This is a great graphic novel, with a variety of levels or layers of complexity, and can be read enjoyably at any of these levels. It deals with issues of race and belonging partially by relating it to mythology, and without pushing a hasty moral at the close of the novel. ( )

Some books try hard to describe the importance of knowing oneself. Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel does more than illustrate the importance of knowing oneself, it provides a richly textured, aesthetically pleasing story that follows the paths of three characters as they journey to self-understanding. At once a novel that illustrates the harmful tendencies of racial bigotry, but also a novel that explores the role of individual in a misunderstood ethnic society. It is not difficult to see why Yang won the prestigious Micheal L. Printz award for this clever story. This title is currently available in our library. Happy Reading! ( )

Crawford, P. (2006). American Born Chinese. School Library Journal, 52(9), 240. Retrieved October 28, 2009, from Article Citation database.

Karp, J. (2006). American born Chinese. Booklist, 103(1), 114. Retrieved October 28, 2009, from Article Citation database.

Challenging read; lots of threads come together. ( )

Graphic Novel - Manga Book Review

Yang, Gene Luen. American Born Chinese. 2006. First Second Books: New York.

Genre:
Fiction, Juvenile Fiction, Graphic Novel

Themes:
Asian American, Comic, Graphic Novel, Humor

Age / Grade Appropriateness:
12 years and up / 7th grade and up

Awards:
Harvey Award Nominee, Printz Award, Eisner Award, ALA Great Graphic novels for Teens, National Book Award finalist, Cybils Award

Censorship Issues:
Racism, Rude Humor

Art style (Describe the artistic style)
Cartoon style-The drawings are very detailed. The book also has a lot of background pictures-hidden pictures.

Plot Summary (Summarize the plot in 250 words or less):
This book is a graphic novel that tells about three different character’s stories. All three stories seem to twist together in the novel. One of the stories is about Jin Wing who is a middle school student that moves to a new school that is predominantly white. He tries so hard to fit in with the white students. He has nothing to do with the Asian student that attends there. The second character Monkey King is very unsatisfied and longs to reach the “status” of a god. The third character is an American high school jock named Danny. He is highly embarrassed of his Chinese cousin Chin-Kee that visits him every year. After his cousin’s visit, he has to change schools because of his embarrassing experiences.

Critique (Consider if the book fits the bill of a YA book as we have discussed /read. Include your opinion of the book here as well):

This book fits the bill of Young Adult books because it is told on a young adult level. It also keeps a reader interested because there were three different characters and three different stories combined in one. This story can be related to many young adults because it involves young adult characters. I am not a big fan of manga, but it opened me up to a new good book. The story was a little hard to follow, but once I got past the mythology lesson, I understood the plot.

Curriculum Uses (Possible uses in the classroom / school library / public library):
I think that many boys would really like this book; it would be great for entertainment. This book could also be used in an Art classroom to study the artsy illustrations. It could also be used in a mythology class. ( )