The Lotus Seed

by Sherry Garland

Other authorsTatsuro Kiuchi (Illustrator)

Paperback, 1997

Status

Available

Call number

791.4572

Genres

Children's Books

Collection

Geography and Social Studies

Publication

Clarion Books (1997), Edition: First, 32 pages

Description

A young Vietnamese girl saves a lotus seed and carries it with her everywhere to remember a brave emperor and the homeland that she has to flee.

User reviews

LibraryThing member foster7

Years ago, a grandmother (before she was a grandmother), collected and saved a lotus seed, the day the emperor of Vietnam was overthrown. Decades later, when war came, she left Vietnam, but made sure to take her precious lotus seed with her, leaving other items behind. She traveled by boat to a new

country with "a language she didn't understand." In this new country, she "worked many years, day and night." After many years passed, her grandson planted the seed, and a gorgeous lotus blossom grew. The grandmother distributed the flowers' seeds, and her granddaughter saved hers in a hidden spot in her room, just as her grandmother had done many years before. This story, written by Sherry Garland, is further explained through oil paintings, by illustrator Tatsuro Kiuchi. Pages show scenes from Vietnam, including a field full of lotus plants, as well as an image from the war-torn country, with bombs causing the sky to appear black with smoke. Readers see the rough sea, on which the grandmother traveled, and the overwhelming foreign city, in which she shared a crowded home. The text tells the story of the grandmother's life, with each page marking a milestone in her journey. Garland mentions events in minimal phrases, with each sentence conveying a significant period. She notes that the grandmother, "married a young man chosen by her parents," and later, "soldiers clamored door to door." Young readers can gain insight into a period of history, which has repeated itself in many countries, in which people escape their native homes during times of war. Readers will see the importance of carrying the past into the future, and sharing memories with future generations.

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LibraryThing member MarthaL

On the day the the emperor lost the throne the narrators grandmother then a young girl herself snuck down to the flowers by the palace and took a lotus seed pod. She kept that seed for years as a special reminder and for good luck. An author's note at the end sets the story in 1945-1954 when the

Vietnamese struggle to free themselves from French rule.

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LibraryThing member nmhale

The narrator of this book is recalling the story of her grandmother, who saw the Vietnamese Emperor cry. Snatching a lotus seed from the palace, by which to remember him always, her grandmother keeps it in a safe place with her. In elegant prose, we see a compressed history of grandmother, from

marriage through her flight from Vietnam as a refugee, and the seed is always with her. In her new life in America, grandmother passes on her story to her grandchildren. Her youngest is so curious that he takes the seed and buries it. Grandmother is at first devastated, but she soon learns the regenerative power of the lotus seed.

The story is beautiful, and discusses hefty subject matter in a simple and eloquent style. I love the symbol of the lotus seed as hope and rebirth, and the image of grandmother as a repository of important history and knowledge. I feel a lack of deep family roots in my own history, which makes me particularly like to read it of other families, even fictional. Also, the tale touches the heart with its understated poignancy.

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LibraryThing member kapickens

This story seems very realistic. It is interesting and gives us a view of history in a way that younger children can understand and then discuss.

LibraryThing member ChantalBerho

This is a realistic fiction book about a girl's grandmother, who during the time of emperors in Vietnam (and the French-Vietnamese war), saved a lotus seed to remember the last emperor. She kept her seed wherever she went, and when war broke out in her country and she had to flee, it was one of the

only things she took with her. When she went to America as a refugee, she was frightened, but always remembered the seed. One day, her grandson, the brother of the girl telling the story, planted the seed. This was much to her grandmother's dismay, until one day, a beautiful lotus flower began to bloom. Then she passed a lotus seed on to all of her grandchildren, for the lotus flower is the Vietnamese flower of hope and life.
This is a good example of realistic fiction because it follows the real major historical events of Vietnam's quest for independence and is realistic in the customs and values of the culture.
This book us done in oil paint.
This book could be a good resource for lessons about culture.
This book could be used in lessons about international history.

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LibraryThing member TylerSmith

Summary: This story is about a young woman from Vietnam who sees a powerful emperor lose all of his power. She saves a lotus seed to remind her of that time and she carries it with her wherever she goes. When they have to leave Vietnam she keeps the seed with her and when shes in America it ends up

being planted and then she passes seed from it on to her younger grandchildren.
Genre Critique: This would be a historical fiction because it focuses on real life events from the past, but the characters are all fictional.
Character Critique: The main woman in this story is very dynamic because of how much change she goes through. She starts as a young woman who eventually gets married, loses her husband, has to flee Vietnam, to helping raise a family on her own and surviving in a foreign land to them.

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LibraryThing member matthewbloome

An unusual book of Vietnamese culture. I like it. It carries through the generations and outlines many of the important moments in Vietnamese history with a nice synopsis of the events mentioned within right at the end. It's unusual for its topic and it's well presented for its audience.

LibraryThing member jenniferm14

This historical fiction is a beautiful story that allows readers to get a glimpse of the value of history for Vietnamese people. The Lotus Seed tells the story of a woman who sees the emperor loose his throne, experience war, and immigrate to the United States. This book is appropriate intermediate

readers.

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LibraryThing member JackieOttman

A Vietnamese girl migrates to America and brings with her a lotus seed. Keeps it, and one boy eventually takes it and plants it. She's distraught until the next spring when a lotus plant grows. She then gives seeds to others and keeps one for herself. A story of hope, tradition, family

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