Som See and the Magic Elephant Jamie Oliviero. Illustrated by Jo'Ann Kelly Winnipeg: Hyperion, 1994. 32pp, cloth, $19.95. ISBN 1-895340-04-7 Subject Headings: Elephants-Fiction. Thailand-Fiction. Grades 1 - 3 / Ages 6 - 8. Review by Lorraine Douglas

excerpt:

As soon as she awoke, Som See dressed quickly, and then hurried to make Pa Nang's sweet tea. Pa Nang (great-aunt) had promised to take Som See to the village to participate in the harvest festival that morning. Before they departed, the old woman and her niece went into the garden to the spirit house to place offerings of incense and flowers to ensure the travellers a safe journey.

Jamie Oliviero is a gifted Winnipeg storyteller who has written The Fish Skin (Hyperion, 1993) and The Day the Sun was Stolen (Hyperion, 1995). He spent several years in Thailand, and his story of Som See is based on Thai folklore tradition and motifs.

Som See is a little girl who stays with her great-aunt Pa Nang during the day. One morning Pa Nang tells Som See that she will be going on a journey from which she will not return. But before this happens, Pa Nang wants to touch the trunk of the magical elephant, to ensure her good fortune. Som See searches for Chang in the rainforest and becomes lost, but in the end is able to bring Chang to her great-aunt.

This poignant treatment of the theme of death is beautifully illustrated with Batik and directly dyed silk paintings which are rich in colour and detail. It offers an interesting perspective on the treatment of death in another culture and might be of interest to professionals working with young children. At the end of the book there is an explanations of the cultural traditions of the Thai people and the technique used for creating the paintings. This adds to the value of the story as it sets it in its cultural context.