Ethought Online SuperMarket - American Born Chinese

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Manufacturer: First Second

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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5973
EAN: 9781596431522
ISBN: 1596431520
Label: First Second
Manufacturer: First Second
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 240
Publication Date: 2006-09-05
Publisher: First Second
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: 2006-09-05
Studio: First Second

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Editorial Reviews:

A tour-de-force by rising indy comics star Gene Yang, American Born Chinese tells the story of three apparently unrelated characters: Jin Wang, who moves to a new neighborhood with his family only to discover that he’s the only Chinese-American student at his new school; the powerful Monkey King, subject of one of the oldest and greatest Chinese fables; and Chin-Kee, a personification of the ultimate negative Chinese stereotype, who is ruining his cousin Danny’s life with his yearly visits. Their lives and stories come together with an unexpected twist in this action-packed modern fable. American Born Chinese is an amazing ride, all the way up to the astonishing climax.

Spotlight customer reviews:

Customer Rating:

Summary: Beautiful work
Comment: The story blends real situations with reference to the Monkey King, a tale that has always been a magnet for the imagination but is not always accessible. This work is what I have been looking for, and I didn't even know I was waiting for it.

I'm grateful to the author for creating a beautiful story that is true to my experience as a Chinese American growing up in suburban America. This graphic novel made me think. It stayed with me long after I put it down, and I believe it has made a difference in my life.

I recommend this book to teens and adults of all backgrounds.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Poignant meditation on internalized oppression
Comment: A poignant meditation on internalized racial oppression, American-Born Chinese is both philosophical and funny at the same time. Three interwoven stories are subtly presented as 'performances', complete with audience clapping at the bottom. I love this subtle graphic portrayal of the thread running through the book as a whole: the stories we tell ourselves are often illusory and can be dangerous, so it's best to remember they're stories and go instead for what truly feeds the heart.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Interesting Presentation, Positive Story
Comment: Gene Luen Yang's low-key but heartfelt American Born Chinese seems to tell three stories at once: the traditional Chinese fable of the Monkey King; the young life of a son of Chinese immigrants; and the story of a blond-haired, blue-eyed high-schooler whose mortifying Chinese cousin visits every year.

Yang brings creative personal touches to each story: his pithy retelling of the Journey to the West (the original novel is over 2,000 pages long) presents a wonderfully sympathetic Monkey King. The third story is done in the style of a sitcom, complete with a cheesy laugh track (you didn't think a comic book could have a laugh track? It can). And through Jin Wang, the protagonist of the second story, Yang shows the anxieties of youth with painful clarity.

As the book progresses, it becomes clear how the three stories are in fact integral to each other, and work together to advance Yang's simple message of self-acceptance. "American Born Chinese" is eloquent, not only about a specific cultural experience, but about struggles--and hope--common to us all.

~

Customer Rating:

Summary: Very good
Comment: ABC is a great book, very well thought out. It made me think for a long time after I read it.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Racist.
Comment: I understand what the author was TRYING to do, I just also understand that the author failed. In an attempt to show how offensive Asian stereotypes can be, the author creates an Asian stereotype that is horrifyingly offensive (even to nonasians, such as myself). This character's name is "Chink-ee".

I don't think much more needs to be said about Chink-ee.

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