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nickscoby's review
4.0
For the first half of the book, I thought it was just OK. And then it takes a turn, and I was like, Oh, snap! It kind of kicks into gear or something. I enjoyed it.
thetowerofstories's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
sonicfan4ever's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Gene Luen Yang tells the intertwining story of three protagonists in one graphic novel. The first storyline is a retelling of the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West, focusing on The Monkey King. The second storyline follows a child of Chinese immigrants named Jin Wang, who struggles with his Chinese identity in a middle school with only two other asian pre-teens. The third storyline is about an “all-American” high schooler named Danny, and his Chinese cousin who visits during the school year. All three storylines meet at the end, and are about struggling with identity and transformation. The graphic novel covers racial stereotypes while growing up in America.
On booksource, the Lexile source for American Born Chinese is GN530L, and its grade level is 7-12. Which means, for language, it scores a bit below middle range, but the content lands it in a large area of understanding. The graphic novel covers racist Chinese stereotypes head-on. Including a character who combines a long list of stereotypes, including his name sounding like a slur. This topic is a big one in the classroom needing to be handled with care, and knowing background information, so that this character does not come off as “funny” or “cute”. I think the graphic novel is a wonderful read for student’s in the grade level marked on booksource, both for class and as an independent read. The novel explains itself really well, and for asian-american students they will see themselves in the pages, and other students will see their peers (and themselves in some characters). Teacher instruction would help this book for all grades, but I don’t believe it is 100% needed. I think older adults can also read this graphic novel, I don’t think people out age a good book, it just changes what they get out of it.
As for what I got out of reading this novel, I enjoyed reading the graphic novel, and reading up on the historical context of some of the characters. I think this is a wonderful first graphic novel for anyone, as it shows why pairing text with images is important. This isn’t close to a novel I would pick on my own for a long read, but to sit down with pages for an afternoon, it is all I could ask of a graphic novel. I picked this book from the reading cart, because I knew a friend enjoyed it, and after reading it. I can understand why they didn’t stop talking about it for months.
priya_haha's review
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
dembury's review
2.0
2.75
Quite a few people I've spoken to about non-superhero graphic novels have recommended this to me, but this just didn't hit home with me like it has with other people. It was an interesting read that twines together three separate stories into one. The first story is based on a Chinese folktale; the second on a young Chinese-American schoolboy; and the last on an American teen whose cousin "Chin-kee" comes to visit from China. The weaving together of the stories was unique, but felt very absurd and almost childlike. I get the point Yang was trying to make but don't think the meshing of stories was overall successful. The story wrapped up very quickly and felt unfinished. The art style was solid although a little bland.
I think this could be a great read for some people, but probably not for everyone. I would still recommend this to certain people, especially if you're looking for some diverse authors or a unique little story!
Quite a few people I've spoken to about non-superhero graphic novels have recommended this to me, but this just didn't hit home with me like it has with other people. It was an interesting read that twines together three separate stories into one. The first story is based on a Chinese folktale; the second on a young Chinese-American schoolboy; and the last on an American teen whose cousin "Chin-kee" comes to visit from China. The weaving together of the stories was unique, but felt very absurd and almost childlike. I get the point Yang was trying to make but don't think the meshing of stories was overall successful. The story wrapped up very quickly and felt unfinished. The art style was solid although a little bland.
I think this could be a great read for some people, but probably not for everyone. I would still recommend this to certain people, especially if you're looking for some diverse authors or a unique little story!
amethystarchild's review
4.0
“American Born Chinese” is a graphic novel that was awarded the Printz award in 2007. It’s the story of a boy named Jin and some of his experiences growing up and having a crush while people isolate and mistreat him for his ethnicity. The scenes are also interspersed with stories about the monkey king from Chinese mythology. In the end Jin accepts his ethnicity and chooses not to let the society around him change who he is.
Content Warnings:
• Cruel stereotyping of Asian cultures
• Potty jokes
• Some minor violence, fist fight, and spear stabbing.
I really enjoyed this graphic novel, it was interesting and easy to read. I’m glad this book exists to address racism towards Asian cultures. Other ethnicities are given a lot of air time, but often Asian cultures and the stereotypes and prejudice that can exist isn’t addressed. Even if you take away the racial angle, it’s still a good story about being yourself, and not letting go of your heritage to fit in. I think the book really does deserve the Printz award it received.
Content Warnings:
• Cruel stereotyping of Asian cultures
• Potty jokes
• Some minor violence, fist fight, and spear stabbing.
I really enjoyed this graphic novel, it was interesting and easy to read. I’m glad this book exists to address racism towards Asian cultures. Other ethnicities are given a lot of air time, but often Asian cultures and the stereotypes and prejudice that can exist isn’t addressed. Even if you take away the racial angle, it’s still a good story about being yourself, and not letting go of your heritage to fit in. I think the book really does deserve the Printz award it received.