Yang, Gene Luen. 2006. American Born Chinese. New York: First Second. 1-59643-152-0.
In this comic-style book, three seemingly unrelated stories: that of the ancient Chinese folktale of the Monkey King, a young boy tries to fit in with his schoolmates and a young man embarrassed every year by his visiting cousin from China; all become intertwined in a surprising ending.
All three characters, the Monkey King, Jin Wang and Danny have one thing in common; they are trying to fit in and try to find their identity, but get laughed at in the process. With the subtopic of realistic fiction of self identity, all three characters are searching for a sense of self, exploring the "purpose" in school, at home and with friends and holding on to those friendships. In trying to find their identity each one encounters prejudice, discrimination and comments that are on the verge of racism. Aside from ancient China, the setting of Danny and Jin's tale are primarily in school. Although transporting back and forth from ancient China and modern-day high school adds to the style of the book. Chin-Kee, Danny's cousin, character is over-the-top, stereo-typical and almost racist. However, this leads to the over-all charm of the book and the moral of all three stories.
American Born Chinese won several awards for this book and its artwork: 2006 A National Book Award finalist, 2007 ALA's Printz Award winner, 2007 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album and the 2007 Havey Award for Best Colorist (Lark Pien). VOYA's Sherrie Williams wrote: "This graphic novel first appeared as a long running Web comic on http://www.Moderntales.com, where it enjoyed an enthusiastic following. The artwork is clean and distinctive, with varying panel styles and inking that is visually appealing." Jesse Karp for Booklist stated: "Yang helps the humor shine by using his art to exaggerate or contradict the words, creating a synthesis that marks an accomplished graphic storyteller. The stories have a simple, engaging sweep to them, but their weighty subjects--shame, racism, and friendship--receive thoughtful, powerful examination."
My favorite passage comes at the end, where all three stories fit together. The Monkey King is sitting talking to Jin: " 'You know, Jin, I would have saved myself for five hundred years' imprisonment beneath mounatin of rock had I only realiuzes how good it is to be a monkey." '
In this comic-style book, three seemingly unrelated stories: that of the ancient Chinese folktale of the Monkey King, a young boy tries to fit in with his schoolmates and a young man embarrassed every year by his visiting cousin from China; all become intertwined in a surprising ending.
All three characters, the Monkey King, Jin Wang and Danny have one thing in common; they are trying to fit in and try to find their identity, but get laughed at in the process. With the subtopic of realistic fiction of self identity, all three characters are searching for a sense of self, exploring the "purpose" in school, at home and with friends and holding on to those friendships. In trying to find their identity each one encounters prejudice, discrimination and comments that are on the verge of racism. Aside from ancient China, the setting of Danny and Jin's tale are primarily in school. Although transporting back and forth from ancient China and modern-day high school adds to the style of the book. Chin-Kee, Danny's cousin, character is over-the-top, stereo-typical and almost racist. However, this leads to the over-all charm of the book and the moral of all three stories.
American Born Chinese won several awards for this book and its artwork: 2006 A National Book Award finalist, 2007 ALA's Printz Award winner, 2007 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album and the 2007 Havey Award for Best Colorist (Lark Pien). VOYA's Sherrie Williams wrote: "This graphic novel first appeared as a long running Web comic on http://www.Moderntales.com, where it enjoyed an enthusiastic following. The artwork is clean and distinctive, with varying panel styles and inking that is visually appealing." Jesse Karp for Booklist stated: "Yang helps the humor shine by using his art to exaggerate or contradict the words, creating a synthesis that marks an accomplished graphic storyteller. The stories have a simple, engaging sweep to them, but their weighty subjects--shame, racism, and friendship--receive thoughtful, powerful examination."
My favorite passage comes at the end, where all three stories fit together. The Monkey King is sitting talking to Jin: " 'You know, Jin, I would have saved myself for five hundred years' imprisonment beneath mounatin of rock had I only realiuzes how good it is to be a monkey." '
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