Dragon & Friends' Mindful Adventures - (Lunar New Year Animal Books for Kids) by Belinda Siew Luan Khong (Paperback)

About the Book

Wood dragon and animal zodiac friends participate in another Great Race organized by the Jade Emperor and work with the humans. Learn about teamwork, mindfulness, gratitude, appreciation, humility and important psychosocial skills.

Book Synopsis

Dragon and Friends' Mindful Adventures: The Great Race Again! is the third book in the Lunar New Year Animal Books for Kids. The book recounts the adventures of Shan-Long, the wood dragon, and his zodiac animal friends, who join together in another great race organized by the Jade Emperor. The book showcases the animals' exceptional efforts in helping the humans put out the village fire and rebuild it with creativity and courage, earning the respect, gratitude and appreciation of the humans and the Jade Emperor. It is a moving story of friendship, teamwork and courage, integrating the wisdom from Eastern and Western philosophies, psychologies, and the great Spiritual traditions.

This heart-warming book, featuring exceptional animal characters, is filled with beautiful, evocative illustrations interwoven with humour and inspirational poetry. The book is a unique experiential guide for family and kids to learn the important psychosocial skills of mindfulness, sharing, gratitude, appreciation, humility and compassion in actions. The twists and turns of the plot make this distinctive book a page-turner.

Dragon and Friends' Mindful Adventures contains interesting, informative explanatory notes about the origin and meaning of the Chinese names and words used in the story, the Lunar New Year, and the personality of individuals born in the year of the dragon. It also includes a zodiac calendar for readers to discover their Chinese zodiac animal signs.

Review Quotes

"This kind of literary 'food for the soul' is reminiscent of such contemporary classics such as Charlie Mackesy's The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, and James Norbury's Big Panda and Tiny Dragon. ... Readers of all ages can carry the spirit of mindfulness, gratitude, appreciation, and humility, allowing it to guide us towards a world where dreams become reality and where friendships light up our path. Embrace the lessons learned, treasure each moment, and let your spirits soar like the majestic dragon in our story."

Steven D. Smith, DPhil, Publisher, American Institute of Physics Publishing

"Belinda has written another marvellous, beautifully illustrated story which has great depth despite appearing deceptively simple as all good stories do. Each of us has a dragon within, our source of power, courage and strength. Her motivation is that of a Bodhisattva, to benefit all suffering sentient beings. I encourage anyone looking for their dragon to enter into Belinda's tale of Shan-Long, to draw encouragement and find inspiration for the great race of life itself."

Ven Bhante Tejadhammo, Mahathera & Spiritual Director, Association of Engaged Buddhists

"Dr. Belinda Khong's latest book helps children (and adults!) understand that mindfulness is much more than just a psychological technique to develop personal well-being but is embedded in a set of time-honored values that encourage teamwork, humility, selflessness, cooperation, and kindness towards others. ... Belinda's creative tale awakens us to our own true nature and to the child in each of us."

Geoff Dawson, Psychologist and Zen Buddhist teacher

"Colorful flights of the imagination, lessons on life's wisdom, folklore of the Chinese zodiac, Buddhist teachings, and animal characters that are relatable to children. Who else could have brought all these together into the alchemy of a fascinating children's story, if not Belinda Khong. the talented, internationally renowned psychologist ..."

Louise Sundararajan, Ph.D., Ed.D.

Psychologist and Author of Understanding Emotion in Chinese Culture ( 2015)

"It is an inspirational book with an amazing use of poetry and language. The storyline is interesting with good explanations of culture and the special friendship between animals and humans." Alex Saba

"Practicing kindness to promote goodwill instead of gaining a competitive edge is an important moral to teach children. This along with beautiful illustrations and an interesting plot is what makes our Nai Nai's book so enjoyable to read." Matthew & Nicholas D'Cruz