Reviews for Foundations Of Neuroscience

The average rating for Foundations Of Neuroscience based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2014-03-20 00:00:00 Tim Johnston From School Library Journal: "Living in the shadow of the Fruitless Mountain, Minli and her parents spend their days working in the rice fields, barely growing enough to feed themselves. Every night, Minli's father tells her stories about the Jade Dragon that keeps the mountain bare, the greedy and mean Magistrate Tiger, and the Old Man of the Moon who holds everyone's destiny. Determined to change her family's fortune, Minli sets out to find the Old Man of the Moon, urged on by a talking goldfish who gives her clues to complete her journey. Along the way she makes new friends including a flightless dragon and an orphan and proves her resourcefulness when she tricks a group of greedy monkeys and gets help from a king. Interwoven with Minli's quest are tales told by her father and by those she meets on the way. While these tales are original to Lin, many characters, settings, and themes are taken from traditional Chinese folklore. Minli's determination to help her family, as well as the grief her parents feel at her absence, is compelling and thoroughly human." I listed to this on audio book and thought the narrator's voice was monotonous, but it was a good story.

Review # 2 was written on 2017-02-16 00:00:00 Charlotte J Chandler The author states that this book was inspired by Chinese folk and fairy tales and it definitely has the magical tone and feel of that genre. Minli wishes her little struggling family could have good fortune, and, inspired by the tales her father has told her, decides to set out and find the Old Man of the Moon and ask his advice. Along her journey, she meets characters who are key to advancing her mission: a dragon who can't fly, a king, a poor buffalo boy with a special friend, and a group of kind villagers. Interspersed in the narrative are the mini-folktales that ultimately tie into Minli's quest. Ultimately, Minli doesn't get the advice she seeks but in this case it's the journey, not the destination, that provides the satisfaction. A sprightly story with a plucky heroine that serves well as a read-aloud.