Tofu Quilt

Tofu Quilt. Ching Yeung Russell. New York: Lee & Low Books, Inc., 2009. 126 pages. $16.95 (Hardcover). ISBN 978-1-60060-423-2. Grades 4-6.

Reminds Me Of…

Although Tofu Quilt is a book of free verse poetry telling of Ching Yeung Russell’s personal journey as a writer, I still found that it reminded me of other books that I have read. One of the biggest things I kept getting caught on in this book was that because Ching was a girl she was not expected to be educated or continue with schooling past the primary grades. This is a difficult thing for today’s youth to imagine since girls and boys are treated equally now and we can all get the same education and have the same jobs. The fact of the matter is, however, that for ages this wasn’t the case in our country and still isn’t in some countries now. We learn about the women’s movement in the United States, but I don’t think readers will have learned about or stopped to think about how women have been treated in raised in other parts of the world. I recently read Keeping Corner by Kashmira Sheth, a historical fiction novel that takes place in India in the early 20^th century. A thirteen year old girl is left widowed before even living with her husband and is destined to live a life of widow, which means having a shaved head and being seen as bad luck. Education and schooling is all Leela has to occupy her year of keeping corner, when she cannot leave her house until a year after her husband’s death. During this time she realized education and studying outside her home town is the only way she can have a better life. Much like in Tofu Quilt some family members believe it is unnecessary and a bad idea, but in the end she does get go on and pursue her studies.

The struggles of wanting to be a writer are also addressed in this story. Not every teacher is going to like the way you write, but it doesn’t mean you are a bad writer. That is one of the lessons Ching experienced in school. She continued, however, to follow her dream and became a writer. This is an inspiration and good example to give to students who may want to follow a dream that is risky and creative. I was reminded of Pam Muñoz Ryan’s The Dreamer. This is a fictionalized biography of Pablo Neruda, and it shows how he came to be one of the best known poets in the world by following his desire to write and ignoring the criticism of his family. I was also reminded of Love That Dog by Sharon Creech because the little boy in that story learns he loves poetry and he decides to pursue it. While this completely fictional it shows that anyone can be a writer, even if not professionally if they want to.

As I read the author’s note at the end of the book I was reminded of another author’s reflection of her writing journey. Russell talks about how she intended to write in Chinese, but realized she could not share her writing with those she loved. She then talked about how she learned English and started exploring children’s picture books to practice. Mexican author/illustrator Yuyi Morales came to the United States in her mid-twenties speaking very little English. She discovered a world of literature unknown to her when she visited the public library and was amazed with the children’s books. She decided then and there to create her own books. Now she is a multiple award winning author/illustrator, and she too had to assimilate in order to publish books for Latino children that would make it in the American market.