The Year of the Dog (2008)
by Grace Lin
As Ms. Lin herself writes in the author’s note, “My favorite chapter books when I was younger were…stories (that) took place in school, in (someone’s) home, and in (someone’s) neighborhood.” And this story is just that. While not the “adventure” story that Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is, this debut novel is exactly the kind of book I would have read and enjoyed in grade school. As a blend of memoir and fiction, The Year of the Dog tells the everyday stories of young Grace growing up as a Chinese American.
In this new lunar year, young Grace is trying to find her “purpose.” The book follows Grace and her friends and family through their daily events such as school contests, Halloween parades, summer vacations, and so on. But intertwined in all of this, the reader gets a glimpse at how Grace sorts through the traditions of her family and the surroundings of her American life.
The anxieties, excitements, confusions, joys, and pangs of Grace’s year are told with a genuine simplicity and humor. I laughed out loud several times. Ms. Lin’s illustrations throughout the book are entertaining without detracting from the story or the reader’s imagination.
The more Grace Lin I read, the more I love her. On her website, she offers activities and real-life photos from some of the events in the story. The end of the book offers reader discussion questions as well.
The Year of the Dog (2008)
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