Introducing young children to history using stories about children their own age, is a good educational tool. The author should be careful to make certain his or her historic account is authentic and simply embellish the story with words and actions of the characters to make it suitable reading for youth.

The Trade Winds educational series publication Father's Road brings a story to the reader of what might have occurred during the period of time that was about 100 years prior to the birth of Christ. The story recounts the harshness of the journey that took over a year for the caravan to reach their destination. Not only was the terrain rugged and unforgiving, there were bandits and many dangers along the way.

Things that can be learned include the type of journey, the terrain, the terror of bandits, and the possibility of illness overtaking the traveler.

The pages in the back of the book give opportunity for the young reader to learn more about the period of history with a short history of the origin of The Silk Road, some key terms and concepts, the beginning of global exchange, merchandise from around the world, the geography of The Silk Road, and a timeline of events.

This is a children's picture book and is meant to entertain as well as educate. Hopefully, books like the Trade Winds Series will plant seeds of interest in the minds of young readers encouraging them to further explore history as the grow into adulthood.

I highly recommend.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from Eerdmans Publishing to facilitate a review. Opinions are my own. I was not compensated. ( )

I won an ARC [Advance Reader’s Copy] of this book from the publisher through a giveaway they had on LibraryThing and the following is my honest opinion.
One of my favorite subjects in high school had been history and this book is a wonderful introduction to what became own as the “Silk Road,” a path which took travelers, mainly merchants and the like from the Far East to Constantinople [now known as Instanbul], a major economic center of commerce. The road was full of dangers, not only because of its long trek through an unforgiving terrain with many barriers along the way but the numerous band of bandits out to rob travelers of their valuable merchandise they’ve traded or are seeking to trade for “rare” spices, etc.
The story in this book follows Wong Chong when he gets a chance to travel with his father and the caravan they’re traveling with for protection for almost a year each way. Through its words and illustrations this book paints a quite accurate vivid depiction of what such an arduous journey might have been like for its young readers.
For having given its young readers a fun, educational reading experience I’ve given this book 5 STARS. ( )

Father's Road by Ji-yun Jang tells the story of a child's journey with his father along the ancient Silk Road, and how an act of kindness is repaid.

The story, while historically interesting, is a bit thin, and the prose seems written for a mid-elementary and older audience. The illustrations by Tan Jun do a good job accompanying the text but aren't spectacular, and my kids had to ask repeatedly which of the characters was speaking.

The book includes a map and glossary of terms, making it an ideal story book for a classroom or school library.

NB: I received a free review copy of this book from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. ( )

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

I watch several children from the ages 2-11 for my work. I decided to try to read this to them to get an honest response from the targeted audience.

Most of the kids didn't care for it so much because the amount of words combined with the less colorful imagery made it seem boring. I had to do some elaborate story telling to keep them interested. One child like it, but he has a passion for history so it worked for him, but he said he wished it had been more colorful.

As for myself, I like the book, but I do feel only very specific children could find interest in it. If your child likes a few more words than normal in their picture books and history, then go for it. The premise of the series this book comes from is fantastic, but the execution could be better. Maybe if the scenes were stretched out over a few more pictures and just a couple more colors added, then it could work much better. ( )

A nice little picture book covering a journey on the silk road. Wong Chung is finally allowed to accompany his father's caravan from Xi'an China to Istanbul. It points out some of the realities of travel, such as limited water, bandits, and sand storms, and the art style feels like it matches the book well.

At the end of the book it includes a good bit of extra information about the Silk Road, global exchange, and which products were found in which areas. It also a good map with the old place names and the new names listed below, plus a timeline of events that shaped silk road travel.

A nice introduction for children. ( )