Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 12/01/2019 From exploding red firecrackers to sweet brown peanut puffs, this festive book presents all the delights of the Chinese New Year. It takes a simple approach, aiming to teach children about the holiday as well as about color words in both English and Chinese. Each spread displays a traditional Chinese New Year item on one side, illustrated in monochrome, while the facing page names the color in both languages. For the Chinese-language part, both the character and the anglicization—or pinyin—are given. Back matter includes a recap of all the items along with explanations of their meanings, whether it’s a tangerine representing wealth and happiness or a zodiac-stamped gold coin commemorating the special day. The spectrum here ranges from common red and green to the more esoteric cerulean and maroon. At times, colors don’t always match up perfectly with the items—the lucky money envelope, here depicted as yellow, is traditionally red—but children will enjoy the vivid pictures of dragons, lucky fish, and more. - Copyright 2019 Booklist.