American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

American Born Chinese became the first graphic novel to be a National Book Award Finalist and to win the Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in young adult literature. It also got lots of really good reviews from all the journals and magazines that review books for teens, and won a bunch of other awards.

American Born Chinese began as a web comic with a loyal following. Gene Luen Yang started drawing comics in the fifth grade and eventually won (another!) really important award to help him keep drawing. Besides being a successful novelist, Gene is also a high school computer science teacher. Check out Gene’s Favorite Graphic Novel Moment and his website, too. There’s even a link to site all about the Monkey King!

The book is three stories in one, featuring:

• Jin Wang, who just wants to fit in when his family movies to a new neighborhood
• the Monkey King, the kung-fu master of ancient stories
• Danny, whose life is ruined every year by the arrival of his cousin Chin-Kee, the worst Chinese stereotype
  

These three tales come together to create a modern fable about growing-up, fitting in and learning to be who you are. American Born Chinese has been praised for its brilliant writing, strong, clean graphics, and the way it addresses things like racism, shame and friendship while still being fun and entertaining.

Visit http://www.queenslibrary.org/ to find a copy!