Hattie K reviewed The Dragon Prince by Laurence Yep
Traditional Literature - A Chinese Beauty and the Beast Tale
4 stars
This adaptation of Beauty and the Beast is based in Chinese mythology. While both author Laurence Yep and illustrator Kam Mak are from the United States, their attentiveness to creating a Chinese fairy tale is visible. The illustrations are both realistic when it comes to the people, and beautifully rich in color and contrast with the fantastical elements like the dragon!
The story begins with a poor farmer and his seven daughters, who spend their days toiling unsuccessfully in the fields while the youngest daughter cooks, cleans and weaves beautiful silk. When a series of events lead the farmer to encounter a ferocious dragon, the youngest daughter offers herself as a sacrifice in place of her father. The dragon sweeps her away but does not eat her as she imagined he would!
I found this story to be a beautiful re-telling. I'm not well versed in Chinese mythology, but the …
This adaptation of Beauty and the Beast is based in Chinese mythology. While both author Laurence Yep and illustrator Kam Mak are from the United States, their attentiveness to creating a Chinese fairy tale is visible. The illustrations are both realistic when it comes to the people, and beautifully rich in color and contrast with the fantastical elements like the dragon!
The story begins with a poor farmer and his seven daughters, who spend their days toiling unsuccessfully in the fields while the youngest daughter cooks, cleans and weaves beautiful silk. When a series of events lead the farmer to encounter a ferocious dragon, the youngest daughter offers herself as a sacrifice in place of her father. The dragon sweeps her away but does not eat her as she imagined he would!
I found this story to be a beautiful re-telling. I'm not well versed in Chinese mythology, but the author & illustrator seem to create an authentic and culturally appropriate version of the traditional Beauty and the Beast tale. I'm not sure it has any significant take-aways or new endings that would warrant a close study or classroom use, but I would make it available to students who enjoy fairy tales, or are looking for a Chinese version of the tale.