A Buddhist monk practices calligraphy every single day--calming his heart and bringing an unexpected gift to a nearby city.
As rain falls, Old Monk invites Little Monk to practice calligraphy. "Lets write the character for rain!" he says. And with each brushstroke, Little Monks restless, anxious heart grows quiet.
For the next twenty years, as Little Monk becomes Big Monk, he sits down with his brush every day, meditating on and writing the character for "rain." Until one day someone comes to the temple asking for help: the city has no water. All grown up now, Big Monk packs his things, hoping to do his part. But will a pile of calligraphy sheets make any difference?
This stunning book is horizontally bound, creating a vertical reading experience inspired by Chinese ink paintings and calligraphy hung on scrolls. With poetic text and watercolor art from Taiwanese author-illustrator Hsu-Kung Liu, Little Monk Writes Rain is an evocative tale of mindfulness, self-expression, and compassion. The simple, resonant story is sure to start conversations about how to find--and share--a sense of calm amid the storms of life. Translated from Chinese by Rachel Wang Yung-Hsin.
Hsu-Kung Liu is a Taiwanese author and illustrator whose books include The Orange Horse and Look at You! Look at the Mess Youve Made! (both Reycraft). He has won several awards, including the Golden Tripod Award and the Hsin-Yi Childrens Literature Award, and his art has also been featured at the Bologna Childrens Book Fair. Liu lives in Taipei, Taiwan.
Rachel Wang Yung-Hsin is a writer, translator, and interpreter with several decades of experience in intercultural communication and international education. She earned an MFA in Writing for Children from Simmons University and won the Lee & Low and Friends Scholarship in 2017. Born in Taiwan, Rachel moved to the US as a child, lived in Asia Pacific for three decades as an adult, and currently makes her home in Massachusetts.
"Spirited children meet Eastern visual traditions that have a life of their own....Hsu-Kung Liu paints with a light touch...[a] feathery fable."
--The New York Times
"Lius tender picture book offers a compassionate message about how ones worth extends far beyond what society measures...Viewers will be moved by Big Monks work swirling into the sky to call upon real rain for the city and honor the quiet reassurance he feels in being true to himself." --The Bulletin of the Center for Childrens Books
"Tender proof that humility and tenacity can inspire miracles." --Kirkus Reviews
"Exceptionally beautiful and gently philosophical...This remarkable book is a work of art, and a bridge to understanding life itself." --Emily Schneider, Imaginary Elevators
"The [reading] experience stayed with me long after the final page....A quiet, poetic meditation on creativity, limitation, and transformation." --Eleanor Duggan, The Third Culture Librarian
