Brainstorm 185: Snails, snails, snails

For today’s Brainstorm I have 2 versions of an Asian fairytale involving a snail and a hard-working young man. Both of these include some foreign language vocabulary (one is completely bilingual), and then I have a third snail story that also has some foreign language introduced.

The Dinner That Cooked Itself by J.C. Hsyu, ill. by Kennard Pak
A hardworking young man, taken in by neighbors after the death of his parents grows up. His adopted parents try to find a suitable wife for him with the help of a matchmaker, but they fail. He continues to faithfully work hard and show kindness to others. One of those kind acts is to feed a snail he finds. He starts to return home to find grand meals ready for him. And when he finds out who has been leaving meals for him, he discovers an unexpected surprise and blessing.

A sweet fairy tale about the a well-deserving man being rewarded for his faithful hard work and kindness, even though he doesn't expect any reward. The illustrations are charming and have a distinct Asian flavoring. A few vocabulary words appear with the Chinese character above the illustration of the object (sorry, it doesn't clarify if it is Mandarin or Cantonese), and there's a note in the back of the book about Chinese calligraphy.

Target Readers:

• Fairytale Fans, Fans of Stories Where Hard-Work & Kindness Are Rewarded, Art Lovers, Chinese Story Fans, Chinese Language Learners/Speakers, Multicultural Story Lovers, Picture Book Readers

The Snail Lady 우렁이 아가씨; The Magic Vase 요술 항아리  adapted by Duance Vorhees & Mark Mueller ; illustrated by Kang Mi-sun
Two Korean folktales told in Korean and English. In the first tale, a young farmer discovers that a snail becomes a lady and is taking care of his house and cooking his meals. He marries her, but the king seas the woman and challenges the farmer to contests for her hand. Thankfully, the Dragon King is the lady's father, and he helps the farmer. In the second tale, a greedy woman berates her fisherman husband until he brings home a magic pot with a man who grants wishes inside. In the end, her greed is her undoing.

The first story is similar to The Dinner That Cooked Itself. The stories have subtle differences at first, and then a big difference in that the Korean version has a second part with the contests. The second tale feels like a Korean version of a djinn tale. Both stories are told in English and in Korean.

Target Readers:

• Fairytale Fans, Korean Story Fans, Foreign Language Learners, Fans of Stories Good for Compare/Contrast Exercises, Fans of Stories with Morals, Multicultural Story Lovers, Picture Book Readers

Escargot by Dashka Slater, ill. by Sydney Hanson
Escargot is a little French snail who would very much like to be your favorite animal. He uses his self-confidence and interactive prompts to keep the reader with him to the salad at the end of the book. Along the way, Escargot shares many of his strong opinions with the readers, especially his thoughts on carrots. Upon reaching the salad at the end of the book, Escargot may have to rethink at least one of his opinions and perhaps readers will rethink how they feel about snails too.

You gotta love Escargot's swagger and self-confidence. It feels so very French. I also like the little French phrases thrown in here and there. (The book is definitely meant to be read aloud to a child as the vocabulary is a little challenging and most of the French phrases are not translated.) There are numerous prompts like to pet or point or kiss Escargot along the way. Kids will likely start to feel sorry for Escargot as he points out that not many people like snails, but I'm sure he'll change many minds. I like the way the book shows Escargot reforming his own opinion of carrots after bravely trying one at the end of the book, encouraging kids to possibly rethink their own strong likes/dislikes at an age when those are not necessarily based on facts but whims. The artwork is adorable and a definite plus.

Target Readers:

• Animal Lovers, Interactive Book fans, French Learners/Speakers, Read Aloud Fans, Picky Eaters, and Snail Fans (or Those Who Want to Become Snail Fans), Art Lovers, Fans of Cute Stories