Now some of you in the presumed audience might have heard of Gene Luen Yang. Others might have heard of his work if not his name. Yang is quite renowned for The Last Air-Bender series, which was butchered by Hollywood a few years back thus it might ring a bell or two. It's a great series and I encourage checking it out sometimes. Yang also has a wonderful two-part novel, no joke it's written in two parts, called Boxers and Saints. This gives a two sided view of the Boxer Rebellion in China during foreign imperialism. I also highly recommend this. But let's not get off track going through the whole library from this author, trust me there is more, and strike towards the center.
American Born Chinese is part memoir, part fiction, part fable, and entirely brilliant. Yang reveals the struggles not of the new immigrant but the challenges of assimilation for the next generation. The position of the protagonist reveals the problems with having one foot in the dominate western culture of the United States and another firmly rooted in a more traditional Chinese culture when home. Now what makes Yang so brilliant isn't his exploration of this, assimilation stories have been done before and will be done again. It is how he approaches the weight of the identity split.
Instead of a straight narrative Yang revolves between three seemingly separate stories. The first is a memoir that is constructed around the growth from childhood experience. We're looking at the standard fair such as finding friends, following trends, and attempting to achieve that first romantic relationship. What complicates this seemingly simple narrative strand is the constant reminder of Otherness. If characters are not commenting on the obvious difference of the narrator, he is Chinese American after-all, then the narrator is letting the reader known. Reinforcing the pressure of assumed stereotypes is the second narrative line. A fictional American sitcom entitled Everyone Ruvs Chin-Kee! A rough break down is a stereotypical white, blonde, blue-eyed American teenager is shadowed by his cousin from China. This becomes the vehicle for every exaggerated stereotype applied to the Chinese that can be imagined. Too many to go into here and now. What might come off as heavy-handed by Yang is balanced through the memoir narrative line where more subtle and subversive Othering occurs, which is the need for the constant reminding of the outsider status. For the third narrative strand Yang utilizes mythology by telling the story of Sun Wukong, also known as the monkey king. Long story short it's a mythos dealing with acceptance, I'd hate to give too much away.
If these three narratives aren't enough of a juggling feat by Yang he likewise ties them all into a wonderful bow by the end. I will not go into spoiling the conclusion but it is one that is well worth the journey. What makes the difficult subject matter easier to digest is Yang's playful sense of humor. He could hit the reader with the dull hammer of romanticism and sentimentality, becoming increasingly more self-absorbed. I can't help but think Blankets when I mention such. Instead Yang uses a dry and sarcastic sense of humor to consistently remind the reader that they are an observer. This helps lighten the impact of the over-all narrative's dramatic weight and the complication of the weaving act the author performs.
How about art? Well Yang certainly has a pleasing style. Crisp and clean lines. Wonderful framing on the page where white space has a tendency of dominating panels increasing the feeling of isolation. That he works in full color is also a plus, such is never as easy as it appears and he handles the medium well. Now I wouldn't put him in the category of Carla Speed McNeil (Who?! Shush! We'll get to her coming up at some point) as far as technical artistry but he is able to accomplish a great deal of transmission through image alone. The reader does understand the emotional tension of moments and the varying moods of the characters.
Over all Yang is one of the graphic authors that impresses me the most. His subject matter is consistently interesting, his execution is wonderful, his writing is strong and so is his art. What is something of a shame is that he is mainly known, though not recognized, for, The Last Airbender series as opposed to his non-serialized efforts.