Serial pictures give old art form a new lease of life

Like many of his peers born in the 1960s, Li Chen was a fan of Chinese picture books in his childhood.

"I think all Chinese people of our generation were nourished by picture books," says Li, who clearly remembers exchanging picture books with his friends and borrowing books from stands for a few cents when he was a child.

However, unlike most adults who eventually abandoned picture books, Li chose to become an illustrator, telling Chinese stories with a pencil and paper.