The River Dragon

"The River Dragon" takes place in China, telling the story of Ying Shao. Ying Shao was betrothed to Kal-Li when he was very young. Ying Shao was a blacksmith, it displeased Kal-Li's father because he was a goldsmith. The father tried to delay the wedding but finally a date was set. The father invited Ying Shao to the traditional three-banquet course. In the first banquet the father prepared some swallows, as the main course. Not Ying Shao was afraid because in this story there are dragons and dragons love to eat swallows. Ying Shao had to eat all the swallows because it would be disrespectful if he didn't. But how would Ying Shao escape the dragon because dragons have a good sense of smell. I like the pictures in this story because of the colors and I love the way of how Ying Shao tricks the dragons. I wouldn't say this would be one of my absolute favorites because the story was predictable but I enjoyed the pictures with the story.

"The River Dragon" is a beautifully written book that tells the tale of a very clever boy who must outwit both a frightening dragon and difficult father-in-law to be. I started reading this book to my son when he was five years old and it remains a favorite. The book is full of marvelous imagery from Chinese culture and is so poetically written that it is a delight to read out loud. It can be difficult to find, so I have had to special order the book in the past in order to give the book to my friends and family members. The illustrations are also memorable!