Based on true events during the Sino-Japanese War, a young Chinese boy, Tien Pao, and his piglet were separated from his parents and baby sister. The Japanese had burned and occupied their village, and they were forced to flee. One day the family sampan -- carrying Tien Pao and his pig -- accidentally floated back into enemy territory. After making his way to shore, he sought to find his way back to his family through treacherous mountainous trails. Starving and exhausted, he and his pig slept in caves by day, and travelled by night.
One of those days he witnessed the Japanese shoot down an American military plane. Tien Pao rescued the injured pilot, and with the aid of a group of Chinese guerrillas, they carried him back to his unit. And when Tien Pao arrived at the village where his parents had last been seen, the people were already fleeing because of the Japanese invasion. Tien Pao searched relentlessly until he was found by a couple of American pilots and taken to the barracks where they looked after and cared for him. All sixty pilots did. Hence the name House of Sixty Fathers.
Meanwhile, the injured pilot whom he had met in the mountains was part of this unit, and he took Tien Pao to search for his parents. Of course, the young boy recognized his mother while she was working at a nearby airfield, and finally the family was reunited.
This juvenile story has won many awards: Newberry Honor, Han Christian Andersen, and ALA Notable Children's Book. The author wrote this story based on his experiences as a pilot in China during WWII.
I read this to my kids for school because we are studying China during the 1900s to current times. It was somewhat juvenile for them, but it gave them a sense of China during WWII, and when the U.S. and China were allies. Now not so much. I also gave the book two stars because it was "agreeable" and we liked it.
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