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LEGEND OF THE MILKY WAY by Jeanne M.--Adapt. & Illus. Lee

LEGEND OF THE MILKY WAY

By

Pub Date: April 19th, 1982
Publisher: Holt, Rinehart & Winston

A plain, unelaborated version of the sky-maiden origin tale, this old Chinese legend tells of a young shepherd who plays the flute and a weaver princess drawn down from the heavens by his music. The two marry, but like all such unions this is not to be, and they end up as separate stars on either side of the milky way--or, as the story has it, on either side of a silver river drawn by the heavenly queen to keep the pair apart. It's a pity that the river comes across as gray, not silver; but Lee's flat, crisply designed scenes contain expressive qualities that suit the poignant story and spare telling.