A Caldecott Folk Tale

Title:  Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story From China

Author and Illustrator:  Ed Young

ISBN:  9780590440691 

Publisher:  Philomel

Genre:  Folk Tale

Guided Reading Level:  S

1990 Caldecott Medal Winner

* I have just added Lon Po Po to my long list of favorites and I hope you will too!

     Lon Po Po is a Chinese folk tale that was translated and illustrated by Ed Young.  The name Lon Po Po translates to grandma wolf and is a similar tale to the European folklore of Little Red Riding Hood.  Although the sequence of events in Lon Po Po has similarities to those in Little Red Riding Hood there are significant differences in each story, but the lesson to be learned from each story remains clear, “We must be careful when dealing with strangers”.  In the classroom one can use both pieces of literature to compare and contrast each story.  There are folk tales from many different places around the world that hold similarities to some of our favorites in the United States (i.e. Cinderella, sleeping Beauty or Snow White).   When considering the lesson in each of these pieces of literature one can understand why the original oral stories were created: to make their children aware of the presence of evil in the world.  In this folk tale our trickster is a wolf and Shang is the equivalent of the heroine.  In the story it is her clever and quick thinking that gets her and her sister’s, Toa and Paotze, safely away from the devious wolf.  Lon Po Po can also be used to learn more about Chinese culture as well as art.  

     Ed Young is from China, and has studied art in the United States.  The media used to create the illustrations in Lon Po Po are water colors and pastels and the style is Chinese panel art.  The illustrations are vibrant with color and bring the emotions of the story to life.  The colors turn darker as the danger draws near and then switches to bright and calming when the children are safe from danger.  I found the illustrations to be chilling, yet fantastic.  I grew fearful of the wolf as I looked at glimpses of his shape from page to page in the darkness.  I realized how powerful the children became when they were high in the bright green tree looking down at the small wolf pacing back and forth.  Looking at the illustrations made me feel as though I were looking at the scary wolf through the children’s point of view.  The trickster himself was fooled into becoming so obsessed with his own wants that he did not realize what was actually going on until it was too late.  It is no wonder that this children’s picture book was chosen for the Caldecott medal in 1990.

     The Caldecott awards are given annually to up to five children’s picture books published in America that display the power of their words though their illustrations.  Only one picture book receives the bronze medal, which signifies the winner.  All the rest are marked with an honorary silver medal.  Lon Po Po was published in 1989, and won the bronze medal in 1990 and over two decades later is still sending shivers down the spines of its readers!