![]() In order for us to defeat our enemy, he must first be made visible.” I have mixed feelings. The author writes in his blog, “There is always the danger, of course, that by making a comic book about Cousin Chin-Kee I’m helping to perpetuate him, that readers will take his appearance … at face value. ![]() He also knows all the answers in school, embarrasses his cousin in front of a date, and is annoying every time he steps onto the page. Main character Chin-Knee has squinty eyes, black braids, talks weird, and knows Kung-Fu. My least favorite of these stories is the parody. Each chapter follows one of these stories, which are tied together in the conclusion. You need to understand that American Born Chinese interweaves three stories: an adaptation of Journey to the West, a Chinese classic featuring the legendary Monkey King a sitcom parody that stars an extreme Asian stereotype and a realistic story of a Chinese-American adolescent who balances his friendship with a recent Chinese immigrant with his infatuation with a Caucasian girl. Despite a fantastical and so less than satisfactory end, I found the graphic novel interesting and funny. Having now read American Born Chinese, I better understand its success among fans and critics. Case in point, the 1970’s sitcom All in the Family was intended to ridicule prejudice, but some viewers missed the point and saw Archie as a champion of American values rather than as a myopic buffoon. And for those who don’t, what is meant to ridicule can instead promote. Why? Because satire is a tricky business not everyone gets it. I felt prepared to hate the graphic novel American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.
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