TEA WITH MILK by Allen Say

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Say, Allen. 1999. Tea with Milk.Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.ISBN-10:0395904951

2. PLOT SUMMARY

Born into a Japanese family, but raised in San Francisco, May, (Masako at home), is used to one way of life at home, and another at her friends’ houses. At home they speak Japanese, everywhere else they speak to her in English. “At home she had rice and miso soup and plain green tea for breakfast. At her friends’ houses she ate pancakes and muffins and drank tea with milk and sugar.” May has big plans for her life after she graduates high school. She plans to go to college and live in San Francisco. That changed when her parents decided to move the family back to Japan because they were homesick. May finds herself in a place where she is an outsider in a strange country, “they called her gaijin (foreigner) and laughed at her.” May had to go to Japanese high school to learn Japanese, flower arranging, calligraphy and other skills needed to find a good husband. When her parents hire a matchmaker, May(Masako) rebels and goes to the large city of Osaka where she finds a job and an apartment, and eventually meets her future husband who also likes tea with milk and speaks English.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Tea with Milk, which is written and illustrated by Allen Say, begins with comparisons between the two cultures in which his mother grew up.  Although Say was born in Yokohama, Japan, but his mother spent her early years in San Francisco. Say uses beautiful watercolor paintings which accurately capture the expressions on the faces of the characters who are shown with varying facial features and skin tones. For instance, when Masako (May) returns to Japan with her family and has to “wear a kimonos and sit on the floor until her legs were numb,” the author paints her standing slumped over with an unhappy look on her face. When Masako meets with the potential husband who was chosen for her by the matchmaker, both characters are sitting stiffly upright on a bench and turned slightly away from each other. When May discovered the department store that looked like “a gleaming palace” and first got the idea to try to get a job there, the text says “Her heart beat faster and faster. She felt dizzy and confused,” while the picture shows May with an excited and slightly bemused look on her face.

The Japanese culture is well represented in this book which recounts the experiences of Allen Say’s mother as she struggled to find her own way in a life balanced, and sometimes torn between two cultures. Traditional Japanese foods such as green tea, rice, and miso contrast with the spaghetti and hot dogs common to America. Accurate drawings show the architecture of Japan. The differences in the cultural expectations for young women, (go to college and live on your own versus learning the necessary skills to find a husband from a good family), and the clothing, (kimono versus brightly colored dress from California) are revealed in both text and illustrations.

Young readers (recommended for grades K – 6) will enjoy this story of May longing for the home she is used to, struggling to fit in and find a place she can call home, meeting her husband and finding that "home isn't a place or a building that's ready-made and waiting for you, in America or anywhere else,” you have to make it for yourself.

4. REVIEWS/EXCERPTS

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW: “The pages are filled with detailed drawings featuring Japanese architecture and clothing, and because of the artist's mastery at drawing figures, the people come to life as authentic and sympathetic characters. This is a thoughtful and poignant book that will appeal to a wide range of readers, particularly our nation's many immigrants who grapple with some of the same challenges as May and Joseph, including feeling at home in a place that is not their own.”

HORN BOOK REVIEW: "Continuing to explore place and home, Say tells the story of his mother, first introduced to readers in TREE OF CRANES. Born in California to Japanese immigrants, Masako is miserable when she moves to Japan with her parents after high school. The illustrations capture Masako's unhappiness and also her eventual contentment as she learns to combine two cultures."

5. CONNECTIONS

This a great book to read to a class to challenge students to explore their own heritage. Students could talk to parents and grandparents and record their memories and stories of their own family history.

Other books by Allen Say:

Say, Allen. Grandfather’s Journey. ISBN-10: 0547076800
Say, Allen. Emma’s Rug. ISBN-10: 0618335234
Say. Allen. Tree of Cranes. ISBN-10: 054724830X

Review: THE YEAR OF THE DOG by Grace Lin

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Lin, Grace. 2006. The Year of the Dog. New York. Little, Brown and Company. ISBN-10: 031606002X

2. PLOT SUMMARY

When this story opens, Pacy’s Taiwanese-American family is preparing for Chinese New Year’s. Pacy was born in “The Year of the Dog”, so she knows that this will be a lucky year for her. Her mother also tells Grace (Pacy), that "since dogs are honest and sincere, it's a good year to find yourself."Pacy doesn’t know what she is good at or wants to be. She is not even sure of her culture: Is she American? Taiwanese? Chinese? While Pacy, (Grace) struggles to find herself, she also finds a new friend, Melody, who is Taiwanese-American like her.Pacy and Melody become good friends and work on their science project together. When Melody and Pacy’s families both attend Taiwanese camp, Pacy has a good time until Melody leaves and the other girls at the camp are unkind to her because she is “Americanized.” By the end of the year though, not only has Pacy discovered what she wants to be in life, but she’s found a good friend too.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The Year of the Dog, by Grace Lin is a fictional story told in the first person and based upon experiences the author’s own childhood. It is targeted for ages 8–12. In the author’s note, Lin says “I wrote this book because it is the book I wished I had growing up.” Through the story, Grace Lin shares snippets of information about her ownTaiwanese heritage.The author addresses the issues which troublePacy as she tries to “find herself” and shows the significant amount of personal growth this personable protagonist makes in one year, which turns out to be a really “Happy Year of the Dog” for her.

There are many cultural markers in this story such as the family celebrations which are described like Chinese New Year and Pacy’s cousin’s Red Egg party. An example of the blending of her heritages is shown when Pacy is assigned to fill up the Chinese New Year’s tray with candy. She fills it half with Chinese candy and half with M&M’s. Pacy’s father responds that “We should have both Chinese and American candy for the new year. It’s just like us--Chinese-American.”

Mixed in with Pacy’s first-person narrative, are stories her mother tells of her own childhood experiences. These stories parallel many of the experiences that Pacy is having, and serve two purposes: Pacy’s mother helping her through tough decisions and telling the reader more about the culture Pacy’s parents grew up in.
Lin does not try to make the personalities of the characters the same. For instance, even though they are both Tiawanese, Pacy and Melody’s mothers are quite different.One example is the food they feed their families. Grace’s mother prepares her food in a more traditional manner and always has fruit, candy and cookies on hand, while Melody’s mother is very health conscious and only has items such as rice cakes “which taste like paper” and peanuts in the shell without any salt.The book is enhanced by the author’s black-and-white drawings and captions which illustrate and humor and depth to the text.
 
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY REVIEW: “Lin, best known for her picture books, here offers up a charming first novel, an autobiographical tale of an Asian-American girl's sweet and funny insights on family, identity and friendship. When her family celebrates Chinese New Year, ringing in the Year of the Dog, Pacy (Grace is her American name) wonders what the coming months will bring. Her relatives explain that the Year of the Dog is traditionally the year when people "find themselves," discovering their values and what they want to do with their lives. With big expectations and lots of questions, the narrator moves through the next 12 months trying to figure out what makes her unique and how she fits in with her family, friends and classmates.”

CHILDREN’S LITERATURE REVIEW: “Pacy knows The Year of the Dog will be lucky for her. It was the year in which she was born and her mom tells her "since dogs are honest and sincere, it's a good year to find yourself." Will she be a scientist? A writer? This readable short novel is even more approachable because of its amusing drawings and instructive family anecdotes.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Other stories by Grace Lin:

Lin, Grace. The Year of the Rat. ISBN-10: 0316033618
Lin, Grace. Dumpling Days. ISBN-10: 031612589X
Lin, Grace. The Ugly Vegetables. ISBN-10: 0881063363
Lin, Grace. The Red Thread: An Adoption Fairy Tale. ISBN-10: 0807569224

Review: THE DRAGON PRINCE by Laurence Yep

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Yep, Laurence. 1997. The Dragon Prince: a Chinese beauty and the beast tale.Ill. by KamMak.Harper Collins. ISBN-10: 0064435180

2. PLOT SUMMARY
The Dragon Prince is a Chinese re-telling of a beauty and the beast story. When a poor farmer who has seven daughters, is captured by afierce dragon, it is up to one ofhis daughters to save him by marrying the ferocious creature. One by one, all of his daughters refuse until the youngest daughter, Seven, agrees to marry the dragon to save her father’s life. She is taken by the dragon to his magical underwater home deep in the sea, where the dragon turns into a handsome prince. As with all fairytale princesses, Seven is given beautiful clothes, maids, and lives happily until she becomes homesick and begs to go see her family. Seven is allowed ten days to visit her family, but trickery by her jealous older sister, Three, almost keeps Seven from returning to her prince.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In The Dragon Prince, Laurence Yep has created a picture book which is "a Southern Chinese version of a traditional Chinese tale."He has skillfully woven a lesson about family loyalty, sibling rivalry, and the triumph of kindness and integrity over evil into the captivating and magical story. The figurative language in this text such as “the sleepy words became a ball of dark velvet and the lakes silvery sequins” and “his scales gleamed like jewels in a golden net and his eyes shone like twin suns,” make the narrative flow and capturing the attention of the 5 through 8 year olds who are its targeted audience.

Cultural markers are present thorough this story beginning with the naming of the farmer’s daughters who are named in birth order, following Chinese tradition.Also representative of the Chinese culture, are the rich colors and the presence of the dragon in the mystical story. This story is beautifully illustrated with rich colors and textures by KamMak. His illustrations add to the cultural markers in the book. The rich, jewel toned paintings are typical of the culture, and scenes captured, such as the dragon seen flying over the tile roofs of China, traditional clothing of the characters, and the realistic features and skin coloring of the characters further exemplify the characteristics of the culture. Mak, who grew up in New York’s Chinatown, intersperses the magical illustrations of the dragon and his powers with the realistic paintings of the farmer’s dry and barren field in a way which adds suspense and mystery to the plot.

Young readers will be fascinated by the magic, mystery and beautiful illustrations in this story, whether they read it themselves, or it is read to them.

4. REVIEWS/EXCERPTS
KIRKUS REVIEWS: “Yep tells the tale with colorful descriptions and repeated refrains, while Mak's splendid, realistic paintings, in dark jewel tones bordered with white, extend the text elegantly--the scene of the dragon flying over Chinese tile roofs is especially beautiful.”
BOOKLIST REVIEW: “In this Chinese variant of "Beauty and the Beast," dragon and girl soar into the night sky and then plunge into a deep sea, where the girl's courage and character are tested again before she discovers that her future husband is a handsome human and ruler of the sea kingdom. After spending some time in her husband's kingdom, she visits her family's home, where both her inner and her outward strength are further tested. Mak's illustrations dramatically combine realism and fantasy. The suspense of the story and the charm of its language should appeal to readers of different ages. A good choice for reading aloud.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Students could read different versions of Beauty and the Beast stories from different cultures and make comparisons.
How does Seven show that she honors her father? What other family relationships are present in this story? Do the characters and the way that they treat each other make the students think of any personal experiences?

Otherbooks by Laurence Yep:

Yep, Laurence. Dragon’s Gate – An Image of Poetry. ISBN-10: 0064404897
Yep, Laurence.Dragonwings. ISBN-10: 0064400859
Yep, Laurence.The Earth Dragon Awakes. ISBN-10: 0060008466