The Tiny Kite of Eddie Wing

by Maxine Trottier, Al Van Mil (Illustrator)

Too poor to buy a real kite, Eddie flies an imaginary one that catches the attention of Old Chan, the wealthy patron of the kite festival.

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1995

About the author

Maxine Trottier is the award-winning writer of numerous books for young people, including Claire's Gift (winner of the Mr. Christie's Book Award), Laura: A Childhood Tale of Laura Secord, the Circle of Silver Chronicles, and The Tiny Kite of Eddy Wing (winner of the CLA Book of the Year Award).

A former teacher and an avid sailor, Maxine has long been fascinated by history. She is now an associate member of La Société des Filles du roi et soldats du Carignan, whose purpose is "to honour the memory of these courageous people." While researching Alone in an Untamed Land, Maxine discovered that she herself is directly descended from a fille du roi.

Maxine lives in the small outport of Newman's Cove in Newfoundland, with her husband William and their Yorkie Moon.

Reviews

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tiny Kite of Eddie Wing by Maxine Trottier, Illustrator Al Van Miller- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- This book narrates the story of Eddie Wing who resides in a house above a flower shop. He works for the whole day with his parents. Still they are poor Second character is an old man named Chan. First character Eddie Wing dreams & wishes to fly a kite. Chan dreams & wishes to write a poem instead he opens a shop and spends his life. Both characters are not able to achieve their wishes. The story narrates how each of the two achieve their wish. Every year a Kite festival is organized in the village. Old Chan decides a challenge for kite flying. This year, the Old Chan challenges that the smallest flying kite shall be awarded. Eddie runs on the hill and flies an imaginary kite on the hill. Chan is inspired with act and finalizes to write a poem which he has imagined. Chan calls Eddie to deliver him the prize. As soon as Eddie comes, Chan gets busy in writing the poem. Chan completes the poem and gives a box with a kite and line to Eddie. The book does an excellent job of bringing characters from various races together for the festival. This book is great for young children and can make for a valuable lesson that one person can inspire another by sharp observation. I have read this book in Hindi language. Coloured sketches help the reader to relate to the story.

[Malia Remme · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book I love about the boy’s imagination, and his feeling for kites. It tells you to never stop loving what you love.

[Brianna Davenport · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiny Kite of Eddie Wing by Maxine Trottier is a fantasy story of a boy named Eddie for comes from a very poor family. Eddie loved kites more than anything and the story follows him during the festival of kites. This book would hold the attention of a young child, and is easy to understand. It can be used as a way to expose children to the idea of a little boy who comes from a poor family while doing it in a appropriate way for their age. The characters are very realistically done, and fit the theme of the book quite well. The illustrations are what really caught my eye. They are outstanding, from the colors to the fantasy-like illustrations throughout the book it would keep the attention of a young child through the pictures alone. The pictures are bright and colorful, vivid but realistic. The main character in the book is Eddie who is from an Asian background but children of all backgrounds can be seen in the illustrations of this book. The book does an excellent job of bringing characters from various races together for the festival. Something I really appreciated in this book was that although Eddie was poor he was not portrayed in a negative-stereotypical light. This book is great for young children and can make for a valuable lesson in the classroom!

[Antonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this Book. It is a great read to introduce to a class of student to speak on differences in culture, location, and people. It also allows students to be inspired and motivated to dream. Great Book

[Xiaohui · Rating 3 out of 5]

#dreams

[Molly Gore · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations and a nice lesson about making the best of what you have.