49- Silver Phoenix: Beyond the Kingdom of Xia by Cindy Pon

Silver Phoenix: Beyond the Kingdom of Xia by Cindy Pon

• Title: Silver Phoenix: Beyond the Kingdom of Xia by Cindy Pon
• ISBN:978-0-06-173024-5
• Publisher: HarperCollins, New York, 2009 (1^st paperback edition 2011)
• Pages: 338.
• Age: 14+

Teaser: Will Ai Ling be forced to marry one of the suitors her parents find her, or will her father’s disappearance prove her only escape.

Plot: Ai Ling is at the crucial age, where her fate is put into the hands of the person her parents chose for her to wed. When her parents realize no one wants to marry her, she is secretly relieved, but when her father, Master Wen, leaves on a long journey, life changes. Now Master Huang, a merchant comes to the Ling home to declare that Master Wen owes him a large sum of money, with him gone, there is no one to refute him. He claims the debt could be paid by giving Ai Ling to him, as his fourth wife. Scared at what her mother will do, Ai Ling flees for her future and in search of her father at the Palace of Fragrant Dreams where he had traveled many months before. On her way, Ai Ling discovers many demons after her that she must fight for her life. Stuck in the lake, she is rescued by a young man passing by, Chen Yong, who decides it is best if they travel together. Chen Yong is in search of the man who knew his birth father. Along the way, AI Ling and Chen Yong find themselves in many battles, searching for many answers until they finally make it all the way to the Palace of Fragrant Dreams, where Li Lung is made to marry Zhong Ye, the Emperor’s most trusted confidant, who is not what everyone expects him to be.

Critical Review: Pon brings the Chinese Dynasty Xia to life with characters that want to please
their elders, while still staying true to themselves. Ai Ling, leaves on a
journey to find her father, which really was disrespectful to her mother, yet
she was unwilling to marry the man who came to claim her as the price owed him
by her father. During the course of her travels she is constantly in conflict
with her decision to flee, knowing how disrespectful she truly was to do so.
Pon’s use of magical creators come to life, as Li Ling, Chen Yong and Li Rong
travel to find the Lady in White at the Mountain of Eternal Prayer, and beyond
as Li Ling and Chen Yong find their ways to the Palace of Fragrant Dreams. One
of the major conflicts Ai Ling faces is the forces that come against her as she
travels to the Palace, but once she conquers the demons at the Mountain of
Eternal Prayer, she is told of why the demons keep attacking her. It is through
these struggles that Pon brings her readers on a journey, keeping them turning
the pages till the bitter end. Readers are captivated by Pon’s descriptions of
the demons after Ai Ling, and the different places she travels to.

Me ,CIndy Pon & Ruta Sepetys
@ ALA Conference 2012

About the Author: Cindy Pon was born in Taipei, Taiwan, and immigrated to the United States in 1980. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego and her Master’s degree from New York University. She has a love for art and is a student in Chinese brush painting. She currently lives in San Diego, with her husband and two small girls (Harperteen.com, 2012).  She is a down to earth author, who I saw in line at the ALA convention waiting to get an advanced copy of Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys signed (very cool).

Awards: Named one of the top ten fantasy and science fiction books in 2009 by ALA’s Booklist.

Genre: Mythic Reality/Fantasy

Curriculum Ties: English

Challenge Issues: None found.

Library Bill of Rights: American Library Association, retrieve from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/

Challenge Materials: American Library Association, retrieve from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/challengedmaterials

Book-talk Idea: Growing up in China during the Xia Dynasty meant that Ai Ling must marry the suitor her parents choose, but they must also be willing.

Book Included: This book was included after I met the author and she signed the book for me. Cindy Pon was a done to earth author, who was a joy to meet. I had to read her book and include it in my blog.

Find on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihJ1xy009bk

References:

Harperteen.com. (2012). Cindy Pon: About the Author. Retrieved from:                 http://www.harperteen.com/author/microsite/About.aspx?authorid=35127

Cindy Pon