Chinese / Taiwan
Niu yan fei yu
(Rumours are going around the farm)
Qi Wei
(Huang, Qiwei)
(text/illus.)
Taibei: Xin yi ji jin chu ban she (Hsin Yi Publications), 2022. – [26] p.
(Series: Xin yi tu hua shu jiang)
ISBN 978-986-161-696-4
(Parallel ed. in Chinese simplified characters: Chengdu: Si chuan shao nian er tong chu ban she [Sichuan Children’s Publishing House], 2022. ISBN 978-7-5728-0703-9)
Rumour | Truth | Folk tale | Reversible book | Picture book
Reading age: 3+
White Ravens issue: 2023
An ox tells the farm dog that he is exhausted after a hard day’s work. The news spreads quickly, but each time it becomes exaggerated when passed on to another farm animal, each of which is depicted as a dark silhouette against a glowing evening sky. When the farmer receives the news that the disgruntled ox is looking for a new owner, he feels betrayed and scolds the ox vehemently. A completely different story unfolds when you turn the book around 180 degrees: the farmer investigates the situation and the ox is granted a day of rest. A vivid depiction of the harm caused by false rumours, »Niu yan fei yu« is based on the fable »Chuan yan« (Rumour) by Xu Can (Xu Lingdong, b. 1974), which was published in a supplement of the »Xi'an Evening News« in 2000. Distributed in many versions on the Internet, it had already become a »classic folk tale« when advertising designer Qi Wei adapted it for his beautiful picture book. It received the Outstanding Work Award in the category Picture Book at the 11th Hsin Yi Picture Book Award in 2021. [LO]