Customer Reviews

Chang's Paper Pony (I Can Read Book 3)

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A story of a chinese boy living with his grandfather at a mining camp during the gold rush. Chang is lonely and wants a pony so he would have a "pengyo" a friend. This story delicately discusses the hurt a person feels when they are made fun of for being culturally different. Chang's idea of panning for gold to earn money for his dream horse doesn't pan out, but honesty and hard work does. A wonderful story that will educate and entertain your child.

CHANG'S PAPER PONY by Eleanor Coerr and illustrated by Deborah Ray is a 64 page book with 42 drawings. The drawings are made with an ordinary pencil, and colored with colored pencils. The colored pencils are blue, tan, green, brown, and grey. Your child will noticed the orderly streaks of the pencil lines, for example, that fill in the shirts and hats of the gold miners. Hopefully, this will inspire your child to learn drawing. Some of the drawings take up an entire page, some are 1/2 page drawings, and some are panoramic drawings spilling across the left-hand page and the right-hand page. All of the drawings have indistinct or fuzzy borders, and are surrounded by the white paper of the page. Although the drawing style is not unique or complicated, it is evident that Deborah Ray is a good artist. Two of the pages contain Chinese calligraphy. The very last page contains a 1-page summary of the history of Chinese laborers in California during the late 1800s.

The book has four chapters: CHANG'S WISH, TROUBLE, BIG PETE, GOLD FEVER, and THE REAL PONY. The book begins like this: "Chang and Granpa Li were peeling potatoes in the kitchen of the Gold Ditch Hotel. Suddenly Chang stopped. "I hear horses!" he cried, and ran to the door.

The story takes place in gold country in California. The narrative discloses how American boys threw stones at Chang when he first arrived in the U.S., Chang's wish for a pony, the grandfather's work in operating a kitchen for the gold miners, how the miners made fun of Change because of his foreign habits (wearing a pigtail, and being overly respectful towards the gold miners). We see Chang at school, where a Chinese schoolmaster strikes him with a stick to ensure that he will be a better student. There are several scenes showing the gold miners at work. We see Chang's frustration (crying) because he failed, at first, to find gold during his attempts at panning. Eventually, Change collects enough gold, and a friendly miner takes it to Sacramento and buys a pony for Chang (happy ending).

Little kids will find a number of take-home lessons -- to expect frustrations now and then, to expect being teased now and then, to expect harsh schoolteachers, and above all, that it is important to keep focused on your long-term goals. This is a charming book. The narrative flows nicely and efficiently, touching many bases in a short period of time.

It's a sweet story about honesty and hard-work. The story also gives us some background of many chinese immigrants back in the days of Gold Rush. Will recommend it. My 5 yrs old likes it.

Dream big.

Be obedient, but hold onto your dream.

Be patient, but hold onto your dream.

Be diligent, but hold onto your dream.

Be long-suffering, but hold onto your dream.

Be creative, but hold onto your dream.

Be trustworthy, but hold onto your dream.

Chang does not get his dream directly, a generous benefactor gives him a gift. It's still a good book.

Very interesting book for a child. Gives non-fiction historical facts that children can relate themselves too. Very recommended.