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The Willow Pattern Story

Name: The Willow Pattern Story
Author: Allan Drummond
ISBN: 9781558584136

by Allan Drummond, Alan Drummond

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Overview

Any child who has ever imagined a journey into a two-dimensional expanse will be carried away by the passion Drummond brings to the subject. An IRA-CBC Children's Choice. NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies. American Bookseller Pick of the Lists. Full color.

The author retells a story heard as a child, one of many invented to explain the landscape on willow pattern china, popular for the last 200 years. In this, two young Chinese lovers are punished by one's cruel mandarin father.

Synopsis

Publishers Weekly

``Absorbing and distinctive,'' said PW of this story inspired by a classic china pattern. Ages 5-8. (Mar.)

About the Author, Allan Drummond

Illustrator Allan Drummond received his degree in Graphic Design from London College of Printing and Illustration from the Royal College of Art. Allan lives with his wife and three sons in Savannah, Georgia. His web site is www.allandrummond.com.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

``Absorbing and distinctive,'' said PW of this story inspired by a classic china pattern. Ages 5-8. (Mar.)

Children's Literature - Marilyn Bagel

For more than 200 years, the familiar blue-on-white Willow china pattern, an intricate British design based on Chinese motifs, has attracted and captivated countless admirers. In the nineteenth century, a folk tale emerged that wove the pattern's design elements into a love story that has lasted generations. No one knows the story's originator. But author-illustrator Drummond began with the version he was told as a child. It is about a Chinese mandarin's beautiful daughter, Koong Shee, and her beloved Chang; the mandarin's servant...the grand pagoda nestled among peonies and camellias...the zigzag fence...the paradise garden...the two doves in flight above the weeping willows. After reading this captivating tale, readers will never look at Willow pattern china in the same way again.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-3-- Drummond relates his version of the story depicted on the willow pattern china. It is a tale of star-crossed lovers eventually put to death by the maiden's vengeful father and reborn as doves eternally kissing above the painted landscape. The author/illustrator re-creates the feel of the pottery art with his predominantly pale blue-and-white gouache and pencil illustrations. However, for children who have not seen a willow pattern plate, the idea will remain obscure. The story, invented in the 1800s to fit the picture on the china, has traditional, folkloric elements but lacks a sense of authenticity. It sounds like an advertising ploy, and this retelling doesn't salvage it. While adequately written, it won't generate much interest. --Karen James, Louisville Free Public Library, KY