Author - Gene Luen Yang 

Gene Yang's website

Interview with Gene Yang

Another interview with Gene Yang

Publisher website

About American Born Chinese

Gene Yang Biography

Gene Yang began drawing comic books in the fifth grade. In 1997, he received

the Xeric Grant, a prestigious comics industry award, for Gordon Yamamoto and

the King of the Geeks, his first comics work. He has since written and drawn a

number of titles, including Duncan's Kingdom (with art by Derek Kirk Kim)

and The Rosary Comic Book. His first graphic novel, American Born

Chinese (First Second, 2006), was a National Book Award finalist, a School

Library Journal Best Book of the Year, a Booklist Editor's Choice for 2006, and

recipient of the 2007 Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written

for young adults. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Source: http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_gyang.html

Library of Congress

 

Gene talks about the graphic novel. "Creating an identity for yourself in America"

 

American Born Chinese book talk.

 

 

 

Online Packet for American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

 

Study Guide 

  

Chapter 1

 

Story of the Monkey King

 

    1. What was the Monkey King born of?

 

     2. What kingdom did the Monkey King rule?

 

     3. What are the four major heavenly disciplines?  

 

     4. What are the disciplines a prerequisite to? 

 

     5. Why wasn't the Monkey King allowed into the dinner party?

 

     6. What is the one word the Monkey King says to the guests at the dinner party?

 

     7. What does the Monkey King notice for the first time he returns to his Royal chamber?

 

     8. Why does the Monkey King stay up all night?

 

     9. What are the psychological transformations the Monkey King experiences in the first chapter?   

 

Chapter 2

 

 

     1. p 23 - 24 What is the message of the parable? ( A parable is a brief, succinct story, in prose or verse, that illustrates a moral or religious lesson) What is its relevance to ABC?

 

     2. p 27 - 28 What is the significance of the conversation with the herbalist? His response? Her "warning?" How does this work as a foreshadowing device?

 

     3. p 30 - 31 What do we learn about Jin's new life in comparison to his life in San Francisco's Chinatown?

 

     4. p 33 The kids who calls Jin "bucktooth" is drawn with buck teeth himself. What purpose does this serve?

 

     5. Who is Jin's first "friend" at Mayflower Elementary?

 

     6. p 36 What happens that makes Jin want to beat up Wei-Chen?

 

     7. What is significant about Wei-Chen's toy robot?

 

     8. List 5 stereotypes ( A stereotype is a type of logical oversimplification in which all the members of a class or set are considered to be definable by an easily distinguishable set of characteristics. The term is often used with a negative connotation, as stereotypes can be used to deny individuals respect or legitimacy based on their membership in a particular group) that are presented in this chapter.

 

 

Chapter 3

 

 

     1. What does the use of the clap clap clap and ha ha ha mean to you? Why does the author do this? What about the title, "Everyone Ruvs Chin-Kee?"

 

     2. What stereotypes are exploited in this section? Make a list of them. Be sure to note stereotypes for both Chin-Kee and Danny.

 

 

Chapter 4

 

     1.  What does the Monkey King order the morning after the dinner party?

 

     2. What are the four major disciplines of invulnerability?

 

     3. What are the four major disciplines of bodily form?

 

     4. What notice does the Monkey King get from heaven?

 

     5. What is the Monkey Kings' new name?

  

     6. p 62 - 63 examine the way that the Monkey King is illustrated. In what way does his transformed appearance reflect his transformed character?

 

     7. What happens to the Monkey King each time he is laughed at by another god. Can you connect this to question #1 from chapter 1?

 

     8. Who is Tze-Yo-Tzuh?

 

      9. The Monkey King flies through the boundaries of reality itself. How does the author represent this? Is it effective and why? What other ways does the author use the visual language of the comic to reflect the content of the story (notice pages 78 and 79)? (This is related to the idea that form follows function).

 

      10. p 80 - 81 explore again the theme of the Monkey King's psychological profile. What might he be experiencing here?

 

     11. What does Tze-Yo-Tzuh do to the Monkey King?

 

 

Chapter 5

 

 

      1. Look at the Melanie in the Chin-Kee chapters and Amelia Harris in Jin's chapters, they are nearly identical. What other connections can you trace between these two story lines?

 

      2. What does FOB stand for?

 

 

      3. p 89 What differences are there between Jin and Wei Chen in how they are represented? What psychological information can we infer about Wei Chen when he dates Suzy Nakamura? What lesson is Wei Chen teaching Jin?

 

 

     4. p 90 - 92 Why the dashed lines around the speech balloons? What other kinds of lines are around the speech balloons throughout the story? What information does the line convey?

 

     5. What does WeiChen call Jin on page94? Do you agree?

 

     6. Why did Jin get a perm?

 

 

     7. p 104 - 105 Jin says "everything was a blur," how does the author show this? 

 

 

Chapter 6

 

 

    1. Returning to the question of stereotypes, what other stereotypes do you notice in this section? Look at all of the characters.

 

    2. What does Chin-Kee do to Steve's coke?

 

    3. What is ironic about Danny's detention?

 

 

    4. p 123 Why does Danny try to distance himself from Chin-Kee? How does he try to do it?

 

    5. p 126 - 127 What clues can you find to explain why Chin-Kee comes to visit? Why, do you deduce, is it that Chin-Kee comes to visit?

    6. p 128 Why does Danny say, "so I can pee in it?" What psychological impulse might make him say that?

 

 

Chapter 7

 

 

     1. p 139 Why has Lai-Tsao found favor with Tze-Yo-Tzuh?

 

     2. p145 What does Lai-Tsao mean when he talks to the Monkey King in panel #4?

 

     3. Why does the Monkey King choose to release himself and follow Lai-Tsao?

 

     4. What is significant about the Monkey King leaving his shoes behind for his journey?

 

Chapter 8

 

 

     1. p163 How do the two voices get represented on this page? To whom do they belong? How do they relate to each other?

 

     2. Why are there soap bubbles on Amelia's shoulder?

 

 

     3. p 175 panel #4 The author shows kids laughing while Wei-Chen is taking to Amelia. What does the juxtaposition of this panel with the other panels on the page do for the reader?

 

     4. What favor does Greg ask Jin ? Why?

 

 

     5. p 180 - 183 How does the author emphasize Jin's emotions? What other examples have you noticed from throughout the book?

 

 

     6. p 187 Why does Suzy say she feels embarrassed all of the time? Why do you think Jin kisses Suzy?

 

 

     7. 191 Why does Jin reject Wei-Chen? What might be going on with Jin, from a psychological point of view?

 

 

     8. 193 - 194 What is the significance of the dream? Make sure you look at all the illustrations carefully and study them for subtle meaning.

 

 

     9. p 198 What has happened here? What was your own emotional/psychological reaction to this moment?

 

 

Chapter 9

 

 

     1. p 213 who is Danny? Who is Chin-Kee? What does this mean? What are their true forms?

 

     2. Who is the Monkey King son?

 

     3. Why did Wei-Chen leave his father, the Monkey King?

 

 

     4. p 221 What does the Monkey King mean by a sign post to your soul?

 

 

     5. p 223 How might the 4th panel apply to Jin?

 

 

     6. p 226 Jin reveals that he can't read Chinese. What do you think is significant about that?

 

 

     7. Jin doesn't know why he's going to the bakery but he goes night after night, why?

 

 

     8. This book ends with a conversation about milk tea. . Why does the book end like this? What can we infer about these two characters? What predictions do you make about each of them? 

 

 

 

Track the use of < > in the story. What role does this play? i.e. when is it used? How does its use change over the duration of the book?

Track the formal techniques the author uses to support his story. Explain how each one supports the content of the story.

 

 

1 The Academy of Arts and Sciences - http://www.sotacad.org/ www.sotacad.org/attachments/029_Online%20Packet%20for%20ABC.doc

 

 

More Chinese Legends

http://weber.ucsd.edu/%7Edkjordan/chin/hbtales.html

Jordan, David K. “Chinese Tales.” Personal website. U of California , San Diego . Accessed 29 Sep. 2001. 

 

Last page of the book