I might be physically reaching an age where people start to feel very old; where they have hit a milestone in their life where society says you are not really nifty but your age rhymes. But mentally I am five to 10-years-old depending on the day. And when I was asked by a fellow Cannonballer if I was interested in reviewing a reader copy that was offered to us, I said yes. I was very excited. And the second time this happened (yes, this honor has been bestowed on me more than once), I was requested specifically. And I was not just tickled pink! No, I was tickled all the colors of the rainbow! You would think by the second time and my past bookselling experience of having had two customers “fight over” me (as the story goes they were at a party, and Person One said, “Oh I love X at my independent bookstore” to Person Two, who said, “No you cannot have her, she’s mine!”) I would be “eh, old hat.” But no, I am as giggly as I was the first time. It is fun to be requested. It is fun to be acknowledged. And it is fun to discover new goodies.
That new goodie was the book The Discovery of Chess: The Asian Hall of Fame by Phil Amara and Oliver Chin. Well, you had me at Oliver Chin. I have enjoyed their Tales from the Chinese Zodiac series, and was looking forward to meeting Phil Amara and Juan Calle (on illustrations). When I first received my copy, I was at work. So I looked, sighed (“our rendezvous must wait I am afraid” I lovingly thought to it) and went back to work. I would not have a moment to quietly read until the weekend. But it was worth any wait I had to endure. This clever, informative and fun story about how chess was invented is along the lines of the Magical History Tour series by Erre and Savoia, but for a slightly younger crowd. However, due to the factual presentation it is not “action filled” in a traditional manner nor is it a typical picture book read or reader/listener. There is not a message, or even just a fun time, but a combination of education with amusement. If you read “between the lines” you will see how politics played a role in shaping how the game would transform into the game we know today. The unfolding of a complex game really has a complex history and was fun to learn about.
Unfortunately, I had one small bump where I was unsure who the people of the story were, such as the adorable red panda guide. I was unaware it was a part of The Asian Hall of Fame series:
The Discovery of Ramen: The Asian Hall of Fame
The Discovery of Fireworks and Gunpowder: The Asian Hall of Fame
The Discovery of Anime and Manga: The Asian Hall of Fame
The Discovery of Anime and Manga: The Asian Hall of Fame
I will now need to find all of them to catch myself up on the wonderful adventures and subjects that do not seem to be usually aimed at children books. Not to mention two others the authors have done, Awesome Asian Americans: 20 Stars Who Made America Amazing and More Awesome Asian Americans: 20 Citizens Who Energized America.
And I cannot forget the illustrations of Juan Calle. They are a bit cartoonish, but not cartoony. They have fantastic colors and details and you can tell a lot of care was put towards them. Due to my unfinished reader copy, they were shiny but not polished, therefore, I will need a final copy. I enjoyed the art as it supports the text, which sometimes was well wordy. The line that stuck out was “the strong Queen” and you see that strong Queen, which makes the concept “step off the page” and become “real” and understandable.
