Search - List of Books by Ed Young
Ed Young (November 28, 1931 –), born Ed (Tse-chun) Young, is a Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator and author of picture books.
Ed Young was born on November 28, 1931 in Tianjin, China. When he was three years old, he and his family moved to Shanghai. His mother would ring a bell at mealtimes, and he would slide down the banister with his brothers and sisters. “I have never lost the child in me. My father would spin endless tales of his own to entertain our imaginations on summer nights lying on the flat roof of our house. I have never forgotten the images I saw in my mind.” From an early age, Ed loved to create stories and draw pictures and thought he could "disappear" into his own world, brought to life through his illustrations.
In 1951, Young came to America to study architecture. Instead, he grew more interested in art, and soon switched his major. Young’s first job was with a New York advertising agency where he spent his lunch breaks sketching animals at Central Park Zoo. During that time, he received a letter from his father which said, “A successful life and a happy life is one measured by how much you have accomplished for others and not one measured by how much you have done for yourself. “Young said, “I understood then that to realize my potential as an artist was subservient to my worth as a human being. To be truly successful, I needed to find a place where my work would also inspire others to fuller and happier lives. I wished to share with everyone my father’s words about success — work can, in fact, be the rooftop from which we launch ourselves to higher places.” In search of something more expansive, expressive, and timeless, Young discovered all this, and more, in children’s books.
Young’s first book, The Mean Mouse and Other Mean Stories, was published by Harper & Row in 1962. He expected it to be his first and last book, but it won an American Institute of Graphic Arts award and launched a career that has resulted in over eighty books for children. Most of his books are visual masterpieces using colors and images to convey hidden symbolism.
“A Chinese painting is often accompanied by words. They are complementary. There are things that words do that pictures never can, and likewise, there are images that words can never describe. I feel the story has to be an exciting and moving experience for a child. Before I am involved with a project, I must be moved, and, as I grow, I try to create something exciting. It is my purpose to stimulate growth in the reader as an active participant. To get the story across for me, mostly it’s the feeling. I think that if the book evokes a reaction of some sort, either positive or negative, I think it would have done what it is supposed to do.”
The subject and style of each story provide Young with the initial inspiration for his art and with the motivation for design, sequence, and pace. Accuracy in research is essential to his work, too — whether he is illustrating fantasy, folk tale, or fact. According to Young, a strong foundation of credibility must be established in order to create new and exciting images. Through such images, he hopes to capture his readers and ultimately expand their awareness.
In 1990, his book Lon Po Po, a Red-Riding Hood story from China, was awarded the Caldecott Medal. He has also received two Caldecott Honors — for The Emperor and the Kite and Seven Blind Mice — and was twice nominated for the Hans Christian Andersen Award, the highest international recognition given to children's book authors and illustrators who have made a lasting contribution to children's literature.
According to Young, “Producing a book becomes part of the spirit of each person who touched it and those who’d touched them.” During a Horn Book acceptance speech, Young spoke about the “Eight Matters of the Heart,” the place where he said that he puts his mind before he does his work (for more information, read Young’s book, Voices of the Heart.) When asked to elaborate, he said, “We put ourselves in jeopardy in life if we don’t have our mind and body in the right place. The eight matters must accompany me wherever I tread so that I know the time that I have in this world is well spent.”
In 1961, Young met the renowned tai chi master, Cheng Man-ch'ing. He became one of Cheng's top disciples in America, and was one of his two principal translators. Besides being a master of tai chi and Chinese medicine, Cheng was a highly respected master of Chinese painting, poetry and calligraphy. Being Chinese and an artist, Young was able to appreciate and absorb much of what Cheng had to say in those fields. Young is now a respected tai chi master in his own right, and has been teaching tai chi students for over three decades. He also enjoys swimming and says that his favorite sound is the sound of waves lapping the shore.
- Caldecott Medal: Lon Po Po: A Red Riding Hood Story from China (1990).
- Caldecott Honor: The Emperor and the Kite.
- Caldecott Honor: Seven Blind Mice
- Hans Christian Andersen Medal nominations: 1992 and 2000.
Self-Illustrated; for children
- (With Hilary Beckett) The Rooster's Horns: A Chinese Puppet Play to Make and Perform, 1978.
- (Reteller) The Terrible Nung Gwama: A Chinese Folktale, 1978.
- (Adaptor) The Lion and the Mouse: An Aesop Fable, 1979.
- High on a Hill: A Book of Chinese Riddles, 1980.
- Up a Tree, 1983.
- The Other Bone, 1984.
- (Translator) Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China, 1989.
- (Reteller) Seven Blind Mice, 1992 (a version of The Blind men and an elephant).
- (Reteller) Moon Mother: A Narrative American Creation Tale, 1993.
- (Reteller) Red Thread, 1993.
- (Reteller) Little Plum, 1994.
- (Reteller) Donkey Trouble, 1995.
- (Adaptor) Pinocchio, 1995.
- (Reteller) Night Visitors, 1995.
- Cat and Rat: The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac, 1995.
- (Reteller) Mouse Match: A Chinese Folktale, 1997 (a version of The Mouse Turned into a Maid).
- (Adaptor) Genesis, 1997.
- Voices of the Heart, 1997.
- (Reteller) The Lost Horse: A Chinese Folktale, 1998.
- Monkey King, 2001.
- What About Me?, 2002.
- I, Doko: The Tale of the Basket, 2004
- Sons of the Dragon King, 2004
- Beyond the Great Mountains, 2005
- My Mei Mei, 2006
- Tiger of the Snows, 2006
- Hook, 2009
Illustrator
- Janice May Udry, The Mean Mouse and Other Mean Stories, 1962.
- Leland B. Jacobs and Sally Nohelty, editors, Poetry for Young Scientists, 1964.
- Margaret Hillert, The Yellow Boat, 1966.
- Jane Yolen, editor, The Emperor and the Kite, 1968.
- Robert Wyndam, editor, Chinese Mother Goose Rhymes, 1968.
- Kermit Krueger, The Golden Swans: A Picture Story from Thailand, 1969.
- Mel Evans, The Tiniest Sound, 1969.
- Jane Yolen, The Seventh Mandarin, 1970.
- Renee K. Weiss, The Bird from the Sea, 1970.
- Diane Wolkstein, Eight Thousand Stones: A Chinese Folktale, 1972.
- Jane Yolen, The Girl Who Loved the Wind, 1972.
- L. C. Hunt, editor, The Horse from Nowhere, 1973.
- Donnarae MacCann and Olga Richard, The Child's First Books, 1973.
- Elizabeth Foreman Lewis, Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze, 1973.
- Diane Wolkstein, The Red Lion: A Tale of Ancient Persia, 1977.
- Feenie Ziner, Cricket Boy: A Chinese Tale, 1977.
- N. J. Dawood, Tales from the Arabian Nights, 1978.
- Diane Wolkstein, White Wave: A Chinese Tale, 1979.
- Priscilla Jaquith, Bo Rabbit Smart for True: Folktales from the Gullah, 1981.
- Al-Ling Louie, Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China, 1982.
- Mary Scioscia, Bicycle Rider, 1983.
- Rafe Martin, Foolish Rabbit's Big Mistake, 1985.
- Jean Fritz, The Double Life of Pocahontas, 1985.
- Margaret Leaf, Eyes of the Dragon, 1987.
- James Howe, I Wish I Were a Butterfly, 1987.
- Tony Johnston, Whale Song, 1987.
- Richard Lewis, In the Night, Still Dark, 1988.
- Nancy Larrick, editor, Cats Are Cats, 1988.
- Robert Frost, Birches, 1988.
- Oscar Wilde, The Happy Prince, 1989.
- Lafcadio Hearn, The Voice of the Great Bell, retold by Margaret Hodges, 1989.
- Ruth Y. Radin, High in the Mountains, 1989.
- Nancy Larrick, editor, Mice Are Nice, 1990.
- Richard Lewis, All of You Was Singing, 1991.
- Nancy White Carlstrom, Goodbye, Geese, 1991.
- Barabara Savage Horton, What Comes in Spring?, 1992.
- Mary Calhoun, While I Sleep, 1992.
- Audrey Osofsky, Dreamcatcher, 1992.
- Laura Krauss Melmed, The First Song Ever Sung, 1993.
- Eleanor Coerr, Sadako, 1993.
- Isaac Olaleye, Bitter Bananas, 1994.
- Shulamith Levey Oppenheim, reteller, Iblis, 1994.
- Penny Pollock, reteller, The Turkey Girl: A Zuni Cinderella Story, 1996 ( a Native American version of Cinderella)
- Lisa Westberg Peters, October Smiled Back, 1996.
- Jack London, White Fang, 1999.
- Mary Casanova, The Hunter: A Chinese Folktale, 2000.
- Dorothea P. Seeber, A Pup Just for Me...A Boy Just for Me, 2000.
- Tony Johnston, Desert Song, 2000.
- Nikki Grimes, Tai Chi Morning: Snapshots of China, 2004
- Andrea Cheng, Shanghai Messenger, 2005.
- Dennis Haseley, Twenty Heartbeats, 2008.
- Mark Reibstein, Wabi Sabi, 2008.
- Kimiko Kajikawa, Tsunami!, 2009.
- Brenda Z. Guiberson, Moon Bear, 2010.
- Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, based on the story by Eleanor Coerr
