Auntie Tiger by Laurence Yep with pictures by Insu Lee

Auntie Tiger, by Laurence Yep with pictures by Insu Lee, is a lovely example for children about the bond of siblings. Yep puts a new spin on Little Red Riding Hood with Auntie Tiger and her persuasive abilities. Big Sister and Little Sister live in China with their mother, who is a widow. The older sister is responsible and bossy, as older sisters usually are, and the younger sister is a complainer and lazy because she knows the older sister will complete the chores. The mother goes out to find food and tells the girls not to open the door for anyone because she is aware of the tiger that is on the loose. The tiger is cunning and dresses as the girls’ Auntie. Big Sister notices his voice and the color of his hands, and he fixes those things. The little sister yanks open the door after being offered treats. He takes the sisters to the bedroom pretending to need a nap. Little Sister fans Auntie Tiger upon his request, and he eats her. Big Sister runs up in a tree and gets Auntie Tiger to fetch a bucket of water and a bamboo pole so she can drown him some birds to eat and then says that she will slide down the pole. He places the bamboo pole in his mouth so she can just slide down into his mouth, and she pours water down his throat drowning him. She cuts the tiger open and gets Little Sister out. Little Sister then promises to listen, and Big Sister promises to always take care of her.

I absolutely loved this book because I can relate to it. The illustrations are stunning and truly depicted as two sisters who are very close but quite jealous of each other. The words were carefully written, by Yep, to add every desired element. He used the elements of a fairytale while also incorporating the Chinese Culture, and even the relationship among two sisters and their mothers. My sister and I have this exact same relationship. I am Little Sister. She always takes care of me and would defeat a tiger for me if the need arose. I would do the same for her, but I make her do the chores. I do fear that the story was a little graphic and might give some children hope and trust that might not exist. If a child were really eaten by a tiger, no matter how much she trusts her sister, she would not be able to save her. Therefore, the risks that present themselves to children should not be overlooked. I know that it is a fairy tale, but I lack the imagination to see a child walking out of a dead tiger still alive. I guess it comes with age. Maybe young children can still envision it without a picture, but Lee did include a graphic photo of the tiger drowning.

According to the book jacket for Auntie Tiger, Laurence Yep is captivated by the theories on sibling rivalry because his brother earned him the name Laurence after a saint who died a gruesome death (Yep, 2009). He also wrote Dragonwings and Dragon’s Gate which are both Newbery Honor Books. He is a current author and very well respected and admired.

From this book, I learned that fairy tales will never go out of style, and it takes a special person to be able to recreate the old ones in all of their glory. Again, I loved the book because it was based on sibling rivalry which is something that I know about from experience.

Yep, L. (2009). Auntie Tiger. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.