Essays on American Born Chinese

2006

Gene Luen Yang

Graphic novel

The Monkey King, Tze-Yo-Tzuh, Wong Lai-Tsao, Jin Wang, Amelia Harris, Wei-Chen Sun, Suzy Nakamura, Greg, Danny, Chin-Kee

2006, by Gene Luen Yang

Graphic novel

The story of American Born Chinese consists of three seemingly separate tales, which are tied together at the end of the book. The first story is about a Kung Fu practicing Monkey King of Flower-Fruit Mountain. The second story line follows a child of Chinese immigrants named Jin Wang. And the third story line follows Danny, an "all-American boy" and his Chinese cousin Chin-Kee,[3] who comes to visit every year.

American Born Chinese possesses strong themes of racial stereotypes, particularly American stereotypes of the Chinese and other East Asian ethnicities. The major themes also include identity, friendship, self-acceptance, and assimilation.

The Monkey King, Tze-Yo-Tzuh, Wong Lai-Tsao, Jin Wang, Amelia Harris, Wei-Chen Sun, Suzy Nakamura, Greg, Danny, Chin-Kee

American Born Chinese is widely used in schools, as it is a great resource to help academically struggling students (particularly struggling readers) and students with social-cognitive disabilities to find motivation to learn, to relate a piece of text to their lives, and to use the graphics to help them understand/relate to the words.

“It's easy to become anything you wish . . . so long as you're willing to forfeit your soul.”
“To find your true identity within the will of Tze Yo Tzuh...that is the highest of all freedoms.”
“I do not make mistakes, little monkey. A monkey I intended you to be. A monkey you are.”