Ruby's Wish
First-time kids' book author Shirin Yim Bridges uses a tender family  story to travel back to turn-of-the-century China and teach a proto-feminist  lesson about perseverance and self-belief.Idiosyncratic young Ruby lives in a large (and wealthy!) Chinese family, in a  gigantic "house filled with the shrieks and laughter of over one hundred  children." She stands out because she insists on always wearing red, the color  of celebration ("Even when her mother made her wear somber colors like her other  cousins, Ruby would tie up her jet-black hair with red ribbons") but even more  so because of her quiet dissatisfaction with the family's traditional gender  inequity. Determined to study reading and writing--even when it means long hours  catching up on more wifely training--Ruby eventually comes to the attention of  her grandfather, the wise house patriarch, who springs a surprise as the time  for her to wed approaches.Graceful Aussie illustrator Sophie Blackall captures the culture--contrasted by  Ruby's bright red defiance--expertly, with elegant calligraphy, muted period  clothing, and countless nice details (from a porcelain bowl full of terrapins to  ink smudges on Ruby's cousins' faces). And what's better, Bridges's  well-structured story is true--with a fun surprise ending! (Ages 4 to 8)--Paul Hughes