Chinese Booklist

I benefited from the Chinese book list posted by a fellow homeschooling mother in her blog. I had checked out some of her books and really liked them. So I thought it would be useful to list here, some of the Chinese picture books we have enjoyed recently. They might not be hot from the press, just what caught our eyes: [library reference code]

• 五个小怪物 [JP DYE] -
  
• 在森林里[JP ETS] - translated from In The Forrest by Marie Hall Ets
  
• 爷爷的天使 - my personal favourite
• 布朗家的天才宝宝 - comical
  
• 布朗家的超级明星
• 岩石上的小蝌蚪 [JP XEH]
• 鲸鱼 [JP GOM] - reminds us of the Nazca drawings we read about in our history
  
• 两个好朋友 [J ESC]
• 两个好朋友的争吵 [J ESC]
• 院子里的小岛
• 我不想生气 [JP MOR] - short book about anger management (will want to look at others in the series)
  

I just want to make special note that we really love 爷爷的天使. It is a living book due to its wonderfully thougth-provoking illustrations. This book is about a grandfather's reflection of his whole life on his death bed. He spoke with pride about his bravery when he was young and how nothing terrible seem to ever happen to him; even through the war years. But as you read, you see pictures of his guardian angel protecting him time and time again. Then you will realize that he really had nothing to boast about at all.

Here is a picture of him falling down a tree but was not hurt because he was cushioned by his angel...


Other pages showed him boasting about how he dared to walk along dangerous deserted paths. At a corner, his guardian angel puts her hands over the eyes of his potential attacker...

This book brings to light how we often take God for granted.

My boys love to scrutinize the drawings. It became especially relevant one day. Their grandparents brought them to cycle so that I could have a "break". It was an exceptionally challenging trip for them. They cycled along the park connectors from Bedok to Changi AND BACK! Well, that is not all that impressive...

Along the way, D lost control and cycled into a HUGE drain. It was so deep, if Grandma had not been cycling behind him, nobody would have known where he had gone. His bike and him just disappeared completed. He was eventually fished out of the drain with minimal scratches! I was told, the drain was DRY and had LOTS of dried leaves in there to cushion his fall. This is clearly God's hand of protection!