In poetic language, this book tells a story about understanding and tolerance.
Mr Pang lives on the east side of the river and Mr Shou lives on the west. They argue over trivial things and forbid their children to play with each other, and in turn, even the children stop their dogs playing with each other.
They are always fighting over something until one morning, when the two families are cooking breakfast. The family on the east side of the river is using wet firewood, giving off black smoke, while the family on the east side is using dried firewood, giving off white smoke.
The black smoke and white smoke float gently up into the air towards each other...and things start to change...
Cao Wenxuan is the Winner of Hans Christian Andersen Award