(4) K-3 Tales of Young Americans series. Illustrated by Wilson Ong. Twelve-year-old Chinese orphan Lee travels to America alone in 1926. Kept on Angel Island Immigration Station, he must "prove," with his detailed answers (learned from a coaching book) to a grueling interrogator, that he is the "son" of a legal American resident. This pat story of an immigrant looking for a better life in America is illustrated with realistic if somewhat murky paintings.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) 4-6 Ginny, the only Chinese American girl in second grade, longs for a best friend. She has high hopes when Stephanie arrives, but she's surprised to discover that Stephanie, who's Chinese, was adopted by Caucasian parents and doesn't seem interested in her Chinese heritage. Themes of friendship, culture, and identity are skillfully intertwined in this sensitive novel. Glos.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert