I didn’t know it was graphic novel until my library called to say the book I had put on hold was ready for pick-up. Recommended by a friend oversees, the book published three years ago bore a title that was itself compelling. With lowered expectations, I took my library card and checked the book out. Later that evening, I thought I could get a quick chuckle here and there just browsing through the pages, only to realize it wasn’t for that type of reading. Luckily, my harried browsing missed the pages that would have been a spoiler to what turned out to be an astonishing climax to a very satisfying read. The author cleverly interwove three disjointed stories, including a Chinese fable, to address issues of race and personal identity.
In National Public Radio’s slideshow featuring “American Born Chinese”, the award-winning graphic novelist Gene Yang also talks about the universality of his book’s theme and hopes it would appeal to the a broader audience: “I definitely don’t think that issues of shame and questioning the person’s identity are exclusive to Asian Americans in any way. So I would hope that people can connect to the book on that level, and then, well, broadly as a cartoonist I would hope that it opens them up to the world of graphic novels.” Yup, I’m set to look up his other works in my next trip to the library.
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