Hello. I'm Catherine Weller and this is The Open Book.

This week's selection is American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.

Have you ever heard of the Printz Award? If you haven't and fancy yourself a connoisseur of young people's literature, take note. The Printz Award is named for a beloved Topeka, Kansas teen librarian who died in 1996. The awards were inaugurated in 2000 to recognize a book that "exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature." The Young Adult library Services Association, a chapter of the American Library Association, awards it. The A.L.A., as you will recall, bestows the two other most prestigious American awards in childrens' books, the Caldecott and the Newbury. The Printz Award was intended to be a similar mark of excellence. And gauging by this and the previous year's winners, they hit that mark regularly.

This year's Printz Award was given to Gene Luen Yang for his graphic novel, American Born Chinese. I know. I know. Many literary types are still skeptical about graphic novels. I'm here to tell you there are some great books published in graphic format. Not only do the judges of the Printz Award and I think so, the National Book Award judges do: American Born Chinese was also an N.B.A. finalist.

American Born Chinese begins as three distinct stories. First we encounter a retelling of the classic Chinese fable of the monkey king. Then we meet Jin Wang, a third grade boy whose immigrant parents have just moved from San Francisco's Chinatown to a most homogeneous white suburb. Finally there is the story of Chin-Kee, an exaggerated amalgamation of every Chinese stereotype I've ever seen or heard. Each year he visits his white American cousin Danny, creating such embarrassement and chaos that Danny must change schools. These three stories are related in alternating chapters, gradually blending into one tale in the final chapter.

Each character, the monkey king, Jin Wang and Danny is uncertain of who he is, and unsatisfied with what he does know about himself. Each strives to assimilate into different societies but are so marked by their otherness that he can never be what he dreams of becoming. Instead, each character must learn a valuable lesson that is pivotal in uniting the three stories.

When I first picked up American Born Chinese I was skeptical that Gene Luen Yang would be able to pull off his ambitious narrative structure. He does it admirably. The graphics are strong, colorful, and clear with a linear layout that helps propel the story forward, not distract, as is sometimes the case with graphic novels. Yang so adeptly describes the experience of the outsider that any reader who's been in the role of other will instantly connect with the book's characters. Don't you miss a chance to connect with this moving story skillfully drawn and told.

You've been listening to the Open Book on KCPW. I'm Catherine Weller.

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