Skip to Main Content

The Hunter

Illustrated by Ed Young

LIST PRICE $21.99

PRICE MAY VARY BY RETAILER

Buy from Other Retailers

About The Book

Hai Li Bu is a good hunter, but not even he can find enough food for his village when the drought comes. The people grow thin and weak, the children rarely laugh -- but worst of all, they begin to argue and stop listening to one another.
Out on a hunt one day, Hai Li Bu saves a small snake from the beak of a crane. He is surprised to learn that he has rescued the daughter of the Dragon King of the Sea. The Dragon King offers Hai Li Bu the reward of his choice. Hai Li Bu asks only to know the language of animals. Then he can be a better hunter for his village. His wish is granted with a provision: He must never reveal the secret of his gift to anyone.
Hai Li Bu's people are saved from famine, but when he hears from the animals that a flood is coming that will destroy everything in his village, the people do not listen to him. "You ask us to leave our homes. How can we know what you say is true?" a village elder asks him. Now Hai Li Bu is faced with a terrible choice: to let the people of his village die in the flood or to reveal his secret, knowing the dire consequences for himself.
Caldecott Medal and Honor-winner Ed Young's magnificent illustrations bring this poignant traditional folktale to life.

About The Author

Mary Casanova is an award-winning children's author of novels and picture books. Many of her books stem from her life on the Minnesota-Canadian border; yet some of her stories have taken her as far away as France, Norway, and Belize for research.

About The Illustrator

Ed Young is the illustrator of more than eighty books for children, seventeen of which he has also written. Most notably, he is the Caldecott Medalist for Lon Po Po and the Caldecott Honor recipient for both The Emperor and the Kite and Seven Blind Mice. Young lives in Westchester County, New York.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (September 1, 2000)
  • Length: 32 pages
  • ISBN13: 9780689829062
  • Grades: P - 3
  • Ages: 5 - 8

Browse Related Books

Awards and Honors

  • Bulletin Blue Ribbon
  • Aesop Accolade

Resources and Downloads

High Resolution Images

More books from this author: Mary Casanova

More books from this illustrator: Ed Young