(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Rosemary Feit Covey. An eccentric librarian, as well as a few guests visiting the library, relate a series of narratives to students at an alternative high school. The stories--which concern old women transformed into squirrels, fish reborn as humans, and crows and roosters that viciously attack--are uneven in quality and contain unnecessarily convulted devices. Readers will be drawn to the subject matter, however, and to the illustrative engravings.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(2) 4-6 The author has drawn from the folklore of China to compose the fifteen stories that make up this book. Some are based on legends; others, incorporating traditional Chinese motifs and lore, are of her own creation. Porte weaves the stories together with personal comments that, without being intrusive, help to create a fascinating and surprisingly intimate picture of Chinese life over countless generations.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.