A Single Pebble

September 23, 2013
In a sweet-natured story set over two years during the ninth century, Christensen (I, Galileo) follows a small jade pebble along the length of the Silk Road, from China to Italy. The pebble is initially given to a silk merchant by his daughter, Mei, who isn’t allowed to accompany her father. “At least my pebble can go,” Mei says. “A gift for a child at the end of the road.” Mei’s father isn’t traveling the road’s entire length, so he passes the pebble to a Buddhist monk, who gives it to a sandalwood trader heading farther west, and so on, with additional small treasures (a flute, a cinnamon stick) accumulating along with the pebble. Although Mei (understandably) never finds out if her pebble has reached its destination, readers know the truth, and are also privy to a neat reciprocal journey involving a piece of blue glass. Although the characterizations are on the light side, Christen-sen’s atmospheric paintings and prose provide lively snapshots of life on the Silk Road; endnotes include additional historical information. Ages 3–7. Agent: Marcia Wernick, Wernick & Pratt.

August 1, 2013
As a pebble that is "cool like the stream where I found it" travels the length of the Silk Road from China to Italy, exquisite, expressive artwork counterbalances a timeworn plot. Mei, a young girl living in China in the ninth century, would like to travel the Silk Road. Instead, she must content herself with persuading her silk-merchant father to start her chosen gift of a pebble on a trip beyond his stretch of travel to "a child at the end of the road." Tommaso, whose father is a kindly pirate, is the eventual recipient of the pebble and other gifts accumulated from, among others, a monk and a thief during the pebble's journey. Preschoolers will enjoy the repetition of the phrase that concludes each transfer of the pebble, variations on "a gift from a girl...in the land where the sun rises." There is gentle reciprocity in the piece of glass that Mei receives from Italy, but why, after a mere two years, does the story end with Mei's father inexplicably deciding that Mei might, after all, make that dangerous journey next time? The richly detailed, lavishly colored watercolors authentically introduce diversity and history, but the first and final pages read rather like a nod-to-feminism afterthought. Facts embedded in the text are supplemented by a generous addendum. Luminous artwork is the highlight of this child's introduction to the Silk Road. (maps, author's note, bibliography) (Picture book. 3-6)

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October 1, 2013

Gr 1-4-This lovely story traces a pebble's journey on the Silk Road. Mei lives near Chang'an (Xi'an), China, in AD 850. As her father, a silk trader, sets off on his route, she is denied the opportunity to go along since she has to care for the silk worms. Instead, she gives him a jade pebble with the request to give it to a child at the end of the road. Mei's father takes the pebble to Turfan (Turpan), where he passes it to a Buddhist monk. The monk pairs a flute with the gift and takes it to Kashgar. Readers will see other items added to the pebble as it passes from traveler to traveler. Finally, the gifts are stolen by a pirate in Antioch, who takes them to his son in Torcello, Italy. Although many small treasures accompany it, the jade rock is the pirate's son's favorite. At the story's conclusion Mei does not know the details of the pebble's journey, but she is hopeful that one day she, too, will travel the Silk Road. The different settings and characters are woven together to create a wonderful tale. The colorful illustrations reflect the customs and culture of each stop on the trade route, and the simple text gives context clues for children unfamiliar with the setting and historical period. An endnote and detailed maps on the endpapers give extensive background information on the subject.-Erica Thorsen Payne, Meriwether Lewis Elementary School, Charlottesville, VA

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