A Single Pebble: A Story of the Silk Road

I used this book to explain the Silk Road to my sixth grade classes. They listened carefully and "got" all the details.The maps were a great touch. I also loved that the jacket had the two children at opposite ends like the story.

Good way to help students visualize what life was like on the Silk Road. It was a nice addition to our unit of study.

This is a delightful story with beautiful illustrations. Aside from the text of the story, I loved the two maps - the one in the front that depicts the world of the story in the past and the one at the back that depicts the same world in the present. I can imagine this story and the accompanying maps sparking a lifelong interest in travel.

This was chosen to complement a trip I enjoyed in Central Asia, a "Silk Road" adventure. The book's artwork is so pleasing, and I do like the idea of the five senses represented in the five "gifts" that traveled with Silk Road merchants and travelers. The text is not especially "inspired", but the idea still intriguing, China to the island in the Adriatic.

Great pictures and a good way to lead a young girl into more knowledge of travel in earlier times. Could also lead to a simple version of the amazing journey of Marco Polo. My five year old grandaughter could feel the attraction of that pretty green stone. She sometimes will give me a gift of one of her special stones!.

Wonderful story that tells of the meeting of East and West along the ancient Silk Road. Good to read to a child, and when the child is older she/he can read it to themselves. Throught provoking if equipped with a map of China and Central Asia. Great, inventive premise! Buy it today for your 5-8 year old.

I can imagine this book being read to a group of small children. There is not a whole lot of text, so the reader could stop periodically to discuss the events and locations in the story.

A Single Pebble by Bonnie Christensen is a sweet story with pleasant illustrations and ample educational information. Subtitled “A Story of the Silk Road,” Christensen’s picture book informs its readers of that famous trade route which connected Asia and Europe hundreds of years ago through an engaging tale of a young Chinese girl named Mei.Three years before the writing of A Single Pebble, Christensen received a request from the International Museum of Peace and Solidarity in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Some quick research revealed to Christensen that Samarkand was a stop along the trading routes of the Silk Road. After a few more hours of reading, Christensen writes in A Note from the Author, not only had the Silk Road stolen her heart but a story had started to evolve.The result is a heart-warming tale about Mei who wants to follow her father to market. When he tells Mei, her job is to stay home and care for their silk worms, she asks him to instead take her pebble with him as a “gift for a child at the end of the road”. Although he advise her that he doesn’t ever travel to the end of the road (and no traveler of that time ever did due to distance and dangers) Mei confidently believed he would find a way for her pebble to go that far. And if her pebble could travel to the end of the world, so could she!Indeed it does. From China through central Asia to Europe, through the hands of a Buddhist monk to a sandalwood trader, to a performing acrobat, and eventually to a thieving pirate, the piece of jade makes its way to a surprising destination. Atmospheric and colorful illustrations provide lively snapshots of life on the Silk Road, as the seasons and settings change, with each new exchange between traders. The simple text also gives context clues for readers who are unfamiliar with the historical period.Educators will also be pleased to know that both an endnote, which includes a bibliography, and detailed maps on the endpapers give extensive background information about the Silk Road. Christensen has done her research well.Besides its entertainment value, A Single Pebble might also inspire activities within the classroom. Young readers might contemplate their own single items, which could have in ancient times been traded. Older readers might be intrigued to know that travelers along the Silk Road often endured blazing heat, sand storms, freezing cold, and a threat of attack from bandits. Moreover, travelers often had to cross mountains and deserts, before they reached their destination. Such details might inspire older readers to write their own “Silk Road” stories.

First page creased, the rest good quality.

This is a well written and illustrated picture book that explains how an object might have traveled along the Silk Road.The pebble is passed from trader to trader and travels from China to Europe.An excellent map at the back of the book allows the reader to see the actual routes used for trade.