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Zen Shorts is a 2005 children's picture book by Jon J. Muth. The book was followed by Zen Ties in 2008.

Plot
Three children, Karl, Michael and Addy, encounter a panda named Stillwater. The panda carries a red umbrella and speaks in a "slight panda accent". For the next three days, the three kids visit Stillwater. The panda rewards each with instructive anecdotes. " To Addy he tells a story about the value of material goods. To Michael he pushes the boundaries of good and bad. And to Karl he demonstrates what it means to hold on to frustration. "

Reception
Bruno Navasky, of The New York Times, reviewed the book saying, "Muth attributes the third to a Taoist tradition, but for me it calls to mind most vividly the popular picture book Fortunately, by Remy Charlip, with whom Muth has also worked. In any case, the cultural blurrings won't reduce the pleasure with which this book is received, and most children would surely vouchsafe Jon Muth the pleasure of a one-handed round of applause for his elegant tale." A Kirkus Reviews review says, "The Buddha lurks in the details here: Every word and image comes to make as perfect a picture book as can be." A Publishers Weekly review says, "Readers will fall easily into the rhythm of visits to Stillwater and his storytelling sessions, and many more will fall in love with the panda, whose shape and size offer the children many opportunities for cuddling."

critical reception
Bruno Navasky review "The story opens as Karl, Michael and Addy encounter Stillwater, a surprisingly large panda who carries a red umbrella and speaks, in Muth's delightful phrase, with a slight panda accent. Over the next three days, each of the children visits Stillwater, who lives up to his name, rewarding each with instructive anecdotes that are both profound and reflective, appropriately mirroring the spirit of each child. Addy learns about generosity, Michael about imagination and spontaneity, and Karl about forgiveness. In the end, the shared experience of Stillwater's friendship draws the three children closer together, as they seem to see one another for the first time."

review from weekly publisher "He frames the trio of tales within the context of a suburban household. Three siblings befriend a giant panda when his red umbrella blows into their yard. Speaking "with a slight panda accent," he introduces himself as Stillwater, and charms Addy and Michael--though Karl, the youngest, is still "shy around bears he [doesn't] know." Each day one of the children goes to visit Stillwater, revealing something of him- or herself. The panda chooses an appropriate Zen fable for each child, illustrated with rough-edged, Chinese-style brush-and-ink paintings on duotone pages, to play up the story-within-a-story structure. In the first, Stillwater tells Addy about his Uncle Ry, who disarms a robber by treating him like a guest (older readers will pick up from the closing author's note that "Uncle Ry" is shorthand for the Zen hermit Ryokan Taigu). In the next, a wise farmer demonstrates that good luck can quickly turn to bad luck and back again (a tale Ed Young also retold in The Lost Horse). In the last, a monk learns how to stop brooding and live in the present. Readers will fall easily into the rhythm of visits to Stillwater and his storytelling sessions, and many more will fall in love with the panda, whose shape and size offer the children many opportunities for cuddling. Ages 4-up. (Mar.)"

"enjoying his company and listening to him tell a brief tale that illustrates a Zen principle. Each time, there is a link between the conversation shared by Stillwater and his visitor and the story he tells; it's somewhat tenuous in regard to the two older siblings, quite specific in the case of Karl, the youngest. The tales invite the children to consider the world and their perceptions from a different angle; for Karl, the panda's story gently but pointedly teaches the benefits of forgiveness. Richly toned and nicely detailed watercolors depict the "real world" scenes, while those accompanying the Zen lessons employ black lines and strokes on pastel pages to create an interesting blend of Western realism and more evocative Japanese naturalism. Taken simply as a picture book, Zen Shorts is interesting and visually lovely. As an introduction to Zen, it is a real treat, employing familiar imagery to prod children to approach life and its circumstances in profoundly "un-Western" ways. An author's note discusses the basic concept of Zen and details the sources of Stillwater's stories. Appealing enough for a group read-aloud, but also begging to be shared and discussed by caregiver and child, Zen Shorts is a notable achievement."

Awards

 * 2006 Book Sense Book of the Year Awards
 * Caldecott Honor