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