Scroll

by Hui Li

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

An imaginative and vibrant story with a magical element, Scroll introduces Chinese characters to children while reinforcing family tradition.

An ALA Notable Book• A Bookpage Best Picture Book of the Year

★ "A beautifully drawn, cleverly told tale of bravery and wit.... As Lulu discovers, wonders await those who take a chance and dive in." —Bookpage, starred review

★ "Readers are plunged into an enchanted world where drawing skills and creative problem-solving hold the key to a favorable outcome…. A masterful integration of storytelling." —School Library Journal, starred review

"This charming story utilizing a comics format will engage readers with its blend of history, language learning, and adventure." —Booklist

"A fun and clever introduction to an ancient art form." —Kirkus Reviews

"Hand-rendered watercolor, colored pencil, and Chinese ink art offers a visual feast via energetic brushwork and transparent pools of color." —Publishers Weekly

Lulu and her dog Dumpling enter a magical world where Chinese calligraphy comes to life in this beautifully illustrated, interactive picture book about family, tradition, and the importance of kindness.

After Grandpa introduces calligraphy and Chinese characters to Lulu and her dog Dumpling, they find themselves magically transported to a world where the characters they draw come to life! Soon Lulu and Dumpling meet a bird, a zither-playing musician, and many other animated friends. But when they discover an angry dragon, Lulu is not sure how to draw them out of this tense encounter.

Spanning themes of art and history, this inventive story introduces children to complex Chinese characters, celebrates family and tradition, and shows how resourcefulness and kindness can save the day. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316340731
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	09/19/2023
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	262,205
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 11.30(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Hui Li is a lifelong student of Chinese calligraphy. As a child, she practiced on old newspapers and learned several styles of traditional script. By the age of eleven, she had earned the rank of a Kudan, or 9-dan (the highest calligraphy rank). This visually expansive and personal story is her first book for children. She lives in New Jersey with her family.

Editorial Reviews

08/21/2023

A girl of Chinese descent finds adventure via a calligraphy brush in Li’s clever debut, which kicks off with a description of Chinese characters’ believed origins. Lulu and her dog Dumpling watch Grandpa paint on a scroll as he explains, “Our ancestors created many characters just like drawings.” With Grandpa napping in a nearby chair, Lulu accidentally knocks a large scroll to the floor, creating a blank expanse that inspires her to paint the Chinese character for door. When it unexpectedly animates, Lulu enters and meets the character for bird, which guides her through a “village of Chinese characters, like the ones Grandpa drew.” And when danger threatens, Lulu must paint new symbols to protect herself and Dumpling. Chinese characters embellished with color and detail illustrate ideogram-based language, and red seals at the top of each page smartly introduce each new term and its meaning. Hand-rendered watercolor, colored pencil, and Chinese ink art offers a visual feast via energetic brushwork and transparent pools of color. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Scroll:
An ALA Notable Book
A Bookpage Best Picture Book of the Year

* "A beautifully drawn, cleverly told tale of bravery and wit. Artistically, Scroll is one of the most unique books on shelves today. . . Scroll is deceptively modest, starting with its cover, which depicts a writing lesson that blossoms into one of the most unique stories of the year—one that is as educational as it is entertaining. As Lulu discovers, wonders await those who take a chance and dive in."—BookPage, starred review

* "Readers are plunged into an enchanted world where drawing skills and creative problem-solving hold the key to a favorable outcome…. A masterful integration of storytelling, an introduction to a complex language, and cross-cultural understanding make this an excellent addition to any elementary library."

—School Library Journal, starred review

"While drawing the character for 'door,' she unexpectedly activates a portal into another world! This charming story utilizing a comics format will engage readers with its blend of history, language learning, and adventure."—Booklist

"A girl embarks on a fantastical adventure through a landscape permeated with calligraphy ... the story is told in appealing vignettes and speech bubbles, and at the top of every page, readers will find pictures of the characters used in the illustration along with their English meanings, allowing kids to match the characters with their roles in the scene. A fun and clever introduction to an ancient art form."—Kirkus Reviews

"A girl of Chinese descent finds adventure via a calligraphy brush in Li’s clever debut…. Chinese characters embellished with color and detail illustrate ideogram-based language, and red seals at the top of each page smartly introduce each new term and its meaning. Hand-rendered watercolor, colored pencil, and Chinese ink art offers a visual feast via energetic brushwork and transparent pools of color."
 —Publishers Weekly

"Hui Li brilliantly transforms the history of Chinese characters into a marvelous adventure in Scroll…. Li's first solo author/artist title is an imaginative, purposefully rendered comic picture-book. Li adds Chinese characters across the page-tops, encouraging readers to find them within her inviting drawings. 'Imagine if every character you draw has its own story,' Li's author's note muses. Here, it magically does."—Shelf Awareness

"In a clever seek-and-find picture book illustrated in dreamy watercolors, colored pencils, and ink, new worlds open as Granddaughter and Grandfather bond through Chinese calligraphy. This wonderful peek into the complexity and beauty of Chinese writing brings the script to life."—Politics and Prose Bookstore, Washington, D.C.

From the Publisher

★ 10/01/2023

K-Gr 3—This insightful picture book begins with an introduction to the oracle bone inscriptions which are believed to be the origins of Chinese characters and then efficiently introduces Lulu, her wise grandpa, and Dumpling, her devoted dog. The story unfolds through Lulu's lively speech bubbles. Imagination, adventure, and art collide while Grandpa is napping. As he sleeps, Lulu, brush in hand, draws a door which begins to glow. Unable to resist, she enters and discovers a pictograph world replete with friendly people, interesting landscapes, and a dangerous Chinese fire dragon. In a book that will be compared to Crockett Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon and Aaron Becker's Journey, readers are plunged into an enchanted world where drawing skills and creative problem-solving hold the key to a favorable outcome. The illustrations—a blend of watercolor, colored pencils, and traditional Chinese ink—capture the essence of the tale. Readers are introduced to the featured Chinese characters depicted in red boxes on each page with their English meanings, providing an opportunity to explore both language and culture. The story serves as a heartwarming reminder of the power of resourcefulness and kindness, ultimately conveying the message that these virtues can save the day even in the most unusual circumstances. The author's note provides context concerning the vastness of the Chinese written language, highlighting the existence of over 50,000 characters, encouraging an appreciation of the rich cultural heritage embedded in the narrative. VERDICT A masterful integration of storytelling, an introduction to a complex language, and cross-cultural understanding make this an excellent addition to any elementary library.—Lynne Stover

School Library Journal

2023-06-21
A girl embarks on a fantastical adventure through a landscape permeated with calligraphy.

After a brief introduction that explains that the art form originated thousands of years ago in ancient China, when people carved pictographs into bones and shells, the story switches to the present day as Lulu watches Grandpa (both of whom are cued Chinese) draw on a large scroll. He shows her how ancient characters such as those for bird or mountain mimic the ideas they represent. When Lulu tries her hand at drawing, her character for door begins to glow, and the pictograph swings open. Lulu steps into a mysterious world, led by the same bird character that Grandpa had drawn. In this land, people and objects are illustrated using black-inked Chinese characters dancing among watercolor details and backgrounds—characters for grass are drawn clumped together in a green field, and the character for child bows to greet Lulu. The climax occurs when Lulu meets a calligraphic fire-breathing dragon and, using her brush like Harold’s purple crayon, draws her way to safety with the Chinese characters she needs. Much of the story is told in appealing vignettes and speech bubbles, and at the top of every page, readers will find pictures of the characters used in the illustration along with their English meanings, allowing kids to match the characters with their roles in the scene. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A fun and clever introduction to an ancient art form. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews