IN THE PARK

In her continuing series of books on writing Chinese characters (In the Snow, 1995), Lee beautifully executes paper-cut illustrations with a spring theme. Xiao Ming and his mother go to the park, where she teaches him some Chinese characters: The one for earth looks like a plant growing; chirp combines the characters for bird and for mouth; Xiao Ming describes the character for umbrella as looking like people under a big roof. The dialogue is fairly lifeless, but the pictures are rich with detail: Lee’s use of pattern is masterly, and among the people she creates are a charming white-haired pair of elders, a couple expecting a child, and a person in a wheelchair. The written Chinese characters are clearly illustrated in the text and end papers, where pronunciation is provided. (Picture book. 5-9)