My six-year-old daughter helped me put together this list of her favorite books about China.  While she has outgrown some, all have featured prominently in our family reading at some point in the last few years.

1.  The Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy and Mou-Sien Tseng

The story takes place in ancient China, where seven brothers use their unique super powers first to help construct the Great Wall and then to outwit the emperor.

2.  Chinese Children’s Favorite Stories by Mingmei Ye

This is a collection of fables that have entertained my daughter since she was a toddler.  Her favorite feature the famed Monkey King.

3.  Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China by Ai-Ling Louie

A lovely version of the French classic set in ancient China.

4.  Max and Mei by Martha Keswick and Mariko Jesse

These fun little tales of two playmates provide the English and Chinese text and companion CDs so your child can enjoy Max and Mei’s adventures in both Chinese and English.

5.  This is Hong Kong by Miroslav Sasek

My daughter loves these travel books.  While dated, there is enough that is current to make them worthwhile, and the colorful illustrations depicting Hong Kong’s various sights are timeless.  We just picked up This is Rome for an upcoming trip to Italy.

6.  My first Chinese New Year by Karen Katz

This is especially good to introduce little ones to the traditions associated with Chinese New Year.

7.  Happy Happy Chinese New Year by Demi

Another great introduction to the traditions of China’s biggest holiday.

8.  Yum Yum Dim Sum by Amy Wilson Sanger

This board book provides a fun look at a Cantonese culinary treat, dim sum, tiny little dumplings that Chinese eat for breakfast or lunch.

9.  Dim Sum for Everyone! By Grace Lin

A family enjoys an outing to a dim sum restaurant with each member selecting his favorite dish.  When Elisa was younger, she loved to have me read the Chinese pronunciations of all the different dishes.

10.  Chopsticks By Jon Berkeley

A magical story about a mouse who befriends a wooden dragon on Hong Kong’s Jumbo Restaurant and then learns how to bring him to life.  Together they soar “over the mountains, over the shining cities and the dark forests.”

For parents of adopted children from China:

1. Motherbridge of Love by Xinran and Josee Masse

My daughter loved this book, which I used as a tool when she began asking  – at the age of 4 – about her birth mother.  It features lovely illustrations and an anonymously written poem, which helped provide an excellent introduction to this complex topic.

2.  When You Were Born in China:  A Memory Book for Children Adopted from China by Sara K. Dorow

I used this book to assist in explaining – in terms my daughter could understand – the situation in China that led to her adoption.  It’s a great tool when answering those impossible questions about why your child’s birth parents were unable to care for him.

Photos:  Children waiting for families at China’s Yingtan Welfare Institue and a banner welcoming returning adoptive families

The feast at the home of our daughter’s former foster family, mentioned earlier in the week, was just one highlight of our recent visit to  JiangXi Province.  In fact, the weekend turned out so well that it was hard to believe we looked forward to the trip with trepidation. Then again, the two previous journeys to our daughter’s birthplace had been fraught with drama not easily forgotten.  Both times, it was made clear to us that what we were doing was highly discouraged – if not illegal – and until the moment we actually arrived at the foster family’s home, deep in the Chinese countryside, we had doubted whether or not we would actually be able to pull it off.  This visit, I am pleased to say, went without a hitch.

From the time we arrived, we were welcomed to our daughter’s birthplace warmly.  The hotel staff had been upgraded and now spoke English, and it was immediately clear that the atmosphere for adoptive families returning to China to visit former orphanages and foster families has changed dramatically. The evening before we planned to set out on our three hour drive from Nanchang to Yingtan, the closest town to Elisa’s former home, we met another adoptive family who told us they were welcomed with fireworks at their daughter’s former orphanage.

The following morning, our guide, Jelly (“Like jam!” she announced), and driver could not have been happier to help facilitate our sentimental journey. As we set off on our long drive through the Chinese countryside, a light rain turned heavy and we were surprised that – five years later – the road was still under construction. Nevertheless, our mood was light as Jelly, a lively and lovely young Chinese woman, provided a history of the region.

Jelly did not receive many English-speaking tourists, and we enjoyed her attempts to recall just the right words to describe what we were seeing. “Look at the coffee!” she exclaimed, pointing to the ubiquitous burial mounds - graves for farmers  who traditionally asked to be put to rest in their fields. “Ha ha! I mean coffins!” she added - and then clarified, “They are combs – No, no, that’s not right. Tombs!” And later, “The River is known for its cabs – I mean crabs!” And so on.

Entering Yingtan, Jelly informed us that the town had a population of 500,000 (“Five thousand! Is that right?  No! Fifty Thousand! No! Five hundred thousand! Ha Ha!”) – and was known for its many factories specializing in the production of eye glasses and copper wiring for light bulbs. She explained that “Ying” meant bird and “tan” small river. The town received its name because of the many birds that stopped to drink at the water’s edge.

When we pulled up to the Yingtan Welfare Institute, Elisa’s former legal guardian, the atmosphere could not have been more different than that of two years ago, when we sat stiffly with the director and made small talk. This time, we were greeted with a banner that read, “Welcome to the Adoption Families to Yingtan Welfare House to Reply a Visit.” While we chatted with the director, children of all ages wandered in and out of the room, stopping to chat or grab a piece of fruit that had been put out in our honor.

When the director asked if we would like a tour of the facility, which houses both children and the elderly, I couldn’t believe our good luck. She escorted us to the room where Elisa had stayed for a night before joining her family. The rooms we saw were clean, warm and cozy with sweet wooden bed frames and colorful posters on the wall. We were thrilled to meet several baby girls, who were awaiting their new families.

As we left, the director gave Elisa a small jade charm of a monkey, Elisa’s Chinese zodiac sign, and implored me to ask the adoptive families in our group to keep in touch. She said that while she sent so many babies to the United States, she rarely heard from – or about – any of them again. This is a shame.  Before this trip, my husband and I had agreed it would be our last until Elisa was old enough to appreciate it. Once we were there, however, the unexpectedly warm welcome, made us think again.

See other photos at Delicious Baby’s Photo Friday.

We celebrated the fifth anniversary of our daughter’s adoption by going to JiangXi Province to visit the woman who cared for Elisa during her first 8 months of life.  We consulted with Chinese friends about how to make the visit with minimum hardship to the family, who would feel obligated to entertain us.  As rice farmers, the family had modest resources and lived in a simple village house with earthen floors, no plumbing, and limited electricity.  We certainly did not want Mrs. Yu, Elisa’s former foster mother, spending the family’s hard earned money on us.  So, acting on our friends’ advice, we notified her of our plans only the evening before our arrival.

Our efforts came to naught, when shortly after arriving, our lively guide and interpreter, Jelly, told us that Mrs. Yu had invited us to stay for lunch.  I immediately glanced around their humble abode:  the only wall adornment was an old plastic jug hanging on a hook and now repurposed to hold chopsticks.   The furniture consisted of a simple Chinese-style wooden table with removable slats revealing items usually found in a pantry or refrigerator.  Jelly informed us that anything but a grateful acceptance would offend our hosts.

When I realized that the large red rooster running around outside the house was shortly to become our lunch, I warned my daughter that she might want to step inside.  Her eyes widened, but a gleeful voice rang out, “They are going to kill that rooster? And then we are going to eat it?!  I want to watch!”  The youngest son worked quickly and skillfully as Elisa looked on, riveted.  She seemed to have an epiphany of sorts as she turned to me and exclaimed, “This is how we get our chicken?!  This is where meat comes from?!”

As the preparation progressed, we noticed Mrs. Yu repeatedly leaving the house and returning – first with a duck, then freshly cut greens – then a liver.  Jelly, our guide, made herself at home, tending the coal-fired woks with the family and adding a bit of this and bit of that.  I distracted Elisa from the bird long enough to join the family in shelling soy beans.  As we both sat sat there, bent over a bowl with the Yu family, exchanging smiles, and ‘talking’ via hand motions, I realized that I had been naïve – and silly – to attempt to stop this celebration from happening.  This was the kind of experience we craved in China – a home-cooked meal over coal fired woks with a kind-hearted rural family.

And Erik reminded me we had sent them gifts and even cash over the years as a small token of our appreciation for everything they did for our daughter - and continue to do as they foster new babies.  He pointed out that this was their way of giving something back to us, saving face, so to speak.  Whether it was true or not, I tried not to dampen the celebration with my worries about what it cost the family.

As Mrs. Yu and her son poured boiling water over the rooster and began to pluck its feathers, Elisa left her position by the beans and moved in closer to watch.  Each child has his own positive and negative traits.  I was happy that day that one of my daughter’s most endearing characteristics is her love of food.  She “oooohed and aaaahed” over the chicken as it was served and then – after one bite – proclaimed, “This is the best chicken I have ever tasted.”  And it probably was.

Sitting at the table with the Yus, enjoying an amazing feast with good company, I looked at my small daughter, whose cheek had probably been pinched one too many times that day.  Later, I would tell her that the delicious feast she had enjoyed that day was more than just a meal; it was a celebration of her life.   I would explain that two families, from two completely different worlds, had joined together to commemorate the one thing they had in common, their love for her.

You may find other food stories here:  http://wanderlustandlipstick.com/blogs/wanderfood/