Chinese / People's Republic of China
A li ya zhao ba ba
(Aliya looks for her Dad)
Zhou, Xiang
(text/illus.)
Ürümqi: Xin jiang qing shao nian chu ban she (Xinjiang Juvenile Publishing House), 2025. – [46] p.
ISBN 978-7-5756-0653-0
Daughter | Father | Xinjiang | Bazaar | Uyghur <people>
Reading age: 5+
White Ravens issue: 2026
Aliya, a little Uyghur girl, eagerly follows her father to the grand bazaar to buy sheep. Afterwards, her father leaves to fix his vehicle, telling Aliya to wait. A startled horse and a rainstorm soon plunge the bazaar into chaos, and Aliya gets lost in the clamour and confusion of the vast market. But people notice her in her red dress and come forward to help, calling her father’s name until they find him, thus helping to reunite father and child. Earthy yellows and russet browns in the illustrations evoke a harsh but warm-hearted land where busy folk pause to help a child. Zhou Xiang is a leading figure in promoting contemporary Chinese picture books. His best-known works include »He hua zhen de zao shi« (The morning market of Lotus Town) and »Yi yuan qing cai cheng le jing« (A garden of vegetables became alive). In 2023, Zhou Xiang won »Chinese Excellence in Children’s Illustration« at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. [FW, ZX]