| Title | : | The Runaway Wok: A Chinese New Year Tale |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0525420681 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780525420682 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 32 |
| Publication | : | First published January 6, 2011 |
With spirited text and lively illustrations, this story reminds readers about the importance of generosity.
The Runaway Wok: A Chinese New Year Tale Reviews
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This book was on hold at the library and I just got it a few weeks after Chinese New Year. I loved this story based on the Dutch folk tale The Talking Pot. Ming and his family are one of the poor people. Like Jack, Ming trades a bowl of eggs for a rusted looking wok that he hears singing. It turns out to be a good trade.
The story has a lot of do with poverty and wealth and not sharing our riches. The wok evens the playing field. The wok is good luck for one family and bad luck for another. This all centers around the New Year and their feast. Ming and his family share with the village while the Li's who had the wealth did not. I love the art in this book. It is lovely and festive. It paints another culture with dignity and fun.
The kids had fun with this book too. When the wok put the miserly family into it and skips off they laughed and laughed. I really enjoyed this book immensely. I'm glad I did get to read it this year. -
When Ming's parents send him to the market, to trade their last eggs for some rice, he returns home with a rusty old wok instead - a seeming disaster with a surprise outcome. For the wok isn't just any old piece of cooking ware, but a magical object, and after being washed and shined, sets out to provide all the food, toys and games, and money that Ming's family, and all their poor neighbors in Beijing, need...
Unlike some of the other reviewers who rated this poorly, I was not offended by the "take from the rich and give to the poor" theme here, as it is a common one in many folk traditions - although a story for the Chinese New Year, The Runaway Wok is based on a Danish folktale, The Talking Pot - and does not rely on thievery (as has been claimed) to redistribute wealth, so much as fate. Ming and his family, after all, aren't the ones taking from the greedy man and his family, the wok - a magical object, uncontrolled by any human being, whose actions are meant to be impartial - is, dealing out both reward and punishment. Whether one thinks this punishment is too harsh or not, to describe what happens here as "theft" is to miss the point, incorrectly painting this as a "Robin Hood" story, when it is more a tale of cosmic justice.
All that said, I still found myself mostly unmoved by this second Chinese New Year's story from Ying Chang Compestine, probably because I was comparing it to her first,
The Runaway Rice Cake. In that story, an impoverished human family is rewarded for their generosity - their willingness to sacrifice their own comfort, to aid another in greater need - and the spirit of community that this engendered. Here, it just seems to be dumb luck, and while that sort of story has its place, the good fortune at the end didn't feel as satisfying, as a result. Still, tastes vary, and young readers looking for stories for Chinese New Year might still want to take a look at this one. -
1. Culture or group portrayed: Asian (Chinese, set in Beijing).
2. Book information: Compestine, Y. (2011). The Runaway Wok: a Chinese New Year Tale. New York: Dutton Children’s Books.
3. Summary: It’s Chinese New Year, and the Zhang family wants to celebrate with their friends, but they are short on money. They send their son, Ming, to market with the last of the eggs so that he can buy some rice. At the market, however, Ming is distracted by an old man with a broken-down wok, which speaks to him. Ming trades the eggs for the wok and brings it home, to the disappointment of his parents, until the wok speaks to his mother. The wok asks to be clean, so Mrs. Zhang scrubs it until it shines, and then it runs away. The wok travels to a rich man in Beijing, and takes heaping piles of food back to the Zhangs. He then travels to the rich man’s son, who is purchasing lots of toys and fireworks for New Year, and takes all of this back to Ming. Finally, the rich man’s gold is also taken by the wok and brought back to the Zhangs, who have a grand feast with their friends and neighbors. The wok, meanwhile, goes back to the rich family and ends up spiriting them away, no one knows where.
4. Cultural/Multicultural evaluation: The book portrays a Chinese family in Beijing during the New Year. The illustrations are very whimsical and colorful, and evoke the spirit of the time. The author, in a note at the back of the book, discusses more aspects of the Chinese New Year, such as important foods eaten during this time. The story is based on a Dutch folktale about a sharing pot, and while this book has the wok act as a Robin Hood-esque figure, taking from the rich man and giving to those who have none, that’s still stealing, and I’m not sure if that’s something we want to be teaching kids is okay. There is also a recipe for festival fried rice in the back of the book.
5. Conclusion/verdict: Recommended with reservations. Again, not so much the cultural aspects, just the fact that the wok is stealing from others. Perhaps it could be used in a classroom as a teaching moment, the differences between sharing and stealing. Without some sort of dialogue in tandem, however, I feel that the meaning might be misconstrued. -
The storytelling has a fun cadence, and the illustrations are tantalizing, especially of the food. I was a little surprised at how blithe the story is about the wok stealing everything from the rich family and then making them disappear. It makes all of the people happier, and they don't really know what the wok is doing necessarily, so it's not as strong an endorsement of theft and kidnapping as it could be, but it still may not be the best message.
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This was a decent story. It was a blend of the Grinch, Peter Pan, and Jack and the Beanstalk. I enjoyed it.
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This starts off like a bit of a Jack and the Beanstalk story, except there's not giant, just a rusty wok with no handles. It's almost New Year and Ming is given some eggs to trade for a bag of rice for his family's celebration. Even though Ming's father works, the family is poor because Mr. Li, the richest man in Beijing, doesn't pay his workers enough. On his way to the market, Ming meets a man who sells him a rusty wok after Ming hears it singing "Boy, Boy, trade for me/I am more than what you see." His parents are understandably upset when they see what Ming has done, but when the wok begins to sing again, then runs away, they are more than pleasantly surprised when it returns. Young readers will be pleased and surprised as well, when they see what this wok does. We read this every year now, and love the story as much as Sebastia Serra's colorful, lively illustrations.
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The Runaway Wok is a book about a magical wok who helps a poor family in Beijing to celebrate the Chinese New Year. The poor family wants to bring in the New Year by celebrating with their friends and family, inviting them over for a feast, and sharing their fortunes and toys with them. One day, the mother sends her young son to the market to trade the last of their eggs for a bag of rice in order to make fried rice for the celebration. On his way, though, a old man with a rusted wok convinces him to make his trade. The naive boy makes the trade and heads home, knowing little what magic the wok would bring. When the boy returns, the wok sings out that it needs to be polished. The family obliges, but then simply continues to prepare for the feast. As they busy themselves, the wok hops off to the rich lady's home, taking all of her food preparations back to the poor family. It then hops to the rich boy and his father, taking both their toys and gold coins back to the poor family. Last but not least, the wok hops back to the rich family's house where they are stunned to see the thieving wok. As they chase after the wok, they all tumble into it and the wok carries the greedy family to distant hills. In the background, though, the poor family celebrates and shares their treasures with all during the Chinese New Year.
This book is appropriate for audiences ages 2nd grade through 5th grade. I think what will appeal to these children is the introduction of a new idea or word: the wok, and also the busy illustrations on a place they've never been to. I would implement this book prior to the Chinese New Year and my student's would do a little bit of research about Beijing. We would read articles about the New Year festivities, and if I had a child in my classroom who had celebrated the Chinese New Year, I would have them tell us about their experience. I think this book is a definite one to implement if it relates to one of my students home life. Not only will the book make them feel comfortable, but it will be a sign of respect to their culture. I would also like to implement a lesson about greed and sharing, considering these two topics were heavily related to the book and the wok's magic. -
Compestine, Ying Chang. (2011). The runaway wok: a Chinese New Year tale. Dutton Children’s Books. New York, NY.
Text to Text: This was definitely a spin on Jack and the Beanstalk, though I really enjoyed the different twists of how the wok produced results for the family. Like Jack’s Mom, the mother in this story was disappointed with her son’s choice…..until the wok brought back food for the Zhang family. Reader’s could also make comparisons to the Gingerbread Boy and the running away from the “little old woman and the little old man.” The repeated phrase, ‘skippity-hoppity-ho!” will help young readers pay attention and engage in the story to find out “what’s next”. In comparison of the two, I adore this version! Possible applications for library/classroom include reading the text to celebrate the Chinese New Year, handing out fortune cookies and doing an in-depth whole group research project. History lessons and research could also be included with the great “Author’s Note” at the back of the book. Venn Diagrams could be used to compare/contrast American New Year’s Celebrations with those around the world.
Bloom’s Questions:
Remembering: What is the main idea of this story?
Understanding: Does this story remind you of another one that you’ve heard? Explain what the similarities between this story and Jack and the Beanstalk? How is it like the Gingerbread Man?
Applying: Does this story remind you of other ones that you’ve heard? Explain the similarities between this story and Jack and the Beanstalk? How is this story like the Gingerbread Man?
Analyzing: Make an outline of the main events, putting them in order from beginning to end. What was your favorite part of the story?
Evaluation: Do you think it was right of the wok to take food/toys/money from the Li family? Give your reasons to support your answer.
Creating: Rewrite this story, using the setting of another country.Gather details that relate to the country and its celebration. Instead of Chinese New Year, research another holiday and write a similar story based on that culture.
Book Review: (August/September 2011). Library Media Connection.
Retrieved from:
http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=2... -
This is an incredible book centered around Chinese cultures and traditions. I learned a lot about the Chinese New Year and its customs myself, from this book. It starts off with the poor Zhang family who is trying to scrounge up some rice to share with their neighbors for the Chinese New Year. They send their son to the market to sell eggs for some rice. The illustrations are incredible showcasing a Chinese market and traditional decorations. The boy ends up buying a rusty wok from an old man instead of rice and he comes back to very unhappy parents. The wok tells the mother to clean him until he is shiny. Once she does so, he hops off to the richest family in Beijing's house. The wok ends up fooling the wife and servants to put all their food for the feast into him and he takes all the traditional food back to the poor family. He does this to the rich son with his toys and the rich husband with his gold coins too. Then the poor family is able to share all the food, toys, and riches with their community and have a great Chinese New Year. Meanwhile the rich family tries to get payback with the wok and it ends up taking them away, never to be seen again!
This book could be used in elementary school even up until early middle school as a read-aloud. I do Christmas around the world with my students during the holidays. This would be a great addition and show how the Chinese celebrate around the holidays a bit differently with the Chinese New Year. In the back of the book it explains the Chinese New Year. This is a great way to teach global awareness in your classroom. You could also use this book in comparing and contrasting texts because the author wrote this book based off a Danish folktale The Talking Pot . You could compare how the folktales are alike and different.
This is a WOW book for me because I think the story is fun and invites the reader to become more culturally aware at the same time. The illustrations are really well done and I think give a glimpse into a culture and lifestyle much different than the one we live here in America. It also teaches about greed in a good way which I think is an important lesson for children to learn. -
I will read this book after the reading and talking of “A New Year's Reunion: A Chinese Story”, and make sure all students have the background information of Chinese New Year. The beginning for the new book will start with a review, “Do you remember the Chinese New Year’s book? What did we talk about the celebrating when we are reading that book together?” then I will let students to share their opinions about true meanings of Christmas Day and Chinese New Year, “What is the more important thing during the two holidays? Food? Gift? Or sharing, spreading your love to others?” Then I will open the book, and read the fiction story about a poor Chinese boy and a magical Chinese wok.
Opening moves include: activating background knowledge (How much you know about Chinese New Year now?), raising questions in the readers’ minds (What are the true meanings of Chinese New Year and Christmas Day), making them think about how to share love to their important people.
The pervious reading was the “A New Year's Reunion: A Chinese Story”, a nonfiction book about Chinese New Year and providing students authentic information about great Festival in Chinese. This book “The Runaway Wok: A Chinese New Year Tale” is a fiction book that telling students how to share their love to others, giving students a deep thinking about why people celebrate Festivals with families and friends. -
Little Ming has to go to market to buy some rice for the New Year's celebration; instead, he comes home with empty wok! His parents are a bit concerned what they are going to put in the wok, but the little wok comes to their rescue.
The wok travels down the road to the miserly rich family and collects festive stir-fried rice, pork, dumplings, steamed buns, walnut shrimp, long-life noodles, Kung Pao chicken, ginger fish, rice cakes; then he hurries to Ming's house, brimming over with delicious food!
The mother and father are so delighted and grateful they decide to hold a party to share all the food with their poor neighbors.
On his second trip the wok watches the rich man's son, Lan, who never shared his toys. The wok collects the fireworks, toy dragons, cymbals, drums, lanterns, yo-yos, and kites.
The wok then returns all the toys to little Ming, who happily shares the toys with his friends.
On its third trip, the wok goes to see Mr. Li, counting the money he had cheated out of the poor people. The wok collects as many gold coins as it could carry.
Then it returned and Father Zhang divided up the coins among the families.
Are you sensing a trend here?
A wonderful book, with incredibly detailed illustrations, this story is one for Chinese New Year and any day of the year. -
Inspired by the Danish folktale The Talking Pot,
The Runaway Wok: A Chinese New Year Tale is a new folktale about a boy named Ming growing up in Beijing. It is Chinese New Year, and although his parents work for the richest man in Beijing, Mr. Li, they have no money to have a Chinese New Year feast of their own. Ming brings his family's last two eggs to the market to trade for some rice, but is sidetracked by a large, handle-less wok. He brings the wok home instead, where it magically reverses their (mis)fortunes for Mr. Li's.
The illustrations are cute but also have a lot of detail to them (village scenes with lots of people, all doing different things), and there are a few paragraphs of text per page, so this book unfortunately isn't suited for a storytime. However, it could be a great bedtime storybook or book for children learning to read by themselves (and being up close gives more opportunities to see the pictures close-up)--especially around Chinese New Year time.
Ages 5-7 -
“The Runaway Wok” tells a fictional Chinese New Year tale about the happenings in a village during the holiday. It tells of a poor man who works for the richest businessman in China who sends his son to the market to trade their last eggs for a bag of rice to eat with friends. However, the son ends up bringing home an empty, but magical, wok that changes their fortunes while the rich greedy man essentially gets what he deserves. I would use this story to help the students dive into the concept of “fairness.” This would also be a good tool to use to show students that how they behave and treat others affects them (ex. the poor but kind man ended up with great fortune while the greedy rich man ended up destitute). This story would also teach rhyme (ex. “…trade for me, I am more than what you see”). The statement that outer appearance is not everything is also a valuable lesson that can be taught though this book. The colorful use of words and illustrations help to enhance the story and provide valuable visual stimuli to the students.
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I picked up this book at the library because of the cover art (yeah, I'm THAT kind of reader), but I was not disappointed by the story!
"The Runaway Wok" is about a poor family on New Year's Eve that is struggling to have enough food to share in the celebration. Ming is supposed to go to the market and trade the last of the family's eggs for some rice. Along the way the little boy gets distracted by a peddler and trades the eggs for a rusted wok with no handle. There's something special about this wok though. It sings and hops off to the rich mans house after Mama Zhang cleans it all up. The wok brings back food, toys and money for the Zhang family and they share it all during the New Year's celebration.
There is an important lesson here about sharing that I am very pleased with. I think it's one we will continue to check out from the library from time to time when the "MINE!" stage rears it's ugly head!
And, my favorite part, the cover art that drew me to the book in the first place continues throughout the book! Beautiful!! -
The setting of this is very Jack-and-the-Beanstalk-esque in terms of a boy sent to market who trades his goods for something seemingly worthless--in this case, a singing wok. I'm all about magical dishware, but the wok goes back and forth between this poor family's house and the dad's boss who is very wealthy and stingy. Rather than magically making things or telling the poor family a better way to live or something, it just steals all of the rich family's stuff and reallocates it like a rusty Robin Hood. And of course the poor family uses all their newfound wealth and food and such to do all the right things and be better people than the rich family ever was.
I'm not really on board with a children's book that glorifies theft and kidnapping, even if the rich family "deserves" it and the wok is slyly adorable. -
This is a fun folktale about Ming, a young boy who brings home a "magic wok" instead the rice his family needs. Bay Area author Ying Chang Compestine weaves this story in the tradition of folktales, but this is a fresh spin inspired by the Danish folktale “The Talking Pot”. Ming’s family is startled when the wok suddenly sings out, “Mother, make me shine so bright/ and you shall have food to share tonight.” After Mama Zhang polishes the wok bright and clean, it hops down and skips off to the rich man’s wife. Children will delight in the wok’s antics, loving the way that it collects food, toys, and money from the stingy rich family to give to Ming and his family. I particularly liked the way Compestine emphasizes the importance of sharing, especially as friends and neighbors gather to celebrate the Chinese New Year. The author’s note provides nice background on Chinese New Year and a recipe for Festive Stir-Fried Rice.
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The Runaway Wok by Ying Chang Compestine is a retelling of the Dutch story The Talking Pot. The story is moved to China and set around the Chinese New Year. Ming is sent to town to buy some food but comes home with a beat up but magical wok instead.
In previous magical pot stories I've read, the pot is always full. This one, though, has a life of its own and goes in search of food from those who can spare it but don't want to share. The wok seeks out a rich man's table and comes home with a feast for Ming's family.
The Runaway Wok includes a recipe for fried rice. We didn't try it but it's there for families who want to.
The book was a big hit with both of my children. They read it for Chinese New Year first at school and then at home. It was in their re-read pile for about a month. -
When Ming (son of a poor man working for a very rich man) is sent to trade eggs for rice, he comes back with a (magic) wok. In Robin Hood style, the singing wok steals from the very rich man providing the poor family all they need to celebrate the New Year with all the accoutrements. This tale tells of the cultural heritage of Chinese New Year through a clever (historically European) tale. Compestine, Y. C., & Serra, S. (2011). The runaway wok: A Chinese New Year tale. New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books.
Compestine, Y.C., & Serra, S. (2011). The runaway wok: A Chinese New Year tale. New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books.
Awards/Reviews: Publishers Weekly starred 11/29/10; Library Media Connection starred 08/01/11 Curriculum Connections: Monsoon Asia cultural unit, geography 7th grade
Personal Literature Selection: instructional tool, low level readers, Asian, tales -
“The Runaway Wok” tells a fictional Chinese New Year tale about a poor family that send their son Ming to the market with a basket of eggs. Ming traded his eggs for an old wok instead of fried rice. This is a multi-cultural storytelling for a preschooler group. The illustration is bright, pleasant and very colorful. The wok had no handle for cooking ware, but a magical wok. After Mama Zhang washed and shined set on the table the wok "skippity-hoppily-ho!" went to the rich man house it went. THe wok returned with food, toys, and money to the poor family.
Learning Experience: This is great story for multi-cultural lesson. The teacher will bring a wok, plastic foods, toys, and money. The children can be in two groups, so the children interact with each other to put the story together by using items to follow the story. There are vocabulary words for the children can learn. -
Robin-hood meets the Gingerbread Man in this fun tale about a magic wok who takes from the rich to give to the poor. It's catchy refrain, "skippity-hoppity- ho! To the rich man's house I go," reminds me of the Gingerbread man story (Although the wok is not necessarily running away). It makes for a fun read aloud. What is interesting about this book is that, in the midst of the stealing that is going on, it's main message is in the sharing. The author uses the story as a vessel to explain the tradition of Chinese New Year in an author's note in the back of the book. A recipe for a festive stir fried rice is also included.
This is a great book to read in preparation for Chinese New Year and to introduce to readers the Chinese culture. A must-have for every school library.
This book was inspired by a Danish Folktale, the Talking Pot. -
A fun, whimsical story (that will remind kids of Jack and the Beanstalk, the Gingerbread Man, and others), that is a great introduction to the Chinese New Year (or Lunar New Year). There is some extra information with details in the back, so students can learn more about Chinese New Year celebrations and traditions.
I understand some people may not like the Robin Hood feel of stealing from the rich to give to the poor, but I think kids will see a message of a rich man not paying his employees well enough, or that there was a sense of injustice from the beginning- not just robbing a random rich man to pay a random poor man. (Although I get stealing is still not right...) They will enjoy this whimsical tale though- and the pictures to go with it are fantastic!
Definitely check this one out! Would be great in a home and/or classroom library! -
Caution....do not read this book when you are hungry OR haven't had your favorite Chinese take out in a while!! When I first began reading "Runaway Wok," the chant the wok says throughout the story might lead the reader to initially believe this is a take on "The Gingerbread Man." Instead, you could say that the character of the Runaway Wok is a lot like a Chinese Robin Hood. He does everything he can to meet the needs of the poor while taking away from a family of selfish people throughout the book. The illustrations are beautiful! While there is a lot of text to the story, I think this book would be more successful as a read aloud with 1st grade rather than kindergarten. I just wish it came with chopsticks! :)
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Read this just in time to share with a kindergarten class before Chinese New Year next week! The story is about Ming's poor family wanting to celebrate Chinese New Year but having meager supplies to share with friends and neighbors. Ming is sent to town to trade a few eggs for a bag of rice, and like Jack trading for the magic beans, Ming trades for a singing wok. Only in this story everyone in the family can hear the wok and it provides a fabulous feast, riches, and gifts which Ming's family shares. On the other hand, the Li family who hoard their wealth and never share have their possessions taken by the wok.
Fun story with a strong moral on the benefits of sharing and the evils of greed. Fun, colorful, elaborate drawings add to the appeal of the book. -
Ming's mother sends him to town to trade their last few eggs for rice, but along the way he meets a little old man who asks him to trade him the eggs for a rusted old wok. Just as Ming is wondering why he would ever make such a trade, the wok begins to sing! Ming makes the trade and hurries home with the wok. His mother isn't happy with him, naturally. When the wok sings out to clean it and his mother does, wonderful things happen!
I plan on sharing this book with Kindergarten as they learn about Chinese New Year; I think they'll really like the "good guys vs. bad guys" type theme, and it's just a fun twist on Jack and the Beanstalk. -
I actually read "The Runaway Wok" a year ago with my 5th grade students. We chose the book, read it, deconstructed it, and turned it into a play for the class to perform. It was a big hit!
The kids liked the cute, whimsical illustrations, as well as the funny little wok, with a spirit for adventure and thievery. The tale is pretty straight-forward and simple, but the message of sharing and friendship rings true. The author even adds a recipe for "Festive Stir Fried Rice" at the back of the book for readers who are interested in stretching their culinary skills.
Overall, a cute spin on the classic Robin Hood tale. -
The wok is the facilitator in this story - great things have come from our wok too, which gives the story a personal connection. This account of stinginess and generosity at the Chinese New Year revolves around the transfer of wealth and opportunity from the haves (who hoard their goods) to the have-nots (who enjoy and share what they gain). Although the story has a folk-tale quality, it comes close to "taking from the rich to give to the poor" that would be either lost on or confuse young readers.
