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From School Library Journal --------------------------- Kindergarten-Grade 4—In 1958, in a stunning demonstration of unintended consequences, Mao Tse-tung decimated the sparrow population of China by compelling every able-bodied citizen to set off firecrackers, clang gongs, beat on drums, etc., over a three-day period. The frightened birds took wing until they dropped dead of exhaustion. Though this kept the sparrows from eating the wheat crop, it also prevented them from controlling the locust population, resulting in a famine. Pennypacker has imagined the thoughts and actions of a little girl who loves the sparrows and manages to rescue a few of them, keeping them safe in a barn and feeding them secretly in the months that follow. When the crops in her village are threatened by the insects, Ming-Li shows the farmers the birds she has tended and they release them, recognizing that the sparrows have always been their friends. While this picture book, with its murky folk-art-style illustrations, owes more to ecological concerns than historical fact, it will be useful in teaching about the potential of one person to make a difference in the world, and the potential of many humans to create disasters.—Miriam Lang Budin, Chappaqua Public Library, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Read more ( javascript:void(0) ) From Booklist ( /gp/feature.html/?docId=1000027801 ) ---------------------------------------------------- In 1958, Chairman Mao declared war on sparrows. He blamed them for devouring the nation’s wheat crop, and he required all citizens, armed with pots and pans and firecrackers, to take to the streets and literally e the birds to death. The successful campaign brought on a plague of locusts and a three-year famine that resulted in the deaths of almost 40 million Chinese. The author takes these actual events as inspiration for a resonant, contemporary fable about Ming-Li, a girl who feels for the sparrows under attack, defies the leader, and rescues seven birds as they fall from the sky. Pennypacker strikes a suitably moralistic tone and tells her story with rich, descriptive detail. Tanaka matches the somber elegance of the text with opaque, folk-inspired paintings in a subdued palette. An author’s note explains the difficult facts behind the story. site the grave historical account, though, is an uplifitng image: on a field of white, a small nest with seven eggs promises the hope that springs from the simple actions of one empathetic heart. Grades K-3. --Thom Barthelmess Read more ( javascript:void(0) ) Review ------ The so-called Sparrow War, declared by Mao in 1958, furnishes the basis for this grim story. Deciding that sparrows are eating too much grain, "our Leader" orders his people to drive them away, and Ming-Li's whole village turns out to "[make] so much noise the ground itself rumble[s]." Ming-Li objects, pointing out that other birds will leave along with the sparrows, but she is silenced; on her own, she creates a bird refuge in an abandoned barn and becomes a heroine the following year, when the birds are needed to control worms, grasshoppers and other pests. Fans hoping for the insouciance of Pennypacker's Clementine will look in vain; Ming-Li's determination rises up against the frightening images of marauding villagers and of dead birds raining from the sky. Debut artist Tanaka contributes skillful but unsettling pictures-her overcast palette, skewed perspectives and stylized faces create the atmosphere of a bad dream. PW" Ming-Li is the youngest member of a farming family in China, and she's distressed when the country declares war on sparrows in an attempt to save the grain fields from the birds' depredations. As the villagers raise a clamor to drive the sparrows away from perches, the dead and dying birds drop to the ground. Even more concerned after her older brother's pet pigeon becomes one of the victims, Ming-Li convinces her brother to help her in rescuing the few sparrows who've survived their fall ("Seven sparrows," she says sadly. "When there used to be thousands"), tending them and hiding them through the winter; in the spring, the villagers discover their crops overrun by the pests the sparrows would formerly have eaten, and Ming-Li's secretly saved flock becomes the miracle that brings better days. This is a tender story smoothly told, based on China's misguided 1958 attempt to eradicate sparrows, and audiences will appreciate the heroism of the young protagonist. The relentless mowing down of the sparrows makes the account rather harrowing for its likely audience, though, and the story will leave them with a lot of questions, such as how noise kills the birds and how a mere seven sparrows can do the job of the lost flocks; the end, wherein Ming-Li's her procls Ming-Li a real farmer, is more random than satisfying. The illustrations have a smoothly grainy sweep that suggests oil pastels, and the controlled regularity of the modeling results in interestingly stylized scenes; the intricate and lovely sparrows, looking like delicate woodcrafting, stand out against the subdued background hues of misty landscape and dark barn. The combination distances the events somewhat (which may be for the better at its most heart-rending moments), but it's an original and elegant look. This might make for an unusual but dramatic addition to a unit on ecology, or it could simply provide listeners with a thoughtful example of youthful activism. A brief historical note is included. BCCB" In this sober tale based on Mao Zedong's 1958 edict to eradicate China's sparrows to prevent crop damage, a compassionate little girl follows her heart instead of her Leader. When Ming-Li learns of Mao's plan to eliminate the sparrows by creating noise for three consecutive days, she prophetically fears the terrible din will kill all birds. As mindless mobs beat drums, clang gongs, c cymbals and explode firecrackers, Ming-Li's worst fears are realized, but not before she hides seven sparrows, which she feeds and tends in secret. When spring arrives and shocked farmers watch helplessly as locusts decimate their crops, Ming-Li reveals her secret and saves her village from famine. Tanaka's quiet, simple illustrations in subdued tones match the somber mood. In her red suit, Ming-Li's solitary figure stands out from the villagers in their uniform blue jackets, reinforcing her individuality. Moving images, such as a double-page spread of dead sparrows falling like "teardrops" while a weeping Ming-Li cradles a limp bird, send a powerful message that one small person can make a big difference. (author's note) Kirkus" Read more ( javascript:void(0) ) About the Author ---------------- Sara Pennypacker is the author of the accled Clementine series, illustrated by Marla Frazee; Stuart's Cape and Stuart Goes to School, both illustrated by Martin Matje; and Dumbstruck. Sara lives in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Yoko Tanaka made her children's book debut with Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers. Before graduating from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, Yoko won a Gold Award from the Society of Illustrators in Los Angeles. Her work has been featured in several magazines, and in galleries across the globe. Sparrow Girl is her first picture book. Read more ( javascript:void(0) )