An Ideal World (Tales of the Villagers) [Paperback]

Weidong Chen (Author), Chao Peng (Author)

Book Description

Series: Tales of the Villagers | Publication Date: March 24, 2009

Time and again, A You finds himself chasing a mysterious rabbit through his dreams. But before he can reach out and grab it...his mother is shaking him awake for another day of work. A You's not exactly thrilled with his job at the factory, so when a persistent streak of bad luck leaves him unemployed, it seems like a great opportunity to start over. The trouble is, A You doesn't have anything to move on to. With no goals or aspirations, A You roams the city searching for direction. Deep in thought on one of his strolls, A You suddenly rouses himself only to discover he's lost in the woods. He catches sight of a rabbit, and in desperation follows it through the forest. But this scene seems familiar...Is it a dream? Or could there truly be an ideal world within the darkness?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This verbose fantasy comic from China is part Alice in Wonderland and part self-help manual. A You is a depressed 19-year-old forklift driver who dreams of chasing rabbits, but it takes him nearly half of the book to fall down the rabbit hole to a wonderland. For the first 60 pages A You's friends and co-workers tediously lecture him in an attempt to pull him out of his slump. A born complainer, A You thinks he has the worst luck; Why is my life so boring... and so hard? he asks. His visit to a utopian fantasy world changes his outlook on life as he watches a dancing street sweeper and a building painter/would-be artist enjoying their menial jobs. At the heart of the comic is a very upbeat message about entrepreneurship delivered by a humanoid zebra named The Master of Universal Love. The venture capitalist zebra's explanation of how he rose to the top is unfortunately told in the uncanny voice of a pyramid scheme leader or an Avon salesman. Peng and Chen are excellent artists, but the book gets bogged down in talky heavy-handedness, as if someone put nice fantasy illustrations into a business self-help book like Who Moved My Cheese. (Mar.)
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From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up–After waking up from a nightmare, 19-year-old Ayou's day starts off with verbal chastisements from his nagging mother, gets progressively worse (a series of minor injuries on his way to work), and culminates with a spectacular disaster involving the collapse of a warehouse full of boxes. Suspended from his job, despondent, and unwilling to accept the advice of his friends, the young man ends up on a bus heading out of the city. He falls asleep in the hollow of a tree, and when he wakes up, Rip Van Winkle and The Wizard of Oz plot elements come into play as a short green man takes him to another world. Unsurprisingly, Ayou's sojourn in this vibrant and joyful world gives him an attitude adjustment and motivates him to live a more purposeful life. Despite the fantasy backdrop, Ayou's adventure is one mired with unimaginative lessons. His conclusion that those who lead joyful lives understand happiness is just the last in a long list of platitudes scattered throughout the story. As for the artwork, the landscape is bright and worthy of staging a video game, but it's a waste of visual whimsy for a lesson that essentially boils down to stop whining and appreciate what you have.–Joanna K. Fabicon, Los Angeles Public Library END

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Yen Press (March 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0759529426
• ISBN-13: 978-0759529427
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,117,968 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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