There are many variations of the origin of the Jade Rabbit, who is a very popular character in Chinese culture. The version most familiar to my parents tells of how the Jade Rabbit is a medicine maker, and you can see its outline on the moon as it pounds herbs into a magical elixir with its mortar and pestle. The tale my grandma learned portrays the creature as a beloved pet to the goddess of the moon, Chang’e. Other variations mention the Jade Rabbit was once a human who transformed into the hare after drinking a forbidden potion. For the purposes of this story, I went with the first legend: a lone rabbit that creates powerful elixirs.
A quick note: the word “jade” often conjures the color green, and several people have wondered why the Jade Rabbit is not portrayed that way. The reason is that jade actually comes in several naturally occurring colors. While jade jewelry in Europe is bright green like emeralds, for most of China’s history, it was often white.
On Chinese Philosophy
The concept of yin and yang comes from Taoism, a Chinese philosophy founded in the 4th century B.C. by the writer Lao Tzu, and is simplified in The Dreamweavers. The actual philosophy behind it is far more complicated (involving 64 permutations of hexagrams). Look up the Eight Trigrams if you’re feeling courageous, but as my grandma warned, “You can study it for a lifetime and comprehend only half of it.”
When the Jade Rabbit mentions to the twins that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” it was referencing a popular proverb attributed to Lao Tzu.
On Foot Binding
In the story, Princess Zali’s feet were bound. For many centuries in China, girls, usually those of the nobility class, had their feet tightly bound with cloth in such a way that their feet were completely reshaped and would not continue to grow. Painful as the binding was, small feet on women were considered a status symbol and a mark of the woman’s beauty. Historians believe one of the oldest variants of the popular fairy tale Cinderella comes from a short story in the Tang Dynasty, in which one woman’s foot fits inside a tiny golden slipper when nobody else’s could.
The practice of foot binding, which hampered mobility, was controversial even in its heyday. Many women opposed the practice, and there were emperors who attempted to ban it altogether. Foot binding officially became illegal in the 1900s.
On Homonyms
In the Imperial Library, Mei and Yun discover through a miswritten sign that Lotus’s husband had been framed. This is achieved through homonyms—or homophones, specifically. In the Chinese language, there are many words that sound the same out loud, but mean completely different things, the same way the English words see and sea have different meanings.
On the Mathematics Behind Dice of Destiny
I made up the game of Dice of Destiny that you read about in this story, but the twins’ chances of winning are based on actual mathematical principles. You might be wondering, what is the exact probability of winning in Dice of Destiny? Turns out the answer requires several calculations. In a nutshell, you would need to figure out the probability of getting a certain score after the first two rolls, then calculate the winning outcomes for the final roll. Keep in mind, once you’re too deep in the negatives after two rolls, there’s no way of winning. Below is a snapshot of the odds after two rolls (credit for this explanation goes to Jonathan Tannenhauser, Ph.D., mathematician extraordinaire).
The actual chance of winning the game is 29%. Not too grim, but I wouldn’t bet my life on it. Would you?
Acknowledgments
This magical book would not be what it is without the wonderful people who helped me weave it into its final stages.
First, a thank you to Christyne Morrell, fantasy author extraordinaire, for reading the story in its earliest draft and providing insights. A huge thank you to my ever-brilliant editor, Kelly Loughman (a.k.a. the Sharp-eye), whose advice and keen mind helped improve the story beautifully. A thank you to the meticulous copyeditor John Simko and the entire team at Holiday House for your support, and Adria Goetz for connecting me with the perfect publisher for my stories. A special thanks to Feifei Ruan, the magnificent cover artist who brought the essence of this story to life.
A big thanks to Jonathan Tannenhauser, my delightful math professor from college, who helped me understand the mechanics behind Dice of Destiny.
A thank you to my family, especially Hayden. Your wonderful wit cheers me up even in nightmares. I wrote and edited much of this book as the dreadful coronavirus pandemic unfolded in 2020, but in spite of the bleakness affecting us all, you were always there beside me.
At its heart, this book is inspired by my own grandparents. Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for the stories you shared, and for all you have taught me about Chinese folklore.
Also, a shoutout to Evan, my kid brother, who may or may not have gotten into plenty of mischief like the twins did.
Finally, I strive to bring joy and whimsy to each of my works, but the greatest joy comes from the people who are willing to take a chance on them. Thank you, reader, for being part of this journey.
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