Title The Sons of the Dragon King Author Ed Young Illustrated By Ed Young Publisher Atheneum Books for Young Readers - 2004 First Printing Atheneum Books for Young Readers - 2004 Category Mythology Warnings None Main Characters The dragon king and his nine sons Main Elements Dragons

"Behaviour not befitting the son of the Dragon King?"

The Dragon King has sent his nine sons out to find their places in the world, but rumours abound - each son is apparently as aimless as the next! One son does nothing but stare into space, another spends his day frolicking in a stream, another plays with fire, and still another hollers and yells from noon to night. The king realizes it's time to visit each son to see if the rumours are true. What he finds surprises him, for each son has a very special gift that continues to serve and enrich China's culture to this very day.

Two-time caldecott winner Ed Young brings us a legend of a very special parent recognizing the potential in his very special children, and in doing so, shows how a simple folktale shaped a visible part of Chinese culture.

This is a beautiful retelling of a Chinese legend. The Dragon King hears stories about how each of his sons are not behaving as they should and he dresses as a peasant to see if there is truth in the rumours (love the little picture of the "peasant" with the dragon head) and visits each son in turn. Indeed, each one is behaving badly, but that behaviour could be turned to a good use and each son is assigned a task, some to protect boats on rivers, some to watch for enemies, some to guard houses. Much as I enjoy European fairy tales, I'm glad some authors choose to translate and retell these Asian tales for us, for they are as beautiful and meaningful, if not more so.

I also really enjoyed Young's minimalistic black and white illustrations in the Chinese style, it went perfectly with the story.