Seven Blind Mice by Ed Young

Seven Blind Mice (七隻瞎老鼠)

Written and Illustrated by Ed Young (楊志成)

FME Chinese Translation of original text, Hardcover

April 29, 1992

http://edyoungart.com/

48 pages

ISBN 957-632-278-2

Age 4 and up

This Caldecott medal honor winning book is an adaptation of an ancient Indian tale of blind men trying to identify an elephant. In Seven Blind Mice, seven blind mice of different hues find something a "strange something" next to their pond and each takes a turn to investigate what that strange thing may be. They all  argue what it might be until the last white mouse brings the pieces together. 

The illustrations are amazing in their elegant simplicity. The black pages, which are a nice representation of blindness, contrast against the white font, the collage forms of the differently-hued mice and the elephant textured with earth-toned crumbled paper. The collage form successfully gives the mice a visually tactile feel which is (again) an appropriate representation for blindness.

There are many academic concepts that are integrated into into this story that can be utilized by parents or in a read-aloud setting for education purposes. The book can be used to introduce the days of the week, ordinal numbers, colors, and adjectives/similes (such as "strong as a pillar" and "supple as a snake"). That being said, my favorite part/teaching is the simple message or "Mouse Moral" at the end of the story, which reminds us to try and see things from all view points and open our minds to greater possibilities.  “Knowing in part may make a fine tale, but wisdom comes from seeing the whole.” 楊志成 takes a  complex idea and presents it simple, creative, and clear enough for young listeners. That is difficult. 

I think that some traditional tales and folklore are fluid. Meaning can be transmitted and transmuted by different pictures and words but the whole concept is still the same. So, that is why I've chosen this particular story to represent the outstanding picture book that is a fairy, folk, or other traditional tale. New reworkings keep the past or ancient morales alive.The book has also received the Boston Horn Book Honor (1992) and California Media Award.

I encountered the print version of this book at the Nangang Public Library shelved as ++4647 in the preschool section. It is also be found under JP Young (Juvenile Picturebook). It is not found with the other classics in 398.2 because it is unique in its own way as an adaptation of the story (mice instead of men). 

(Bob Golic reading The Seven Blind Mice with Ed Young's illustrations).

(A short animation of the Indian Fable "The Six Blind Men" (the Blind Men and the Elephant)-
 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBqgr5xZLz0&feature=related>).