Shea, P. D. and Riggio, A (Ills.) (1995). The whispering cloth. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press. ISBN: 1-56397-623-4 (Stitched by You Yang)

Annotation – Mai lives in a Thai refugee camp for the Hmong driven out of Laos. She wishes she could leave and join her family in America. She stitches a traditional pa’ndau to tell her story and dream.

Media – ­http://www.anitariggio.com/

–Classroom activity guide for making your own pa’ndau (pah NOW)

§         ­Water colors and gouache

§         ­Photographs of the 3 pa’ndaus stitched by You Yang

§         Leaving the camp and going to America

§         ­Many of the water color illustrations are framed on the page to resemble a tapestry

Rating – 3 quality of text and 4 quality of illustration – 3 for popularity

Curricular Connection – Mai’s story of leaving Laos and living in a Thai refugee camp can be used to introduce or further support an upper elementary student’s knowledge of Southeast Asian history. Doing a pa’ndau individually or as a group on a larger piece of cloth may reinforce students understanding of the Hmong people and culture.

Background

Hmong people living in the Ban Vinai refugee camp in Thailand

Camps for Hmong people started in 1976 – began forced repatriation 1995

Hmong lived in southern China and (according to legend) used pa’ndau to communicate without the Chinese authorities knowing what was planned

Pa’ndau (pah NOW) – means flowered cloth - embroidered tapestry of events, wildlife, plants, stories, designs

Each stitch should be as long as a grain of rice

Also stitched with appliqué, reverse appliqué, cross stitch, and surface stitch

Geometric and pictorial

"Recommended Title" for many other state & county reading lists

Nancy