Red Thread

by Ed Young

An extraordinary tale of love and destiny in ancient China, from Caldecott Medalist Young. Desperately seeking a wife, Wei Gu rushes to the temple to meet a matchmaker. When the old man points out Wei's future wife--a three-year-old child--Wei angrily sets out to prove him wrong. Full color.

Genres: Picture Books, China

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Ed Young is the illustrator of more than eighty books for children, seventeen of which he has also written. Among his books is the Caldecott Medal winner Lon Po Po, which he both wrote and illustrated. He says that his work is inspired by the philosophy of Chinese painting. He lives in Westchester County, New York.

Reviews

[Christine Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the most toxically patriarchal children's books I've read in a long time.

The protagonist is a straight-up VILLAIN who tries to murder his significantly younger, fated wife-to-be when she's 3 years old because he thinks she's ugly and poor, and nobody cares!

She APOLOGIZES to him for having a scar from being STABBED as an orphaned toddler because of his paid assassination attempt. Then homeboy's like "omg that was my fault lol. I can't believe that matchmaker ghost was telling the truth about you becoming my wife. Crazy, huh?" And somehow everybody is just okay with that! And she still has a child with him!

And another thing, this cur is a young man when his fated wife is 3 years old. And it was foretold they would marry 14 years later. So this sicko is marrying a 17 year old that he already tried to kill!!

Not to mention, the only reason he married this poor girl is because his boss appreciated his work ethic, so he gave this morally-corrupt dog his adopted daughter's hand in marriage!

Free my girl! She's a victim on so many levels!!!! She doesn't even get a name; she's only referred to by her relationships to other characters in the story:(

Lmao 4 stars

[Melanie Gaum · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beautiful art, but a strange story. This man seemed to have no remorse after he hired a man to kill a toddler. I can understand age differences due to the time period and culture, but that was irredeemable. And how was his wife okay with that?!

[Kiley Hanje · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was reading this aloud to my kids...you lost me at the part where he hired a man to kill a three year old BY STABBING.

I love old tales from other cultures, but I didn't see value in this one. It was super disturbing.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: Wei seeks help from a spirit when he is unable to find a wife. The old man tells Wei that his wife is only three years old. Wei sees her and does not like her social status or the way she looks. He orders that the three-year-old is killed because he does not want to marry her. Despite his effort to have the child killed, Wei unknowingly marries her and she reveals her story to Wei. The red thread links a couple's feet together when they are born, and they will marry no matter what.
Genre: Picture Book
Audience: 3rd-6th
Topic: Marriage
Theme: Life is unpredictable; we can't understand how everything will work out
Curricular Uses: Read Aloud, Independent Reading
Reading Level: Transitional Readers
Issues: Spirits
Literary Elements: Flashback, Dialogue, Chinese Words
Illustrations: The illustrations in this book are beautiful, although they do not provide many clues to the reader, making this a challenging book for students.
Additional Comments: I think this book is so creative and interesting. It may be a challenge to readers because of some of the Chinese names that are used. This is a great book to incorporate diversity and Chinese culture into the classroom. May need to be aware of students who could be offended by talk of spirits and traveling between worlds.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

A man struggles with finding a wife and when he consults with a matchmaker he learns that his bride-to-be is a young girl, 3 years of age, and that the pair is connected by a red thread.

The man also learns that the girl lives in his neighborhood and cannot resist sneaking a peek at his bride. He is unpleasantly surprised to find the baby is ugly and comes from a less fortunate family. In a bold move, the man hires someone to kill the baby thereby freeing him from his obligation to marry someone who is so far below his own status.

Years later, the man finds a wife and is surprised to learn that she is the same baby from so long ago. He better understands her family situation and the pair lives a happy life together.

The story isn't my favorite though the watercolor and pastel illustrations add light to a dark story.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

really lovely pastel and watercolor drawings. kind of awful story, not because it's not well written, but reading a story about a guy who tries to kill his future bride is awful, and she's married at 17 to him :( and he's super old. At least 30. Even though this represents true circumstances that happened in the past and even continues today. Great exposure to folklore for older elementary.

[Bvlmc Buchanan Verplanck Elementary School · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tale of fate, love and ties that bind us all together. An orphaned young man seeks out a matchmaker in ancient China to find a wife and shocked and surprised to learn that his future wife is only three years old. Deciding to take matters into his own hands, the young man soon finds that ones fate can sometimes be tied to ones destiny.

[Michelle Gray · Rating 2 out of 5]

For the most part I liked the story and the illustrations are nice, I think the end was what made me feel more 2 stars then 3. I know people are supposed to forgive one another, but I think the end of the book was really stretching that.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Legend has it that a red thread attached to feet at birth decides who that child will marry. It's a wonder how "our lives and our fortune are known so well in heaven."

[Nathalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just read this with AZ. I was riveted!! Great story about the ancient idea of immovable fate.