Cleversticks

by Bernard Ashley

Illus. in full color. Ling Sung dreads going to school. There are too many things the other kids can do that he can't. When he discovers everyone admires his ability to use chopsticks, Ling Sung is empowered.

Genres: Picture Books, Cultural, Asian Literature, China, Childrens, Fiction, School

1 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Bernard Ashley lives in Charlton, south east London, only a street or so from where he was born. He was educated at the Roan School, Blackheath and Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School, Rochester. After National Service in the RAF Bernard trained to teach at Trent Park College of Education, specializing in Drama. He followed this with an Advanced Diploma at the Cambridge Institute and has been awarded honorary Doctorates in Education by the University of Greenwich and in letters by the University of Leicester. During his career as a teacher he worked in Kent, Hertfordshire, Newham and Greenwich, with thirty years of headships in the last three.

He is now writing full time. His first novel, The Trouble with Donovan Croft (recently re-issued by OUP), was published in 1974 and won the 'Other' Award, an alternative to the Carnegie Medal (for which he has been shortlisted three times). Nineteen further novels have followed, gaining him a reputation as a 'gritty' writer in sympathy with the under dog. In Margaret Meek's view he gets inside children's heads, who say that this is what it's like for them.

Of Tiger Without Teeth Philip Pullman wrote in The Guardian:
'A commonplace setting, an everyday situation, ordinary characters. Bernard Ashley's great gift is to turn what seems to be low-key realism into something much stronger and more resonant. It has something to do with empathy, compassion, an undimmed thirst for decency and justice. In a way, Ashley is doing what ‘Play for Today’ used to do when TV was a medium that connected honestly with its own time, and what so few artists do now: using realism in the service of moral concern.'

Johnnie's Blitz (Barn Owl), drew on his wartime experiences as a child in and around London; while Little Soldier (Orchard) sums up his writing: a pacy plot with an emotional turning point, a theme that concerns him, and characters that grip as real people. It was shortlisted for the 'Guardian' young fiction prize and for the Carnegie Medal. His latest novel is Flashpoint - a thriller, the third of the Ben Maddox stories.

Bernard’s picture books include Double the Love (Carol Thompson illustrating) from Orchard, Growing Good (Bloomsbury), Cleversticks, and A Present for Paul (Harper Collins). Tamarind published The Bush, illustrated by Lynne Willey. His popular stories for young readers include Dinner Ladies Don't Count (Puffin), Justin and the Demon Drop Kick, and I'm Trying to Tell You (both Happy Cat).

Television work has included Running Scared (from which he wrote the novel), The Country Boy (BBC) and his adaptation of his own Dodgem which won the Royal Television Society award as the best children's entertainment of its year.

Stage plays are The Old Woman Who Lived in A Cola Can (Edinburgh Festival and tour), The Secret of Theodore Brown (Unicorn Theatre for Children in the West End), and Little Soldier (published by Heinemann).

A strong family man, Bernard is married to Iris Ashley, a former London headteacher, and they have three sons. Their eldest, Chris, also a headteacher, co-wrote with Bernard the TV series Three Seven Eleven (Granada), and his latest "Wasim" books were published in 2007 by Frances Lincoln. David is a London headteacher and an expert on children's reading; and Jonathan is an actor, writer and director whose writing for theatre includes Stiffs; and who was writer and voice director in Los Angeles and London on Primal and Ghosthunter for Playstation 2.

Bernard and Iris have four grandchildren, Paul, Carl, Rosie and Luke.

Reviews

[Sung Baick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read for students of all elementary school grade levels. This can lead into some great discussion about how everyone has their own special talents as well as weaknesses. This is also good for having students encourage and point out strengths of other students.

[Sosanna Milad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first full book I read in English This helped me to learn some new words and the story is enjoyable and aimed at not to despair and face bullying

[Paula Alejandra Londono-Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book captures accurately the story of frustration and then identity assertion of a little boy who is exposed to the school environment and the ways children seek to stand out and demonstrate the abilities they have learned. The culture here is depicted as a matter of expressing own and unique ways that make part of our everyday activities. Our main character, for instance, reveals his unique way to eat using chopsticks (unique in the sense no one other than him does that in the classroom). Everybody had already shown their abilities to do something by themselves (tie their laces, do up the coat, do up the apron, etc.) and so this ability allowed him to be also “smart boy” according to the teachers.
The diversity of cultures in the school setting is highlighted in the illustrations. When it comes to identifying agency in the characters, we observe how the teachers’ attitudes exert influence in students' ways of behaving and acting in a competitive or respectful, engaging manner, for instance, in the part of the book when the little boy feels left out by his classmates and teacher’s attention, he judges himself and questions his abilities. The boy is afraid of never make something valuable that everybody in the class could look up to.
The story through the illustrations and text addresses gender roles in a non-stereotypical way since mom and dad tasks at home are illustrated out of the expected ones: mom is playing and splashing with the boy at the pool whereas dad is bathing Ling’s little sister. There is also diversity among teachers as one of them appears to be from South Asia and the other one is white, the kids’ families come from different social backgrounds and population groups as one sees the image of the parents picking them up at school. However, all relate to each other in this scenario that links everyone: the school.
Last but not least, one can perceive the way the perception of difference is transformed throughout the story in the sense the kids’ interactions changed from being focused in individualistic ways of excelling while they discovered who they were within the group, their abilities, etc to a group based interaction that encouraged them to teach each other and share what they know. Again we are witnessing in literature the need to promote a self-discovering of our own identity in order to open ourselves to the world without giving up our cultural traits; but, as the author presented here, the process is done within the community, with a strong supportive system we name family, friends, and educators.

[Farhana Begum · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story about a little boy named Ling Sung. Ling Sung does not enjoy going to school because he fears he cannot do the things that the other children are able to do. For example, Ling Sung is unable to tie his shoe laces like Terry can, nor write his name like Manjit can. One day, Ling Sung finds a few paint brushes and pretends to use them like chopsticks just like he does at home. Ling Sung’s teacher soon realises his talent and applauds him. Soon, all the children begin to use paint brushes, pencils and pens as though they’re chopsticks. Ling Sung helps his friends who struggle and likewise they help him with things he struggles with like writing his name etc.

‘Chopsticks’ is a great book for children to realise that everyone is different, that we all have different strengths and weaknesses but if we help each other than we come overcome our worries. The images are clear to understand, and allows room for discussion as there are lots of activities occurring. This book was used as a focus book for Chinese New Year, as children were encouraged to use chop sticks to support fine motor skills. A great book for any book shelf as it holds a wealth of ideas of various learning opportunities.

[Amy Chong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cleversticks is a book about a boy that finally finds what he is good at. Ling Sung could not tie his shoes,paint, or button his jacket like some of his classmates. That was until he used his paint brushes to pick up something. Using his "Cleversticks" was his special talent and was something the other students could not do. This book goes well with my topic because I liked how using chopsticks was a special talent Ling Sung could claim. I feel like many Asian immigrant students feel discouraged at first because there is so much they need to learn. Claiming a special talent can boost their confidence and make them proud of their culture as well.

While the plot could seem like it is not that deep, the story has a great message. What other students are good at, you will not always be good at it at the same time. It could take you longer to master that skill, but there is always a talent unique to you. This story is great to follow along to for young students because there aren't too many words. The pictures went along with the text, but since the book is a little older, I felt the illustrations looked kind of dated. The characters were realistic enough and had a cultural component to it. This book is considered fictional.

[Latosha Finch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ling Sung is the main character in this book by Bernard Ashley. Ling is having a difficult time finding his niche and where he fits in. All of the things Ling’s classmates could do, he could not. Ling could not tie his shoe, he could not button his jacket correctly, he could not write his name, but there was one thing Ling found out he could do that no other student or his teacher could do, eat with chopsticks. Ling began to show his peers and teacher how to eat with chopsticks. As a teacher I would teach students the vocabulary term, niche. We would discuss the fact that there are some things that we are not good at, but there are other things we are good at. And those things we are not good at, we should practice those things. The illustrations in this book indicate that the students in Ling’s classroom are from different cultures. Therefore, the Japanese culture and chopsticks would be a good discussion. Students that are from Japan or are familiar with the Japanese culture can share with the class.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would not use this book for my class, so I will write the book talk for the pre-K-2 gr.

Have you ever wished you could do something special? Something that would make your friends and teachers clap and cheer? How many of you have not been able to do something that one of your friends could do - like a cartwheel or ride a two wheeler or read a book by yourself? How did that make you feel? Well Ling Sung feels the exact same way, until he discovers something he can do that is totally clever!

Teachers - This is a great book which addresses real skills which children of this age struggle with and do at different paces. It also acknowledges cultural diversity without being preachy. FInally, I just LOVE that the author uses the word "clever." What a great word!

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ling Sung has decided he doesn't like school. It seems like all the other kids can do things that earn claps, like tying shoes and writing their names, but he can't do anything. Then one day he picks up two paint brushes and uses the ends as chopsticks to eat his snack. His teacher notices and everyone claps. Soon Ling Sung is teaching everyone how to use chopsticks, and in turn, he is willing to let others teach him things too.

If kindergarten teachers are looking for a multicultural book about fitting in or being special, this could be a good option. There is one naked butt shot of Ling Sung's little sister getting a bath, so if kids can't handle that you may want to cover the picture strategically.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically, this is a story that every kid can relate to. Everyone has a unique talent for or ability to do something. In this case Ling Sung improvises a pair of chopsticks from the handles of two paintbrushes and impresses his classmates, who then try to imitate him. What gave me the heebie jeebies a little was the thought of using unsanitized paintbrush handles that everyone's grubby hands have touched to put food into your mouth. And the teacher was doing it too! If only there had been a picture of someone washing them first! Or, better yet, bringing in chopsticks the next day for everyone to try. Oh well, kids will enjoy the story and probably not think about the germ factor.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom read this to me as we drove. I’m glad I picked up another copy of this book.

[Fahima Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emotions happy and sad
Integrating into new school

[Eileen Breseman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kindergartener starts school but does not feel clever like his classmates. He learns he too has a special skill that he took for granted, and finds joy in teaching it to the other kids of his class.

[Aimee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. The theme is "everyone is good at something." A little boy just started Kindergarten and he is feeling left out because everyone knows how to do certain things and the teacher is complimenting them on what they can do. He finally does something that the other kids can't do and the teacher compliments him on it and he teaches the rest of the class how to do it. Good book, you should read it.

[The Styling Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cleversticks by Bernard Ashley, illustrated by Derek Brazell – publ. in 1992 – Great for preschool and up – Special little book that I’d heard about multiple times over the past few years, had to finally pick it up to read… Special little book about a little boy who feels quite left out at his school because many of his classmates are recognized for their special abilities like tying shoes and writing their name… until he does something so natural to him that he doesn’t realize it is special.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young Chinese boy has a frustrating experience going to school for the first time. He's not clever in any of the ways the other kids are (writing ins name, tying his shoes, etc). But when he picks up two paintbrushes and uses them like chopsticks, he finally has a tLent everyone can admire. Easy reader in picture book format.

[Neil Nicholson]

This is the story of a little Asian boy who thinks that everyone at his school has some better talent than he does. When Ling realizes that people admire his use of chopsticks, he becomes confident in himself. I would recommend this book for k through 2nd.

[Brittany Quigley]

about a young Chinese boy who doesn't like school because he doesn't fit in and can't do things others his age can
Ling Sung ends up teaching the class how to use chopsticks and everyone is amazed at what he can do

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story about a child that feels like he doesn't have any special talents, until he realizes otherwise. I would use this story to discuss culture in the classroom.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story about what makes everyone special, and how we need to use our unique talents to help others.

[Jan Clancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learning self-confidence without arrogance. Accepting oneself and accepting others. Wonderful story.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

We're all good at something.