Book Review: American Born Chinese

I haven’t read many graphic novels, so I can’t speak from a comparative point of view. However, I did like American Born Chinese for a few reasons. First, it weaves three different story lines into one book, and I’m a sucker for that sort of thing. The main storyline involves Jin Wang, a Chinese-American boy who, despite being born in the U.S. and being completely American culturally, doesn’t fit in at his new school and reluctantly befriends the only kid there who is newer than him: Wei-chen, a boy who has just arrived from Taiwan.

This plot does not exactly cover new ground. Most books about the immigrant, or second-generation American, experience involve the same themes. However, Yang’s graphic depiction of the experience is more poignant than the usual prose treatments, and the other two stories act as mirrors that reflect their own voices upon Jin’s story, giving it new meaning. Interspersed between episodes of Jin’s life are segments from the Chinese Monkey King legend and a “TV sitcom” featuring Chin-Kee, a stereotyped caricature of a Chinaman. The three very different depictions play off each other, highlighting and emphasizing what each cannot say on itsown.

For example, Jin is always on some level embarrassed by the Chineseness of his new friend, but it is not until we see Chin-Kee behaving badly that we understand exactly what Jin is afraid of. At the same time, we can see that the brave and quick-witted Monkey King is also an image that the Chinese have of themselves. The two cannot be separated so easily.
American Born Chinese works because it is a graphic novel. Not only does the art enhance the narratives and the ties between them, giving new voice to the genre of “outsider” fiction, but Yang’s fresh subject matter changes the graphic novel world as well. I think the book is well worth the read.

American Born Chinese by Gene Yang

Tags: book+review graphic+novel chinese+american gene+yang