In this lovely picture book, a young girl named Maggie gets her own pair of chopsticks. Now everyone insists on telling her how to use them. Her grandmother says, “Do it like me!” while she rapidly works her old wooden sticks with a “click-clack-clicketing.” Her sister instructs, “Be graceful like this!” as she crosses her pair “back and forth, like legs, dancing.” But it's no use. No matter how hard Maggie practices to be like the others, they keep telling her she's doing it wrong! Frustrated, Maggie asks her cat, the Kitchen God and her ancestors what she should do. Finally, her father gently tells Maggie just what she needs to hear. “Everyone is different. Everyone is unique,” he tells her. “You hold your chopsticks perfectly.”

Author Alan Woo uses a poetic style to tell a timeless story about self-discovery and identity. It offers an inspiring message to young children about the importance of being true to yourself as you navigate the challenges of growing up. The rich illustrations by Isabelle Malenfant add depth to the spare text, capturing the family dynamics between the different personalities and beautifully portraying details of a traditional Chinese New Year gathering. This book is a wonderful resource for social studies lessons on world cultures, particularly on family traditions and celebrations. It makes a perfect read-aloud during classroom observances of Chinese New Year. A few Chinese words are included within the story, with translations and phonetic spellings provided in the front of the book.

Alan Woo is an enthusiastic teen-services librarian with the Surrey Public Library. Maggie's Chopsticks, his first picture book, won the Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize and was shortlisted for the Chocolate Lily Award. Alan's writing has appeared in Ricepaper and Quills Canadian Poetry Magazine, among other publications. Alan lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Alan Woo's profile page

Isabelle Malenfant nació en Val d'Or, Quebec, y ahora vive en Montreal. De niña, a ella le gustaba dibujar y tocar instrumentos musicales. Ella tocaba flauta, además de piano, bajo, guitarra y violín. Sus asignaturas favoritas en la escuela fueron arte y biología. Estudió arte en la universidad y se licenció en Diseño Gráfico en la Universidad de Quebec, en Montreal.

Isabelle siempre ha disfrutado creando personajes y escribiendo cuentos. Antes de comenzar a ilustrar Pablo encuentra un tesoro, buscó fotos de los vertederos y de las personas que trabajan allí. Su mayor desafío fue representar las piezas de basura sin que se viera repetitivo. Después de experimentar un poco, decidió usar lápices, para crear manchas que lograran el efecto de un entorno sucio.

Lo que más disfruta del proceso creativo es idear personajes y ponerlos en escena. ¡Lo que más le gusta es ensuciarse las manos!

Isabelle vive con su pareja, sus dos hijas, un gato y un hámster enano. Cuando no está escribiendo o ilustrando, le gusta esculpir, coser, leer, escuchar música e ir al cine cuando puede.

Su consejo para los aspirantes a autores e ilustradores es divertirse y no preocuparse por las reglas.

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Isabelle Malenfant's profile page

• Short-listed, Chocolate Lily Book Award
• Winner, Best Books for Kids & Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre
• Winner, Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize
• Winner, Best Children's Books of the Year, Bank Street Children's Book Committee