Ruby's Wish

Based upon the childhood experiences of her own grandmother, Shirin Yim Bridges tells the delightful story of Ruby, a little girl living in "Old China," whose love of the color red, and intense desire for learning set her apart from her sisters and girl cousins. Fortunate enough to belong to a wealthy family whose patriarch who allows both the boys and girls in his family to be educated, Ruby still wishes for more. She wishes to attend university like the boys in her family. But will her grandfather's unusual tolerance for female education extend that far...?

I loved Ruby's Wish, which is my first title from Shirin Yim Bridges, but hopefully not my last! The story is engaging, emphasizing both the blessings that Ruby enjoys and the show more challenges that she faces. Her grandfather, who learns of her secret desire through a poem she writes, is such an admirable figure - one obviously worthy of the love and remembrance he is accorded through this fictionalized story - and Ruby herself is a charming young character. The illustrations, done by Sophie Blackall in gouache, are likewise charming, and a perfect (and perfectly vivid!) accompaniment to the text. All in all, a delightful family story, one that reminded me of the work of Patricia Polacco, who also mines her family history for story ideas! show less

Picked this up because it was illustrated by Sophie Blackall, but in a very different style than her other books (Finding Winnie, Hello Lighthouse, If You Come to Earth). Ruby is the granddaughter of a Chinese man who got rich in the California Gold Rush and then returned to China and married many wives. Their sons also married many wives, and all the children lives together in a family compound. Unusually for that time, the girls could be educated alongside the boys, and Ruby loved learning and writing. Her beautiful calligraphy and, later, a poem she wrote caught her grandfather's attention, and he sent her to university, where she was one of their first female students. "So that's how Ruby got her wish. It's a true story. And how do show more I know this? Well, Ruby is my grandmother, and every day she still wears a little red." show less

Ruby's Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges; Illustrator-Sophie B (Author)
Scholastic Press, New York (2004), Edition: 1st Scholastic Printing

Ruby’s Wish is a picture book written by Shirin Yim Bridges and illustrated by Sophie B. This book belongs in the biographical genre because this book is based on the real life experiences of the author’s grandmother when she was a young girl.
Ruby’s Wish is about a young girl named Ruby living in China with her extremely large and wealthy family. Ruby however is not like most of the girls in her family. While most girls in her family, and in China in general, are looking forward to finding a husband and getting married, Ruby is determined to attend university when she grows up, just like the boys in show more her family, despite her other families urging to focus on her homemaking skills. In the story, there is a moment where Ruby is writing a poem for class and talks about her feelings of resentment and unfair treatment. “Alas, bad luck to be born a girl, worse luck to be born into this house where only boys are cared for”.

One of the things I really liked about this story is how it showed a young woman fighting for her right to learn the same things as her male family and to have the same opportunity to go to university. I think that Ruby is an incredible role model for young girls. I also liked how the grandfather of Ruby was supportive of her desire to go to university and to hold off on finding a husband. It would be very easy for the patriarch of the family to be unsupportive and hostile to Ruby’s dreams, but it was an incredibly satisfying surprise that he was in favor of her going to school. This is a very good book about a young woman who wants more and the family that helps her achieve her dream. show less

It teaches a little bit of history and culture the pages such as about the Gold rush influencing Chinese immigration and the symbolism of the color red within the Chinese culture. Ruby was taught how to read and write despite it not being custom at the time for girls to attend school. When asked, she tells her grandfather of all the differences between the treatment of the boys and girls. Ruby as a character is very unique as she is not written in a way that her ambition is overemphasized or seen as unnatural. This is probably due to Ruby being the author’s grandmother. The story in itself is inspiring and the message is that even when things seem unlikely, it never hurts to strive for them or let others know.

An engaging historical story (a true account, based on the childhood of Shirin Yim Bridges' own grandmother), Ruby's Wish tells the story of Ruby, a young Chinese girl growing up in a large household, where the enlightened patriarch (Ruby's grandfather) allows both girls and boys to be educated. Ruby however, desires more; she also wants the opportunity to attend university like her brothers and male cousins. Will her grandfather grant Ruby her wish, will Ruby be allowed to attend university, or will she be forced to get married?

Ruby's Wish is both inspiring and thought-provoking. Like my LT friend Abigail has mentioned in her own excellent review, the story emphasises both the blessings Ruby enjoys (her education, the fact that her show more grandfather allows both his grandsons and his granddaughters to be educated) and the challenges she faces. Her grandfather is not only admirable and enlightened, he also listens to Ruby, listens to her words and takes her ideas, wishes and desires seriously. And Ruby, although at first a bit shy at being summoned to her grandfather's office and somewhat upset that her poem about boys being considered more worthy than girls might have angered him, has the courage to explain to her grandfather why she thinks boys are better looked after and that her greatest wish is not to get married, but to be able to attend university. When at the Chinese New Years' celebration, Ruby receives a letter of acceptance to attend university from her grandfather, I was so happy for Ruby that I had tears of joy in my eyes.

It must be remembered though, that Ruby is only able to attend university because her grandfather, the family patriarch, is in agreement with this. If he had said "no" and/or if it had been up to Ruby's mother and the other women of the family, Ruby would not have been allowed to further her education. I find it interesting that in many historical stories (both novels and picture books) about girls' education, it is often the mothers who are the most vehemently opposed to this, while the fathers (although they do generally have the last word) are often not nearly as negative and suspicious with regard to girls desiring more educational opportunities. Now, I know that this is probably a rather facile and non-nuanced assertion, but it is something that I have noticed about both classical girls school and college novels and historical children's literature, and it is something that I believe begs and requires further analysis and discussion.

Regarding Sophie Blackall's illustrations, although on their own, they would likely not be entirely to my taste, I think that they are a brilliant and wonderful complement to Shirin Yim Bridges narrative, providing an authentic seeming pictorial account of what late 19th, early 20th century China must have been like and looked like. The generally muted colours, contrasted with Ruby's penchant for bright red also makes her stand out a bit, makes her into a truly special character, not only within the text, the narrative itself, but within the scope of the illustrations as well. show less

In old China, boys are considered good luck, where girls were just considered as a wedding and a trade. Ruby lives in China with her huge family. Ruby is expected to get married, while her brothers go off to learn. Ruby however, does not want that. Ruby wishes to go to college too. She tells this, only to her grandfather, but she does not expect things to change. Just as she is convinced that she will have to get married, she finds out her wish is granted and she gets to go to college! This book is not only a great conversation starter about gender inequalities, but is is also a great book to teach about other cultures. I do want to add, that the images in this picture really reflect to mood of Ruby. You really get a feel for what it is show more like living in China for her. show less

“Ruby’s Wish” is a great story with a great message of if you express the want of something and work towards getting it is very achievable. This is shown through the plot of the story. The plot in this story was very well paced and allowed for the reader to be actively engaged. For as I was reading I wanted to know what unheard of thing Ruby would do next. When she explains to her grandpa that she wants to go to college and then she becomes the first Chinese woman to go to college it was just astounding. But the biggest surprise was finding out that Ruby is a real girl and related to the author. This made me as a reader very excited and intrigued by the things that were going on. It caused me to just keep on reading till the very show more end. I also loved the illustrations within the book they seemed to be more of a Chinese way of drawing. This I felt help bring all the many aspect of China into the book. The color schemes of the red also helped since it was incorporation of Ruby’s favorite color. I feel this allowed me as the reader to have a connection to the main character. show less