Ming-Shu and Her Cat and Other Stories
A You Draw Book
By Lois M.J. Danes, Ed.D

Activity books are nothing new, but a charming book of Taiwanese children’s stories that allows children to illustrate the adventures of schoolgirl Ming-Shu is a novel and noteworthy concept. ESL educator Lois M.J. Danes saw that children in Taiwan needed English language books more interesting than the equivalent of Dick and Jane, that is, more related to the students’ culture and daily lives.

Instead of “Look, Spot, Look,” Taiwanese children can read about Ming-Shu playing with her cat, going fishing with her Grandfather Yi, and visiting the farm and zoo. We also meet little sister Mei-Mei, whose warm relationship with Ming-Shu charms and delights. We learn that Ming-Shu does her schoolwork first before playing (a novel concept in today’s Nintendo world) and listens to Grandfather Yi’s stories such as “Nine-in-One,” a folktale from the Hmong people in Laos.

As a non-Taiwanese adult, this reviewer found Ming-Shu’s stories charming and educational about another culture and yet strikingly universal. Ming-Shu and Mei-Mei love outings with their family, shudder at worms, want to cuddle baby tigers, and ask millions of questions like children the world over. The stories are simply told, yet not boring or condescending, and warmhearted in their portrayal of childhood adventures in a loving family.

The vocabulary before each story and reading questions at the end of each chapter could be used in classrooms in the United States for preschool English-speaking children, and seem to be just the method to engage Taiwanese schoolchildren learning English. As a bonus and the “hook” for the book, illustrating the stories is a fun activity that will sharpen children’s brains and make their imaginations soar.

In addition, kids everywhere love cats, especially stories about cats, which Danes’ publisher features plenty of. Animals figure heavily in this book, and animal stories always attract children. Parents can read along and encouraging their budding artists. Parents can also talk about the stories using the questions, since many are open-ended such as “Do you have a little sister? How do you greet her?” It would be interesting to hear answers and see the drawings Taiwanese children have made.