The timeless classic tale of how the 12 animals in the Chinese Zodiac were chosen (and why there is no cat). A long time ago in ancient China, the Jade emperor, ruler of heaven and earth, proclaimed a great race: the first twelve animals to cross the river would each have a year named after them - and be immortalized in the Chinese Zodiac. The animals lined up along the shore, eager to begin. Some chose to race honestly; others were more devious. Some helped their friends along the way; others raced alone. Some were distracted; others focused with all their might on winning. But there were thirteen animals racing for only twelve places. Who would come first? And who would miss out?

 

This book is part of a book series called Zodiac .

There are 32 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2012 by Walker Books Ltd .

Gabrielle Wang is an author and illustrator. She is the author of The Garden of Empress Cassia , which won the 2002 Aurealis Award, The Lion Drummer , and the Poppy books in the Our Australian Girl series. Sally Rippin was born in Darwin, Australia, and grew up in South-East Asia. Sally has written many books for children, including Chenxi and the Foreigner and the Go Girl series, and she has illustrated many others. Sally lives in Melbourne with her family.