World culture: China
by Kenneth Wilkinson
published by Hodder & Stoughton in 2004
ISBN: 978 0340811436
There are some flaws in this wonderful book, or we can say, the author treats some controversial views as the history fact without asserting them. On page 98, under sub-section "Novel(小说 xiaoshuo)", the author said: "the same author, Luo Guanzhong 罗贯中(1330 to 1400), is also said to have written another highly important book, The Water Margin 水浒传 shui hu zhuan (sometimes called All Men are Brothers)." Water Margin or Outlaws of the Mush or All Men are Brothers is one of four great classical novels of Chinese literature, normally attributed to Shi Nai'an, this statement appears in from all primary school textbooks to Chinese Literature History textbooks referenced by university students who majored in Chinese linguistics and literature, but the author doesn't say anything of Shi Nai'an. That is quite misleading and confusing for the beginners, if he/she encounter another source of Chinese literature.
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THE ROLY RICE BALLS
I borrowed this book from library for my daughter, and my little one loves it. In this version, Lee is a poor young man, and the story is a little bit different from another version of roly poly rice ball.
Japanese folklore contains many stories about kind people who live next door to mean people. The theme of another version rice ball story is a poor but kind old man follows three rice balls as they roll into a hole. The rice balls lead him to a tiny land under the earth which is inhabited by millions of mice. The mice give the man a magical golden rice-pounding mallet to thank him for sharing his rice balls with them. From that day on, the mallet provides food for the man. His greedy neighbour, however, trys to trick the mice into giving him a mallet, and ends up with mud, slime, slugs, and other "horrid things!"
EDUCATIONAL NOTES: This script comes from a Japanese folklore rich in stories about kind old men living next door to mean old men.
The familiar motif: "dropped ball (basket) leads to adventure when recovery is attempted" has been used throughout the world.