A visually stunning story of resilience and determination by an award-winning new author-illustrator team, perfect for back to school. This is no ordinary first journey. The rainy season has come to the Mekong Delta, and An, a young Vietnamese boy, sets out alone in a wooden boat wearing a little backpack and armed only with a single oar. On the way, he is confronted by giant crested waves, heavy rainfall and eerie forests where fear takes hold of him. Although daunted by the dark unknown, An realizes that he is not alone and continues to paddle. He knows it will all be worth it when he reaches his destination--one familiar to children all over the world.

Sam, Sebbie and Di-Di-Di are three siblings who love doing things together. Today is extra-special because they are going to see a lion dance. Doong doong chang went the lion dance band. Doong doong chang went the lion dance gong. Doong doong chang! But where is the lion? Is he still at the zoo? Or stuck backstage? When the siblings open the curtain to find the lion, they are surprised to see a lion costume. They decide to put on the costume and start performing for everyone. And no one is more surprised than their parents to see that the lion dancers were none other than Sam, Sebbie, and Di-Di-Di.

This thoroughly updated new edition of an already popular text brings together specially-commissioned chapters by leading authorities, rigorously edited to ensure systematic coverage. It provides students with an accessible and up-to-date thematically-structured comparative introduction to Southeast Asia today.

Sam, Sebbie and Di-Di-Di are three siblings who love doing things together. One sunny Sunday, their parents take them to the S.E.A. Aquarium where Sam and Sebbie suddenly lose track of their little brother. When Sam realises the fish she saw in the tank was not really a fish, but Di-Di-Di, they jump into the tanks and start asking all the fish if they have seen their brother. Finally they find Di-Di-Di with Jay, the Manta Ray. And they find out Jay has been sad because everyone is too afraid to play with him. So the siblings show all the other fish just how much fun the manta ray can be.

This volume provides a key analysis of Asian children’s literature and film and creates a dialogue between East and West and between the cultures from which they emerge, within the complex symbiosis of their local, national and transnational frameworks. In terms of location and content the book embraces a broad scope, including contributions related to the Asian-American diaspora, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and Taiwan. Individually and collectively, these essays broach crucial questions: What elements of Asian literature and film make them distinctive, both within their own specific culture and within the broader Asian area? What aspects link them to these genres in other parts of the world? How have they represented and shaped the societies and cultures they inhabit? What moral codes do they address, underpin, or contest? The volume provides further voice to the increasingly diverse and fascinating output of the region and emphasises the importance of Asian art forms as depictions of specific cultures but also of their connection to broader themes in children’s texts, and scholarship within this field.