01 Nov / Little Leap Forward: A Boy in Beijing by Guo Yue and Clare Farrow, illustrated by Helen Cann [in Bloomsbury Review]
Based on the real-life experiences of author Guo, this beautifully illustrated thin volume captures the seven-year-old life of Little Leap Forward in 1966 Beijing. Playing by the riverbank one day, Little Leap Forward’s best friend Little Little catches a tiny yellow songbird and presents it to his friend as a gift. With his flute, Little Leap Forward tries very hard to make his new friend sing. But just as the growing restrictions of the Cultural Revolution begin to affect his family and community, Little Leap Forward comes to realize the value of freedom and lets his little friend go.
Review: “TBR’s Editors’ Favorites of 2008,” The Bloomsbury Review, November/December 2008
Readers: Middle Grade
Published: 2008