Scan barcode
emilyusuallyreading's review against another edition
2.0
What I Liked
Ancient China fascinates me after reading this story. I never realized there were different "tribes" of Chinese - and that Redbird's tribe tattooed their faces. This was certainly a learning experience.
Yu's character was by far my favorite. I enjoyed reading of Redbird's experience in the wealthy Chinese family household.
What I Didn't Like
This story moves slowly. Like snail's pace slowly. I enjoy a good action novel, but somehow the action and war tales of this one run dry.
I found myself putting this down again and again, unable to immerse myself into the excitement and feeling only boredom for the last 2/3rds of the story.
Did the author rely too much on history to make this too historical to have enjoyment within? Or was there so little historical information available for him that he struggled to come up with content at all? I don't even know the answer.
Ancient China fascinates me after reading this story. I never realized there were different "tribes" of Chinese - and that Redbird's tribe tattooed their faces. This was certainly a learning experience.
Yu's character was by far my favorite. I enjoyed reading of Redbird's experience in the wealthy Chinese family household.
What I Didn't Like
This story moves slowly. Like snail's pace slowly. I enjoy a good action novel, but somehow the action and war tales of this one run dry.
I found myself putting this down again and again, unable to immerse myself into the excitement and feeling only boredom for the last 2/3rds of the story.
Did the author rely too much on history to make this too historical to have enjoyment within? Or was there so little historical information available for him that he struggled to come up with content at all? I don't even know the answer.
lisamleb's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
storytimed's review against another edition
4.5
Lawrence Yep is like the king of historical Chinese-American children's fiction, and not just because for decades he was pretty much the only dude writing it.
He's really good at creating characters who feel of their time but also very emotionally real to a modern reader. This time he's writing about Lady Xian, who was an actual female ruler in Southern China, in the form of a fictional diary
There's a specific kind of joy in the way Yep writes plot and conflict resolution that is I think common both to stories of Chinese history & to children's novels. The primary value in this story is not pluck or bravery or strength or doormat-level kindness but cleverness and intelligence. Lady Xian is respected among her tribe as someone who's good at finding smart solutions to problems, and that's the approach she brings to the invasion she faces in the novel
In Chinese I would call it 技巧
The enemy has elephants, so she devises a plan to use insects to frighten the elephants and turn them on their handlers. The enemy is unfamiliar with the terrain, so she devises plans to use the terrain to her army's advantage
It works in the context of Chinese history because one of our main literary military heroes, Zhuge Liang, is known for big brain strategies, but it also works because a lot of children's fiction is about finding ways where a protagonist who's smaller, with less authority and less resources can still win. And it works in the context of her being a woman in a largely patriarchal society, too! She's not like the most girlboss warrior of them all, she's smart and know how to navigate through her social position
All in all, good book
bergha1998's review against another edition
3.25
Princess Redbird has been sent to a neighboring Chinese kingdom to learn about reading & writing. She feels stuck between the cultures of her home & this different society.
khaleesimod93's review
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This story was beautifully told! I adored the descriptions of the forests and the town that Princess Redbird studied in. Due to this story, I want to do more research around the time this story takes place. It's fascinating and gives a completely different viewpoint on colonists. I'm so used to hearing about the European colonists, more specifically the British, that it was interesting reading about Chinease colonists. The Hsien people viewed them as the enemy while the Chinese viewed the Hsien as savages and barbaric. Similar to the way Native Americans were treated and viewed. I absolutely adore Princess Redbirds voice. It was descriptive and concise. She was everything I would want to be as a royal and everything you'd expect out of a princess. Kind and caring, but brave and fierce as well. She wasn't just a demure Princess. She was a warrior. Love the royal diary series for shedding light on such an interesting and less researched time period
emmarj's review against another edition
2.0
Stunted and containing many grammatical errors. One of the most boring of the series so far.
livthebooknerd's review against another edition
5.0
I've probably read this book 15 times. I loved this book so much in middle school. I was obsessed with the chinese culture and I think I need to reread this to get some nostalgic feels
musiquedevie's review against another edition
5.0
A wonderfully written, fascinating story on the Hsien tribe and the Lady of Ch'iao Kuo. Laurence Yep did an excellent job of bring this story to life with his vibrant way of writing. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel with the brilliant characters, the story line and powerful ending. This is definitely my number one pick for the 'Royal Diaries' collection!
lemon_loaf's review against another edition
5.0
Starts off a bit slow, but I enjoyed it when it got interesting.