Little Chubby is a comic series created by Li Xuying under the pen name “Li Xuyin,” serialized in Beiping’s Xinmin News from September 16, 1946, to September 11, 1948. Each installment featured one frame with three to four panels, accompanied by brief text captions. Updates were roughly every two to three days. Artistically, Little Chubby is line art, characterized by simple yet expressive strokes without much embellishment. This panel format continued from the beginning until January 8, 1948, totaling 216 installments and over 660 panels (the original panel numbers went up to 617, but due to numbering errors, the actual count was higher). From January 13 of the same year, Little Chubby transitioned to illustrated short essays, featuring only one illustration per piece without panels. The new format included over 50 such essays. The comic’s masthead included the phrase “Sequential Pictorial for Children’s Education,” likely reflecting the intent of both the creator and newspaper editors.
The protagonist, Little Chubby, was based on Li Xuying’s second daughter (who is also my mother). Like my mother, Little Chubby lost her father shortly after birth and lived with her mother and older sister. While the comic never specified Little Chubby’s age, we know she was already in school. At the time of serialization, my mother was around 10 years old. Based on the content, Little Chubby was likely around the same age.
Little Chubby chronicles the growth of this innocent and lively little girl. Born into hardship, with material scarcity and a tough life, she maintained an optimistic heart. Little Chubby spent countless memorable moments with her family and friends through various imaginative ways. She would fight with her cousin over chicken bones; she smashed a fish tank in an attempt to mimic Sima Guang’s famous story of breaking a water vat to save a kid; she also studied diligently and actively participated in various charitable activities to help the poor. The comic is not only filled with humor but also imbued with rich educational value. Little Chubby learned tolerance, frugality, and resilience from her mother’s stories and books. She understood the value of labor through practice and grew through each attempts. The comic also weaves in introductions to traditional festivals, cultural customs, and historical figures, making learning fun.
Among Li Xuying’s existing works, Little Chubby is most personal to me because many details reflect my mother’s clever and mischievous nature, and how my grandmother, under difficult circumstances, did her utmost to nurture and educate her children.
After the format change in early 1948, the content of Little Chubby also changed somewhat. Initially, the main characters were mostly family members, but later, many of Little Chubby’s classmates were introduced, making the content more school-oriented with an increased educational focus. Moreover, the stories before and after this change do not fully connect. On January 8, 1948, the last panel of the comic left the story unfinished. Little Chubby and her cousin unexpectedly discovered Mrs Zhao, who was nearly frozen to death in the snow. The kids were eager to rescue her, only to also find a frozen corpse in the snow. The story abruptly ends there. Five days later, on January 13, a short piece titled “Donation Drive for the Poor” discusses Little Chubby organizing children to raise funds to help people like Mrs Zhao survive the winter. We only know that Mrs Zhao survived, but what exactly happened and the story behind the corpse in the snow are left unexplained. At this point, the comic adds a touch of somber depth, seemingly moving away from bright childlike fun towards a darker social portrayal of wartime. Little Chubby ultimately did not pursue this direction but shifted towards a more positive one, promoting virtues like frugality, cherishing life, unity, friendship, and love for learning, thereby enhancing the sense of social responsibility. It’s unclear whether this was the decision of the author, editor, or readers.
Due to the serial’s popularity, an exhibition of Little Chubby opened at the Laijinyuxuan Tea House in Zhongshan Park on July 16, 1948, accompanied by the publication of a Little Chubby Pictorial. Starting from the 21st, the exhibition was extended until August 1st due to popular demand. During this period, the exhibition expanded to include Li Xuying’s decorative embroidery and other design works, with new pieces added daily. Besides Xinmin News, other papers like Huabei Daily also covered the exhibition.
Due to the serial’s popularity, an exhibition of Little Chubby opened at the Laijinyuxuan Tea House in Zhongshan Park on July 16, 1948, accompanied by the publication of a Little Chubby Pictorial. Starting from the 21st, the exhibition was extended until August 1st due to popular demand. During this period, the exhibition expanded to include Li Xuying’s decorative embroidery and other design works, with new pieces added daily. Besides Xinmin News, other papers like Huabei Daily also covered the exhibition.
The complete series of Little Chubby is now posted on the comic section of Li Xuying’s Works page. Since the original images aren’t very clear, the text captions and short essays have been transcribed and edited for posting. Currently, only the Chinese version is available.
《小胖子》是李旭英用笔名“李絮因”创作的漫画系列，从1946年9月16日起至1948年9月11日，连载于北平《新民报》。每期一个画框，内含三到四格，配以简短的文字说明。更新频率大约是两到三天。画风上《小胖子》是线描漫画，用笔简约传神，并不追求过多的渲染。从连载之初到1948年1月8日一直是这种格子漫画形式，共216期，660多格（原文格子序号至617，因为中间有错码，实际数目要多些）。从同年1月13日起，《小胖子》改成了配图的小短文，只有一幅画，不再分格。这种小短文有50余篇。漫画题图上有“儿童教育连续图画”的字样，应当是代表了创作者和报社编辑对这部作品的定性。
主人公小胖子的原型是李旭英的二女儿（也就是我的母亲）。和我的母亲一样，小胖子刚出生不久父亲就去世了，和妈妈姐姐相依为命。漫画里没有明确小胖子的年龄，只知道已经上学了。漫画连载之时，母亲大约10 岁。从内容上推测，小胖子也大约在这个年龄段。《小胖子》记录了这个天真活泼的小女孩的成长故事。小胖子在困境中出生，尽管物质匮乏，生活艰辛，她依然保持着一颗乐观的心。小胖子通过各种天马行空的方式，与家人和朋友们一起度过了无数难忘的时光。她会与表弟争抢鸡骨头而大打出手；她为了模仿司马光砸缸，将养鱼的缸打碎；她也会努力学习知识，积极参与各种公益活动，帮助贫困的人们。漫画不仅充满了幽默感，也融入了丰富的教育意义。小胖子从母亲的故事和书本中学习到宽容、节俭与坚韧；她通过实践感悟劳动的价值，并在一次次尝试中成长。漫画中还穿插了对传统节日、文化习俗和历史人物的介绍，寓教于乐。在李旭英的现存作品中，《小胖子》于我最为亲切，因为其中不少细节可以看到我母亲的聪颖顽皮的影子，和姥姥如何在生活艰难的状况下竭尽全力尽养育教育之则。
1948年初《小胖子》形式改变之后，内容也有一定变化。前期的主要人物多是家人，后期增加了许多小胖子的同学，内容更贴近学校生活，教育意义增强。此外，改变前后的故事并不完全衔接。1948年1月8日最后一幅格子漫画的故事没有讲完。小胖子和小表弟意外发现了雪地里快要冻死的赵大妈，急于施救，却又发现雪地里还有已经冻死的尸身。故事至此嘎然而止。5天后1月13日的短文题为《捐款济贫运动》，讲的是小胖子组织小朋友们为帮赵大妈这样的穷人过冬募捐。我们只能知道赵大妈是活下来了，但是具体发生了什么，雪地里的尸体又是怎么回事没有交代。漫画到这里多了一抹悲情的厚重感，似乎脱离明亮的童趣而转向对战争年代灰暗的社会图景。《小胖子》最终没有选择这个思路，而是转向了积极一点的方向。宣传勤俭节约、爱护生命、团结友爱、热爱学习这些美德，更增强了社会责任感的教育。不知道是这是作者、编辑还是读者的主张。
由于《小胖子》连载广受好评，1948年7月16日，同名漫画展在中山公园来今雨轩举办，同时印发《小胖子画刊》。21日起，展览因备受欢迎而延期至8月1日闭幕。此间，《小胖子》画展又增展李旭英创作的装饰刺绣等图案设计，而且展期内每日更换新作。除《新民报》外，《华北日报》等也对这个展览进行了报道。
由于《小胖子》连载广受好评，1948年7月16日，同名漫画展在中山公园来今雨轩举办，同时印发《小胖子画刊》。21日起，展览因备受欢迎而延期至8月1日闭幕。此间，《小胖子》画展又增展李旭英创作的装饰刺绣等图案设计，而且展期内每日更换新作。除《新民报》外，《华北日报》等也对这个展览进行了报道。
《小胖子》的全部连载内容已经刊登在李旭英作品页的漫画分页上。由于原图不是很清楚，刊登时对文字说明和短文部分进行了整理誊抄。目前只有中文版本。