One wonders if Aesop knew how much of good thing he had when he wrote his fables, that years and years later, that the idea of animal characters being used as allegory would still be current. Today, most people think of Animal Farm when discussing allegories using animals, but perhaps in later years it will be Animal Farm and the hen Sprout, the heroine of this charming and deeply moving tale. While no doubt highly influenced by Korean culture, Sien-Ma Hwang’s story also draws on Western classics like “The Ugly Duckling” and “The Little Red Hen”. Sprout starts her story trapped in a cage fulfilling her heart breaking duty of laying eggs. She eventually gets out and struggles to find a place in the outside world, a place where she has longed to be but that comes with dangers that she didn’t know about it. Due to a series of circumstances, she finds herself in charge of an egg. While the book is mediation about family, love, and motherhood, it is also a close look at nature as well as the influence of man on nature. The fictional character closest to Sprout in the history of literature seems to be HCA’s Little Mermaid. The idea of scarf ice for the greater purpose and the morality of it is something that both characters share to a great degree. It also is impossible to read the beginning of the book and to not think of North Korea. Sprout’s journey starts in the most horrific way (and it will most likely insure that you confine chicken eating to free range). But if the coop is North Korea than is the barnyard the South? It is better but not a paradise. The allegory works because becoming who you are transcends society, even a benign one. It’s strange considering how short the book is the large impact that it has. Putting the book down, leaving Sprout in some ways is like cutting off a limb, disconnecting your mind from something, it’s a wrenching feeling. This is despite the almost starkness of the prose. If the Narnia books are an allegory overboard, Sprout’s story is an allegory grown properly. Sad and brave and hopeful.The tentative escape of a battery hen who blossoms when she hatches the egg of a goose. She raises the young goose as her son, he is not accepted by his tribe at first but eventually proves his worth as a lookout. The reader is invited to wrestle with ideas like, adoption, mother's unconditional love, cruelty, loyalty, friendship, acceptance of others different from yourself, bravery, sacrifice. The story ends with the pride of the mother In her adopted son and in her death ameliorated by the success of her son and the love they have for each other. And freedom despite danger.Then there's the story of the weasel who stalks the birds..... He has killed many but only for food.
What do You think about Leafie (2000)?
What a wonderful book! Gorgeous prose and a uniquely different style of writing. Loved it!
—laideebug
