The Magic Brocade

Recommended grades 2-4.  Aaron Shepard adapts a Chinese folktale in his picture book, The Magic Brocade (Edustar Press, 2011).  In the story, an old widow becomes enchanted by an image of a fairy palace far to the east of her Chinese Village that no mortal has ever traveled to.  She spends months weaving her own brocade of the scene, only to have it stolen by the fairies themselves.  Her devoted son, Chen, must face certain danger to return the brocade to his mother on her death bed.  Chen is a hero on a familiar journey, and he is rewarded for his bravery with a romance of his own.  Illustrations by Xiajun Li are done in a marbled watercolor that bleeds and exudes a dream-like quality.  It may have been helpful to young readers to have an illustration of the brocade itself to understand the content vocabulary of the book.  The author did not include much background information on the origin of the story, which leads readers wanting more.  This book could still be used to introduce students to classic elements in folk and fairy tales, including traditional heroes, magical beings, and the similarities in these stories across the world.  Recommended, ***