A long time ago in China there was a boy named Ping who loved flowers. Anything he planted burst into bloom.

The Emperor loved flowers too. When it was time to choose an heir, he gave a flower seed to each child in the kingdom. "Whoever can show me their best in a year's time," he proclaimed, "shall succeed me to the throne!"

Ping plants his seed and tends it every day. But month after month passes, and nothing grows. When spring comes, Ping must go to the Emperor with nothing but an empty pot.

Demi's exquisite art and beautifully simple text show how Ping's embarassing failure is turned triumphant in this satisfying tale of honesty rewarded.
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A reward of one grain of rice doubles day by day into millions of grains of rice when a selfish raja is outwitted by a clever village girl. ...

When a poor boy in China receives a magical paintbrush, everything he paints turns to life. But the wicked emperor wants to capture the boy when he hears the news. The story will excite readers as the ruler gets his just reward when the boy creates a masterpiece that spells his doom. Full-color illustrations. A Reading Rainbow Selection....

Once upon a time in Turkey there lived a funny, little wise man named Nasrettin Hoca. He wore a huge, white turban and a worn-out coat made of patches upon patches. Riding about on his little gray donkey, he liked to help whomever he could.

A friend to all, Nasrettin is a popular figure. But when he is suddenly ignored at a friend's banquet, he realizes it is his patchwork coat that is turning people away from him. He leaves the party and returns later, wearing a brand-new coat. Now Nasrettin is warmly welcomed. But instead of eating the delicious foods placed before him, he feeds them to his coat!

How Nasrettin Hoca teaches his friends a lesson about appearances is the heart of this hilarious and clever story. With good humor and luminous illustrations inspired by traditional Turkish paintings, Demi brings to life Turkey's most famous folk hero and imparts a timeless tale with a moral that will resonate with readers everywhere....

Many people say Marco Polo was the greatest explorer that ever lived, traveling 33,000 miles by land and sea from Venice, Italy, to modern-day Beijing, China. His famous book, The Travels of Marco Polo, indicates that he was a man of extraordinary bravery, brilliance, and strength. With his uncle and father, he traveled across Turkey, Armenia, the Middle East, the rugged mountains of Afghanistan, and the hot Taklimakan Desert before finally reaching China in 1275. Welcomed by the great emperor Kublai Khan, Marco Polo was amazed by the inventions, riches, and religious tolerance of the great Khan's kingdom, where Marco remained for the next 20 years.

A talented and charming storyteller in her own right, Demi recounts the remarkable tale of Marco Polo's journey. Inspired by the eastern culture of the 13th century, she painted the book with Chinese inks and gold overlays and used a mixture of Chinese and Indian embroidery and Italian, Arabian, and Persian designs of gold and ink on silk in the borders and frames for her artwork.
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"In brilliant colors and on spacious double-page spreads, Demi depicts the origin of the Chinese holiday Ch'ing Yang or The Double Ninth Festival, a festival of kites that takes place on September 9, the ninth day of the ninth month. Long ago in China . . . [a woman] went to a painter of holy pictures . . . and requested a picture of a dragon, 'a symbol of wealth, wisdom, power, and nobility,' but instead of an ordinary holy picture she requested the painting on a kite, in order to 'fly it right up to the sky [so] the gods in heaven will see it immediately.' Soon everyone wanted kites for their wishes and prayers, and finally, Ch'ing Yang was born and is celebrated to this day. The kites are what's important here, and Demi fills the pages with airily desirable kites in the shapes of birds, insects, reptiles . . . and symbols captioned with their attributes. . . . This is a celebratory sort of book that is going to inspire some serious kite-making/kite-flying activities."--The Bulletin
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One day a young girl named Feng Huang finds a phoenix feather that has fallen from the sky. When she tries to draw the magical bird and share her inspiration, no one is able to tell what it is. Luckily for Feng Huang, the Queen Phoenix sees her troubles and swoops down from the heavens to offer her help.

A phoenix's powers are not easily revealed, however, and Feng Huang embarks on a journey of thought, wonder, and self-discovery. Wisdom, Clear Sight, Equality, Generosity, and Right Judgment are worthy qualities indeed, but Feng Huang finds that they are only truly powerful when shared.

Brilliant sweeps of plumage and flourishes of sparkles and stars accentuate award-winning artist Demi's interpretation of one of the most intriguing and elegant creatures of ancient myth....

Based on a famous Chinese folktale, The Magic Pillow tells the story of a poor boy named Ping who is given a magic pillow by a mysterious magician. Ping sees what a lifetime of wealth and power would be like, and discovers that the riches of family and freedom are much more valuable....

A golden goose demonstrates the wealth of kindness.

A rabbit learns not to believe everything he hears.

Throughout the ages, moral tales have been passed down from one generation to the next. Centuries ago in China, hundreds of parables were told by the Buddha to his devoted followers. His messages became widespread through fables adapted by famous storytellers like Aesop and La Fontaine. In this collection, the author has chosen ten of the most engaging classic tales from the Buddha's works. Compiled and illustrated by Demi, this wonderful collection of stories is sure to draw young readers into the ancient teachings of the Buddha, teachings that are as relevant today as they were over two thousand years ago.
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Smoke, fire, dragons, wisdom, fear, and bravery...All of these elements are brought to life by award-winning author and artist Demi in a story of valor in the face of overwhelming fear.

With splashes of color and dramatic detail, a boy named Ping decorates his home with paintings of dragons. While they seem to be a proclamation of his love for dragons, they are actually an expression of his deepest fear. The Heavenly Dragon visits Ping after being impressed with the boy's outward declaration of love and respect for dragons and presents the boy with three pearls of wisdom. With bold and expansive illustrations that sweep across the pages, Demi's triumphant tale proves that the greatest fear of fear itself is one that can be conquered with truth and bravery....

This is the story of a boy named
Temujin. As a boy, he inherited the role
of leader after his father's death. As a
man, he earned it--by fiercely protecting
his people, no matter the cost, and
by demanding total loyalty from those
he led. His is a story of courage and survival,
sacrifice and death. The boy who
became the great Genghis Khan would
take his people from the brink of survival
to near-world domination -- and
lead the largest empire ever created in
the lifetime of one man. Based on both
history and legend, Demi's classic story
of Genghis Khan takes readers into a
world of battle and victory and shows
why Genghis Khan has gone down in
history as the greatest conqueror of all
time....

Born in Afghanistan in the thirteenth century, Rumi settled in Turkey
and became a great mystical poet. Although he began his adult life
as a highly respected scholar, he found his true calling after being
mentored by a holy man, Shamsuddin. From "Shams," he learned to listen
for the sacred sound of God within himself. When his creative spirit was
awakened, he recited more than 50,000 rhymed couplets. He also wrote
about the love that resides in the soul of everyone regardless of religion or
background. He founded the order of the whirling dervishes who believed
their spinning dances put them in touch with God and brought peace and
love into the world. Although Rumi died 800 years ago, his poems are more
widely read now than ever before. To honor the 800th anniversary of his
birth, the United Nations declared 2007 The Year of Mawlana Jalaladdin
Rumi....