Ying Chang Compestine, illustrated by Tungway Chau,
The Runaway Rice Cake.
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2001

Like the Gingerbread Man, who "ran and ran as fast as he can," (or could) The Runaway Rice Cake carried with it the same kind of charm and fun of that classic childhood story. This highly entertaining book is a fantasy about a Chinese family of meager means who makes Horatio Alger’s triumph tape in comparison.

While the detailed illustrations place the Chang family in long-ago China, the writing is strictly contemporary Americana. Compestine avoids the stilted English that passes in some Asian books as an authentic voice; this Rice Cake escapes capture with Doctor Seussian rap-like taunts as he makes his wild way through the village. Like all well-written, convincing works, it finds its Asian anchor through cultural inclusions – in subtle, ordinary ways that engage and teach you about a different time and place. Whether it be through the Chinese rituals involved with the Kitchen God or the treatment of elders, the story makes a solid imprint on your subconscious while your conscious salivates for more.

An added bonus: a pronunciation guide and glossary of Chinese words used in the story; a nicely detailed background page on celebrating the Chinese New Year; and two rice cake recipes (for the gourmand in us all) – one baked, the other steamed!

C.K.Rekdal