but there is also an English version. The book comes with a CD as well.
An odd looking egg rolls into a duck’s nest and hatches with 3 other ducks. He is called Guji Guji because that was the first sound he made. Mother Duck loves them all the same. One day 3 ugly devious crocodiles ridicule Guji Guji for pretending to be a duck, and tells him to admit that he is a crocodile and help them set a trap for the other ducks. Guji Guji saves the ducks and becomes the duck hero, a crocoduck!
(6) Dong Dong, Wait a Moment (ISBN: 986-7942-15-9)
This is one of Isabella’s favorites. It is actually quite sad. The story talks about how a little boy tries relentlessly but unsuccessfully to capture his parent’s attention. Each time, the parent would say, “ Dong Dong, wait a moment, I don’t have time right now”. He gets eaten by a monster. The monster enters the house, eats the food, watches the television and goes to bed without being noticed. He says, “ Hey, I am a monster”, but the mother says “ Dong Dong, I don’t have time right now, go to sleep”. It seems simple at first. The author repeats the same sentence over and over again. For this reason, Isabella easily memorized the book and thoroughly enjoys filling in blanks as I read.
(7) Courage Soup (ISBN: 978-986-718-827-4)
An adventure book about Halin the Raccoon who is scared of EVERYTHING. His friends suggests that what he needs is “ Courage soup”. Big bear says that in order to drink the soup he must bring the final ingredient back from the monster cave up on the hill pass the black forest, all alone.
Halin overcomes his fear and brings back the box, only to discover that it was empty. Halin thought he failed, but Big bear explains, Courage Soup doesn’t give courage, only courageous people can drink it.
(8) Little Chicks go to the Supermarket (ISBN: 978-986-718-822-9)
This is another one of Isabella’s favorites. There is not much text, but the illustrations are fun. Lots of things are happening at the same time.
Mother hen takes
her 5 little chicks to the supermarket. The chicks play hide and seek and then go about shopping for the things they like; doughnuts, cookies, lollipop… but Mother Hen has a different agenda and stops them just as they reach the cashier. The little chicks are so disappointed. They sag their shoulders and bow their heads even as Papa comes home to give them a bath. However when they discovered that Mother Hen had made delicious pasta, their favorite meal, they exclaimed “ We love Mama the most”. All is well again in the house.
(9) So Itchy, So Itchy！(ISBN: 986-7158-78-4)
This is another sweet and simple book. The story begins with a little bear playing happily in the garden. Suddenly his back became very itchy. He couldn’t scratch it, no matter how hard he tried. His friends; the monkey, the woodpecker, the hedgehog and the elephant, all tried to help, but it only made it worse. He cried as he ran home, wet and itchy into the comfort of Mother Bear’s arms, and it all became better.
(10) Mr Tall and Mr Fat (ISBN: 978-986-6608-01-8)
To me this is a really original book. There are 2 stories. One starts from the right, with Mr Fat hurting his leg and being rushed to the hospital, the other from the left with Mr Tall receiving a call and rushing to the hospital to visit Mr Fat. Both stories meet and finish in the middle.
This book is full of surprises; little fun captions, flaps to flip, and problem solving puzzles. See if you can spot little red riding hood and three little pigs.
About Alice
Alice is Taiwanese, married to a Chilean-Dutch husband and they have two adorable children; Patricio (4) and Isabella (2). She gave up her high-strung executive life for the exciting challenges of motherhood. She enjoys reading, playing sports, traveling and spending quality time with her family. She finds that when things get tough, the most helpful support comes from her circle of mummy friends. She loves sharing tips and experiences with other parents.
