The two discover that when learning to eat using different tableware, manners, and customs, people often encounter problems, as well as triumphs. It is a wisp of a story, with no dangers, no trickery. Late one evening a poor stranger enters the restaurant and is treated to a delicious meal by the owner and his son. Told in a mere 28 words, this tale could be slight, but in Bangs (The Paper Crane Ten, Nine, Eight) experienced hands, it becomes a fully realized drama. The Paper Crane is the only folktale Ive read that talks about the nature of the gift itself. In Bangs retelling, a restaurant is losing all of its business because a superhighway bypasses the building. A generous restaurant owner receives a wonderful magical gift from a stranger - a paper crane that magically comes alive and dances.ĭescribes the various types of surfaces that have been used for writing throughout the ages including cave walls, clay, wax, papyrus, and finally paper, which was invented in China in the year 105.Ī lonely Japanese magician gains friends through the paper crane that he brings to life but then must set free.Īn American sailor courts a Japanese girl and each tries, in secret, to learn the other's way of eating. Based on a classic Chinese legend, 1985s The Paper Crane shows an act of kindness being rewarded by a magical gift.

The Paper Crane by Molly Bang