Visiting Junjun and Meimei in China

Junjun is 10, and his family has a brand-new two-story housepaid for by the family's hard work in nearby fields. He even has his own room, a rarity in such households. And now that they have the house, his mother can go to work at an easier job in a factory. Meimei, eight, lives in a two-room dwelling with her family, where the television and washing machine are side-by-side in the living area. She feeds chickens in the small courtyard where the laundry hangs. In full-color photographs, readers see Junjun and Meimei at school, sharing Sunday outings with their families and going to a kite festival, among other activities, and come away with a real feeling of life in the village of Hua Shan in China. The tone of the writing is inviting and matter-of-fact; this is an encompassing view of two modern-day childhoods in China. Ages 7-10. (April)