White Duck: A Childhood in China (Single Titles) (Graphic Universe)

I really enjoyed the stories and their illustrations. This is a great primer for students to learn about another culture, particularly one that I think there are still misconceptions about here in the US. It was sweet to read that Liu's husband (the illustrator!) had to convince her to share this

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story, and that having their first child is what helped her to decide to do it.

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Liu's graphic novel is a collection of short stories about growing up right at the end of the cultural revolution. The stories are at times sweet and other times moving (such as when she goes with her father to see her poor cousins in central China). I like the disconnectedness of each of the

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stories (they are separate and short), but they still somehow manage to flow within the greater timeline of the book itself. It reminded me, a little of, Persepolis. As Marjane Satrapi showed us Iran through the eyes of a child and young adult, Liu shows us China through the eyes of her younger self. The illustrations are fantastic were done by her husband. They're warm when they need to be and harsh when it's called for. I highly recommend this book because, while you can get any old history of China, it's rare to come by such vivid illustrations that let us see exactly what life was like, for example, when Mao died. I hope that more people read White Duck (also known as Little White Duck), if only because it'll show you a little bit what life was (and probably still is, in many cases) like growing up in China.

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Stunning, emotional art brings 1970s China to life through vignettes of the author's childhood. Hand this to fans The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis, Kampung Boy by Lat, or Drawing from Memory by Allen Say. I'd also hand it to fans of Red Scarf Girl by Ji-Li Jiang or A Girl

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Named Faithful Plum by Richard Bernstein.

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A lovely graphic novel comprised of a series of vignettes about the author's childhood in post-Mao China, showcasing the differences between her childhood and her parents'.

Amazing art with an amazing memoir like feel. I love reading memoirs so this was a twist to something I love.

It is amazing how much history can be included in a graphic novel. Based on the childhood of the author and illustrated by her husband, this is a personal look into the recent history of China. This book appears on a number of "best books of 2012" and it is well deserved.

Good art, moving story of a childhood in Chine. An interesting perspective for a graphic novel and very well done.

An exceptional graphic memoir about growing up in China in the 1970s. Superbly written and illustrated.

This brief graphic novel relates several episodes that occurred during the author's childhood in China in the 1970s, including the death of Mao Zedong and a visit to her father's poverty-stricken hometown. The stories are from a young child's perspective, but the book seems to be aimed at older

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children or young teens, who can better understand the deeper meanings of the book's events.

An important inside look at a period of history that few tweens learn about in school. Readers will probably have questions, some of which are answered in the glossary, timeline, and map in the back of the book. Brief bloodless depictions of rat- and bird-killing, bug-spearing, and one instance of a cook cutting the head off a (dead) duck may keep this book out of the hands of the squeamish.

Recommended, especially as a precursor or supplement to something like "American Born Chinese."

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Autobiographical memories from a girl's childhood in the 1970s in China. Liu Na recalls the national mourning when Chairman Mao died, her parents' insistence about not wasting food due to their childhoods lived in hunger and poverty (pre-cultural revolution), the traditions of family and foods of

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Chinese New Year, and visiting rural China to her father's hometown where progress and wealth had not yet reached.

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Response - I really liked the author's style and voice. Her stories are touching and personal, yet simple.

Curricular connection - I would use this with upper elementary or middle school students in a social studies unit or to teach literacy skills

A young girl describes her experiences growing up in China, beginning with the death of Chairman Mao in 1976.

As story goes, it jumps around and ends abruptly, but that didn't bother me; it's just like the author telling you about her life. I love the illustrations.

I need some time to process these stories in historical context. It was certainly very interesting to hear the voice of a child growing up in communist China. The fact that these were true stories from one person's life was really new to me, especially since so much was presented in a positive

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light. Too much of what I've been taught about communist China is all the negatives and never the first person experience, which is of course filled with the positive AND negatives of real life.

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I love the art in this book and the fact that its an autobiographical piece, but considered going with 2 stars instead of 3 because I found the scenes of animal death quite disturbing. :/