Let's Play: The Little World of Panda Anan

Description

This book started with my son's idea. One day as we were watching panda videos (no one can resist the cuteness of a panda),my son turned his head to me and asked if I could make a panda comic book. I was working on a father-and-son comic at the time,so,as all daddies do, I said yes. I love my son so much that I would do anything to make him happy. Writing and drawing comics is both difficult and fun. I started to watch more panda videos to learn panda moves and their way of life. Eventually,I realized this was not really helpful. One day, I asked my son, "What do you have in mind about pandas?Tell me anything you have." He thought for a few seconds and then began to share things that happened with his friends in school- -- funny moments and the weird things. "Daddy, you need to listen to this..." Some of them made me laugh out loud. This opened my mind to create situations and ask myself what my son would do and say if he was in that situation. The stories began to pour out. I have a small notebook I carry with me all the time; once I have an idea, I quickly scratch it down in the notebook. While working on this book, it was as though this cute panda was living inside my head and talking to me about his own story. This book took a long time to accomplish. There were many tough times that made me struggle. But the moments of discussion with my son, the way he talks, the panda behaviors and funny faces made me so happy. This book contains lots of laughs and also knowledge of Chinese culture. I grew up in a big happy Chinese family. My mom always told me to smile even in difficult times. My dad told me to think and use creative ideas to work things out. I hope my son will carry this family legacy throughout his life. Thank you for reading this book. I hope it will bring you joy and happiness! Shichun Chen Boan Chen

Shichun Chen has worked in newspaper, marketing, design and animation for 15 years. The panda story is inspired by his 7 years old son, Boan Chen and they worked together for this book.