Yes, THAT Amy Tan Wrote It

Age Group: 6-9

Plot: Bored grandchildren get enveloped in their grandmother's rainy day story of her childhood in China during the Moon Festival. Her tale is enmeshed with cultural values and beliefs, as it richly describes a night filled with wonder, terror, and a valuable lesson about secret wishes.

Theme: In this incredibly illustrated (by Gretchen Shields) and written story, Tan presents a character learning the difference between selfish desires and secret wishes. The secret wish that she ultimately makes is for help, but it is also one that she can make come true herself: "a true wish from my heart" (25). Tan's characters learn that a good wish "becomes everyone's wish" (27).

Literary Devices: This book takes every advantage of style and setting. The way Tan introduces Chinese belief and then makes use of it later in the story is masterful. As she describes the clothes that Ying-Ying is dressed in for the Moon Festival, she brings in the meaning of the Chinese year: "I shrieked with delight at my shadow's own cleverness. How I loved my own shadow, this dark side of me that loved all the things that no one else could see" (10). Later, Ying-Ying says that her adventures of the night helped her find out what kind of tiger she was. Of course, throughout the book, Tan weaves the legend of the Moon Lady, who by Chinese belief, lives on the moon while her husband lives on the sun, doomed to pass him day and night, but only see each other once a year. The illustrator's crisp talent is evident in the beautiful pictures that compliment the text, full of bright colors, crisp lines and details in the Chinese dress, surroundings, and animals.

Obviously, this story would lose a lot if it were set in another place--it belongs in China, though we begin in America. Had Tan set the story entirely in America, the development of the beliefs would have been lost. With Tan's descriptions, when we are transferred to Ying-Ying's childhood China, even without the illustrations, we are able to picture the gardens, the boats, feel the air, and the cold water that Ying-Ying falls into.

Personal Evaluation: This is one of the best children's books that I have ever read. The illustrations are amazing. I wholeheartedly recommend the book to the age group, and I cannot wait to read this story to my own daughter one day. A teacher would do her students a great service by sharing this book during a lesson objective of learning about different cultures; this book lends itself to further discussion and research.


Tan, Amy. _The Moon Lady_. New York:Macmillan Publishing Co., 1992.

ISBN: 0-02-788830-4