Characters from the Year of the Sheep

THE YEAR OF THE SHEEP

Chin, Oliver. The Year of the Sheep, Tales of the Chinese Zodiac. San Francisco, CA: Immedium, 2015.

When Sydney the lamb was born, the entire flock came to see her. The shepherd’s daughter, Zhi and her dog, Dao, came, too.

Even though Zhi was the flock’s shepherd, Zhi and Sydney became close friends. Zhi even helped Sydney out of some hairy predicaments. Sydney was curious about the world around her and couldn’t help it but she did like grazing in the meadow with the rest of the flock.

One day, a great storm prevented them from going outside. The storm lasted for many days.

When the storm finally ended, it had destroyed much of the land including the pasture where the flock grazed. The sheep tried to eat dry shoots but the dried grass tasted awful.

As usual, Sydney strayed from the rest of the flock. Zhi found her talking to a rat and surveying the dried up river. They followed it upstream. Boulders and branches were blocking the flow of the water by the dam.

Sydney told Zhi about the river and together they devised a plan. Enlisting the help of all the animals of the surrounding countryside, Zhi and Sydney placed a log in a strategic spot in the dam. The animals stood on the log and hopped and hopped until pebbles and then rocks popped out. After more hopping and hopping a boulder finally gave way and the water rushed out of the dam, filling the river.

Zhi, Sydney and the other animals saved the day and the pastures, meadows and gardens were once more lush with vegetation.

Shadow Puppets:

Sydney, the sheep

Zhi, a girl

barnyard animals

Act out The Year of the Sheep for friends and family. What other predicaments can

Sydney and Zhi get into?

Shadow Theater made of recycled materials