#574 of 1001 · February 25, 2022

The next of my Sequel Cinderellas is a special one indeed, for this is one of the oldest known variants of the tale: Yeh Shen, retold by Ai-Ling Louie and illustrated by Ed Young. A cave chief in ancient China takes two wives, each of whom in turn bears him a daughter. One wife takes ill and dies, and soon afterward the chief too passes away. Their child, Yeh-Shen, grows up with her father’s widow and other daughter. Her stepfamily treats her cruelly, and her only pleasure comes from feeding a fish in a nearby pond. When the stepmother discovers her pet, she kills it and cooks it for dinner. A mysterious old man soon appears before the grieving girl and tells her that the fish’s bones will grant her every wish. Some time later, Yeh-Shen uses the bones to conjure a marvelous blue gown and golden-soled shoes to wear to the spring festival. Fearful of being recognized, she flees and leaves behind one shoe. When the king seeks out the shoe’s owner, he discovers Yeh-Shen and marries her. He does not, however, invite her stepfamily to live in his palace, and one day, in the cave where they have always dwelled, they are crushed by falling rocks. Louie’s graceful writing and Young’s splendid art breathe vibrant energy into this ancient Cinderella narrative. A note for folklore enthusiasts: the story of Yeh-Shien (also transliterated “Yè Xiàn”) first appears in Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang, a book written by Tang Dynasty poet Duan Chengshi in the ninth century of the Common Era. #cinderella #cave #fish #bones #festival #king #magic #book #books #childrensbooks #beautifulbooks #picturebook #picturebooks #picturebookillustration #picturebookillustrations #picturebookart #childrensbookillustration #childrensliterature #illustration #kidlit #kidsbooks #bookworm #booklover #booklovers #bibliophile #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #instabook #instabooks