It's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with a review of Tiger Warrior: Rise of the Lion Beast by M. Chan illustrated by Alan Brown

Tiger Warrior:  Rise of the Lion Beast by M. Chan illustrated by Alan Brown
Publisher:  Kane Miller Publishing
Format:  Paperback
Number of pages:  120
Published:   March 1st, 2023
Source:  Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Opening Lines:  "The nearby village was filled with bright lights and laughter, but down in the darkness where the land met the ocean, something was stirring."  

It's the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year and Jack and his family are getting ready for the annual party at the Chinese Community Center.  It promises to be a night of food, stories, the traditional Lion Dance and fireworks.  At the same time as Jack is getting ready for the festivities in his community, the Jade Kingdom is also preparing for their celebration and the appearance of Nian, the lion-headed beast who devours children.  Each year, Nian's reappearance sends shivers among the people of the Jade Kingdom. Even back home, Jack is nervous to think of what Nian is capable of.  All the people can do to prepare for Nian's arrival is to place red decorations on their homes and make loud noises by banging on drums or by setting off fireworks, hoping that will be enough to ward him off.  

The Jade Kingdom is also looking forward to receive assistance from the Dragon Warrior.  First it was Jack's grandpa Yeye, then his father, and now that his father has been killed, YeYe is training Jack to take over his place.  This year it falls upon Jack to protect the Jade Kingdom against Nian.  Assisting him in this quest is Princess Li, the Jade Emperors daughter and his twelve Zodiac animal companions, each having a unique power that Jack can tap into.  Can Jack overcome his fear of Nian to help save the people of the Jade Kingdom? 

Rise of the Lion Beast is the third book in M. Chan's Tiger Warrior series.  I didn't experience much difficulty in following the story without having read the other books in the series but believe it would be more enjoyable having followed along with Jack's story from the beginning.  I'd say these stories are geared towards readers six and up who are interested in learning about the Chinese zodiac and the mythology surrounding Nian.  There's plenty of action and a little humor sprinkled in.  The illustrations by Alan Brown, featuring Nian and the Dragon King are done very well, and I enjoy how he highlighted all of the characters.  I also especially enjoyed the various cultural references to Chinese foods and the tradition of giving red envelopes with money or hongbao.  Overall, this was a very enjoyable read.  It reminded me of Jackie Chan's Adventures, an animated television series that was on Cartoon Network in 2000 that my kiddo and I used to watch.  Both sort of focus on battling dangerous demonic creatures and have ancient artifacts (In Jack's case use of a Jade coin to call up an animal from the Zodiac so that he can utilize their respective attributes and summon a portal).  Lastly, I enjoyed the messaging and the way that Rabbit (smallest of the animals) is the one who helps Jack to overcome his fears. Illustrating that even the timid can hold great strength.

 I hope you'll check out all the other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.   

*A huge thanks to Kane Miller Publishing for the paperback copy for my review**