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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/118944.American_Born_Chinese?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="American Born Chinese" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171765431m/118944.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/118944.American_Born_Chinese?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">American Born Chinese</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/68959.Gene_Luen_Yang">Gene Luen Yang</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/32751605?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 4 of 5 stars I think, to my middle school English teaching colleagues, I portray myself as hating anything that is written primarily for adolescents rather than for adults. In practice, this is basically true. Most of what I've read with the "Young Adult" label is adequately written but thematically obvious, and kids who get excited about such works are the kinds who are then able to brag that they read a great book, but without having to do any of the heavy intellectual lifting that is required from reading a REAL book. And I don't mean to imply that teens and pre-teens should only read really difficult stuff [I personally enjoyed "Great Expectations" the first time I was asked to read it back in the SIXTH GRADE (!!), but even I think that's a bit much for the average middle schooler:], but I do think books should challenge students to some degree. Not just toy with their world views ("Wow, I never knew that about the holocaust/civil war/that other culture!"), but actually make them do some of the work to find the meaning in the text.
 
 So again, in practice, my hatred for "Young Adult" literature is very tangible. But in principal, I love stumbling upon works that are geared toward adolescents without being cookie-cutter coming-of-age tales or melodramatic glimpses into the lives of token representatives from other cultures.
 
 Which brings me to Gene Yang's graphic novel, "American Born Chinese", which does a really good job of balancing on the fine line between challenging and accesible.
 
 A colleague of mine dropped this off in my room recently (probably in response to my giving her a copy of "Good-Bye, Chunky Rice"), and in a few sittings, I was able to read its quick 233 pages. It begins as three seemingly disparate stories whose only connections seem to be their roots in Chinese culture. The first thread follows the legend of The Monkey King; the second follows Jin, a Chinese-American boy trying to assimilate into an American school; the third follows an American boy, Danny, who is visited by his laughingly offensive Chinese-stereotype cousin, Chin-kee.
 
 The three stories eventually tie together in a satisfying way, and the astute young reader can draw from them some interesting lessons not only about the life of a Chinese-American boy in American society, but also about what it means to accept and deny your own personal heritage.
 
 It is very simple and straight-forward, but not obvious, and this makes for a fun and engaging read. Combined with Gene Yang's clean and cartoony illustrations, I can say that this is definitely worth the time of a 'young adult' looking for a quick yet stimulating read.
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1442431?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Chad's review
rating:

bookshelves: aaaread-this-yearaaa, for-the-children, graphic-novels
status: Read in September, 2008

I think, to my middle school English teaching colleagues, I portray myself as hating anything that is written primarily for adolescents rather than for adults. In practice, this is basically true. Most of what I've read with the "Young Adult" label is adequately written but thematically obvious, and kids who get excited about such works are the kinds who are then able to brag that they read a great book, but without having to do any of the heavy intellectual lifting that is required from reading a REAL book. And I don't mean to imply that teens and pre-teens should only read really difficult stuff [I personally enjoyed "Great Expectations" the first time I was asked to read it back in the SIXTH GRADE (!!), but even I think that's a bit much for the average middle schooler:], but I do think books should challenge students to some degree. Not just toy with their world views ("Wow, I never knew that about the holocaust/civil war/that other culture!"), but...more I think, to my middle school English teaching colleagues, I portray myself as hating anything that is written primarily for adolescents rather than for adults. In practice, this is basically true. Most of what I've read with the "Young Adult" label is adequately written but thematically obvious, and kids who get excited about such works are the kinds who are then able to brag that they read a great book, but without having to do any of the heavy intellectual lifting that is required from reading a REAL book. And I don't mean to imply that teens and pre-teens should only read really difficult stuff [I personally enjoyed "Great Expectations" the first time I was asked to read it back in the SIXTH GRADE (!!), but even I think that's a bit much for the average middle schooler:], but I do think books should challenge students to some degree. Not just toy with their world views ("Wow, I never knew that about the holocaust/civil war/that other culture!"), but actually make them do some of the work to find the meaning in the text.

So again, in practice, my hatred for "Young Adult" literature is very tangible. But in principal, I love stumbling upon works that are geared toward adolescents without being cookie-cutter coming-of-age tales or melodramatic glimpses into the lives of token representatives from other cultures.

Which brings me to Gene Yang's graphic novel, "American Born Chinese", which does a really good job of balancing on the fine line between challenging and accesible.

A colleague of mine dropped this off in my room recently (probably in response to my giving her a copy of "Good-Bye, Chunky Rice"), and in a few sittings, I was able to read its quick 233 pages. It begins as three seemingly disparate stories whose only connections seem to be their roots in Chinese culture. The first thread follows the legend of The Monkey King; the second follows Jin, a Chinese-American boy trying to assimilate into an American school; the third follows an American boy, Danny, who is visited by his laughingly offensive Chinese-stereotype cousin, Chin-kee.

The three stories eventually tie together in a satisfying way, and the astute young reader can draw from them some interesting lessons not only about the life of a Chinese-American boy in American society, but also about what it means to accept and deny your own personal heritage.

It is very simple and straight-forward, but not obvious, and this makes for a fun and engaging read. Combined with Gene Yang's clean and cartoony illustrations, I can say that this is definitely worth the time of a 'young adult' looking for a quick yet stimulating read....less

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message 1: by Kerri

09/13/2008 01:23PM

What? I did it? You actually LIKED something that I thought was good? Wow! My lifetime goal has been accomplished (and by lifetime, I really mean the last five years)! I'm glad you liked this Chadwick. I am going to really try to open my brain to Blankets. Now, have you ever tried reading The Book Thief...?