Cindy Chang (1)

In this Chinese folktale, seven sisters used to weave a silk tapestry across the sky filled with stars. Magpies would spread it across the night sky when the sun went to bed. Mei, the youngest sister, was beautiful but unhappy and lonely. She noticed the lonely song of a farmer (Chang), and she sent him a dream, so he could find her when she came to earth for water. She stayed with him, but without her, the sisters could not finish the sky, so the sun did not get its rest and was angry. Mei had to return to the heavens. Both Mei and Chang were so sad to be apart that the magpies made a way for them to be together one night a year, by crossing the Milky Way on a magpie bridge. It is on the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese Lunar calendar that he could visit. That is the date of the Festival of the Milky Way, and it's celebration is similar to Valentine's Day.… (altro)

We've been slowly working our way through this series as we can and this is our first Chinese legend (for this series) and I have to say, this is probably the saddest and least humorous tale we've come across. In the Seventh Sister we meet Mei, one of seven sisters who weave the tapestry of the night sky each day, finishing it just in time for the sun to set. Mei was the youngest of the sisters, but also the most clever and most beautiful. Additionally she could weave the best tapestry...but she was sad and lonely and her sad song echoed through the sky. Enter Chang, a simple farmer in China with only is faithful ox for company, he is not happy but he does not know what he is missing. What ensues is a fairly traditional retelling of how a magpie comes to Chang and tells him how to meet Mei and make her stay with him, which he does...but as happy as they are together, the sun will not set because Mei is not there to help her sisters weave the tapestry and without her help, they cannot complete it in time for the sun to set. Sadly they both realize that she must return to her sisters, but the couple is sad to be parting. At the end, they are allowed (through the intervention of the magpies) to meet once a year and this is a time of great celebration in China (the Chinese version of Valentine's Day).

Overall, The Seventh Sister is well told and the illustrations match the text perfectly...they compliment each other quite well, but this is a sadder and more melancholy tale than most we have encountered, the kids enjoyed it, but not as much as they have some of the others we've read in this series. I give The Seventh Sister 5 stars, though it is not as fun or uplifting as others in the series, it's a fine retelling of this Chinese legend and a nice addition to any classroom library or for reading by any child who loves myths and legends! One final note, each book in this series comes with a one page summary of the legend, including other names it's been called and a bit about the history how the story developed and what its significance is, so you don't just get the story...you get the context as well! This is something that I really enjoy in this series and it's one of the reasons that I recommend it.… (altro)