A 1999 Caldecott Honor Book, David Shanon's 大卫不可以 (dà wèi bù kě yǐ) No, David! uses short phrases, simple everyday expressions, and childlike handwriting and drawings to tell the story of a mischievous boy who is always been told "no" by his mother, until, finally, his mother pats his forehead and reassures him: "Yes, David, I love you". 

After reading No, David!, young readers typically find the lighthearted sequels,大卫上学去  (dà wèi shàng xué qù) David Goes to School and 大卫惹麻烦  (dà wèi rě má fán) David Gets in Trouble, equally compelling. Together, these three books tend to become family favorites due to the fact that they are very often the first books that a young child is able to read independently.  

These Chinese translations of the No, David! books use authentic language and are  equally lively as their English original counterparts.  They playfully teach toddlers and the youngest readers essential Chinese expressions spoken by parents and teachers to young children. The Chinese editions of these books are recommended as must-reads for elementary school students in China.  The text in the books also introduces young readers to handwritten Chinese fonts. 

Children's Literature Review aptly summarized the magic of these books: "Readers won't be able to resist taking a walk on the wild side with this little rascal, and may only secretly acknowledge how much of him they recognize in themselves."  

Book titles: 大卫系列

《大卫不可以》 No, David!*
《大卫上学去》 David Goes to School
《大卫惹麻烦》 David Gets in Trouble

*An Interactive E-book of 大卫不可以 No, David! is available on the Ellabook App, an award-winning digital library of over 1000 children's E-books in simplified Chinese. Click here for a preview of the e-book. 

*Luka reads the 大卫不可以 No, David! book only in storytelling Role Play mode. Luka is working to add the word-for-word Luka Original  reading mode to its library. Stay tuned! For the other 2 books in this set, go to Luka App to switch between the Role Play mode and Original Luka reading mode. 

Is my child ready for this set?

"Read to me": 
Children ages 2+ will enjoy having these books read to them either by Luka® or a caregiver.

"Read by myself": 
Texts are short everyday phrases. The prevalence of common language from daily life makes this series ideal for beginning readers ages 4+.  

Option to pair with Luka®:
Consider adding Luka®, the reading robot, to your order. Luka® reads 70,000 books in Mandarin Chinese! ​
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Set Luka® in front of the book, and it will read aloud any page your child turns to-- creating a unique, independent physical book reading experience even if your child isn't ready to read by themselves. Click to read our founders' personal review of Luka here.

Happy learning!