A review by alyssastellar
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
American Born Chinese is the story of three seemingly-unrelated characters stories. The Monkey King is the all-powerful ruler of Flower Fruit Mountain in an ancient fable. Jin Wang, a Chinese boy (whom I would list as the graphic novel's main character), is new to his neighborhood and the only Chinese-American child at his new school. Chin-Kee, a cousin of Danny, a white boy at Jin Wang's school, and the novel's graphic personification of Chinese stereotypes. In the end, these three stories join together in a way that may surprise you and leave you reflecting on the qualities within yourself that you may find negative.
Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel is most appropriate for students of early elementary school in terms of reading difficulty, but you may want to consider the novel's graphic xenophobia, racial slurs, and bullying when presenting young readers with this text. It may be worth having a personal chat about racism and Chinese culture with your student or child before presenting them with this text or allowing them to run with it alone. For these reasons, I'd suggest guided or instructional reading of this text at ages 7-9, and independent reading at ages 10-14. It is also an enjoyable story though, so if you're older than 14 - have at it!
For me, it was a bit difficult to read through the racial slurs and xenophobia present in Chin-Kee's character, and the moments of bullying in Jin Wang's story. However, this graphic novel was a quick and, at times, hilarious read. It was also one of the only graphic novels that has ever kept my attention, and for that alone, I must praise it. I appreciated the fables in the Monkey King and the exposure to Chinese culture. I also am thankful for Yang's ending in the novel. Without spoiling anything, I think we need more texts like this one.
Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel is most appropriate for students of early elementary school in terms of reading difficulty, but you may want to consider the novel's graphic xenophobia, racial slurs, and bullying when presenting young readers with this text. It may be worth having a personal chat about racism and Chinese culture with your student or child before presenting them with this text or allowing them to run with it alone. For these reasons, I'd suggest guided or instructional reading of this text at ages 7-9, and independent reading at ages 10-14. It is also an enjoyable story though, so if you're older than 14 - have at it!
For me, it was a bit difficult to read through the racial slurs and xenophobia present in Chin-Kee's character, and the moments of bullying in Jin Wang's story. However, this graphic novel was a quick and, at times, hilarious read. It was also one of the only graphic novels that has ever kept my attention, and for that alone, I must praise it. I appreciated the fables in the Monkey King and the exposure to Chinese culture. I also am thankful for Yang's ending in the novel. Without spoiling anything, I think we need more texts like this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia