AMERICAN DRAGONS
Twenty-Five Asian American Voices
adapted by Laurence Yep
A much-needed (if uneven) collection of stories and poems plus an excerpt from a one-man show, developed while Yep taught in Asian-American studies at the University of California.
Most of the authors will be unknown to young people; notable are Maxine Hong Kingston and Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston. The pieces are grouped by theme: the dilemma of identity; parents; WW II and Japanese-American experiences; attitudes toward love; relationships with grandparents. While the focus is generally on young Asian-Americans living in two cultures, the point of view is most often adult and retrospective. Most memorable may be Lensey Namioka's Emma Wu, a high-school math whiz whose chief competitor offers to take her to a prom if she'll drop out of a prestigious statewide competition. Steve Chan-No Yoon's "Stop Light" describes a fantasy date in delightful detail, while William F. Wu's "Black Powder" addresses family traditions in a futuristic space station.
An afterword and brief bibliography suggest readings in Asian-American history and literature plus materials with guidelines for evaluating stories about Asian- American children.
(Anthology. YA+)