This picture book takes place in a village in China during Spring Festival. Their New Year is almost here and they have been waiting a long time to celebrate. Long-Long heads to market with Grandpa to sell cabbage in order to raise money for their Spring Festival celebrations. Throughout their day at market, they run into trouble. Their bicycle's tire goes flat and no one will buy their cabbage. Fortunately, Long-Long takes their bicycle to a repair shop and helps the repair man work. He makes a little bit of money and gets their tire fixed. He then finds out there is a lady selling dirty, old cabbage before the buyers can reach his and Grandpa's stand. Long-Long goes to a nearby restaurant that needs cabbage and pretty soon the whole village is buying cabbage from Grandpa. They raise enough money for Spring Festival! This book provides good insight into the Chinese culture. it describes their transportation, food, and celebrations. This would be a good culture to compare to our own and discuss the positive differences. One good discussion might be the differences and commanalities of our festivals. Parades, fireworks, rides, food and other topics are good ideas for this discussion. After the story, the author has included a note that describes the first Chinese Spring Festival. That would be a good page to read and discuss also. It explains why they practice certain traditions on this holiday and why they celebrate this specific time. Overall, I believe this is a good representation of a different culture that will promote discussion and reflection about different cultures.
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