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A review by libreroaming
Dragonwings by Laurence Yep
4.0
"Dragonwings" is part five of Laurence Yep's historical fiction series of the Golden Mountain Chronicles, but they are all stand alones. It follows the journey of Moon Shadow as he arrives in San Francisco to join his father, a man he knew only through second-hand accounts and letters. Yep chooses to keep readers in a Chinese speaking mindset, italicizing any conversations English to mark them as different and preferring to let the names reflect their meaning in the native language rather than phonetic accuracy. It is a deft touch of cultural awareness that doesn't age it as much as other culturally focused children's novels.
The plot itself is more a series of ups and downs than a tautly paced narrative. In fact, the titular theme of "Dragonwings," that of a Chinese man who learns to build a flying machine, shows up sporadically and only takes center stage at the end of the novel. Still, while the pacing makes it easy to pick up and put down, the writing of events is worth following. I found the most rewarding chapters featured how Moon Shadow and his father's developing friendship with Mrs. Whitlaw and her granddaughter, Robin.
Recommended to give to children who are interested in historical fiction first and foremost, Laurence Yep has plenty of other Asian American representation books that satisfy contemporary readers. If they are reluctant to read books without cliffhangers, the episodic narrative may be a turn off even though there is a chapter on the San Francisco earthquake and its aftermath, it comes in late in the novel.
The plot itself is more a series of ups and downs than a tautly paced narrative. In fact, the titular theme of "Dragonwings," that of a Chinese man who learns to build a flying machine, shows up sporadically and only takes center stage at the end of the novel. Still, while the pacing makes it easy to pick up and put down, the writing of events is worth following. I found the most rewarding chapters featured how Moon Shadow and his father's developing friendship with Mrs. Whitlaw and her granddaughter, Robin.
Recommended to give to children who are interested in historical fiction first and foremost, Laurence Yep has plenty of other Asian American representation books that satisfy contemporary readers. If they are reluctant to read books without cliffhangers, the episodic narrative may be a turn off even though there is a chapter on the San Francisco earthquake and its aftermath, it comes in late in the novel.