(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Shaoli Wang. Recipes by Judy Chan. Foreword by Jane Yolen. The wonderful compendium includes original and traditional stories and related recipes (some need supervision) that can be used effectively at home, school, or other settings. The tales are accompanied by background information, including story patterns that relate to variants found in other countries and proverbs. Full-page illustrations and smaller vignettes are done in a colorful folk-art style. Bib.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) YA Since Ray's family emigrated from China to Canada, the teen hasn't been able to live up to his father's expectations. After Dad finds out Ray is gay, he gets kicked out of the house. In his brief time on the streets, he's beaten, robbed, and introduced to prostitution. Ray is a strong and sympathetic protagonist making his way through problem-novel territory.

Reviewer: Randy Ribay

(4) YA Orca Soundings series. Recent immigrant Jason Shen is ostracized from his predominantly homogeneous community. The stoner crowd provides companionship, and Jason doesn't realize the trouble they'll bring him. In Jason's world, adults are unrealistically cruel--"In this country, you reply by speaking!" yells a teacher--and teens get little support. The fast-paced, easy-to-read drama may appeal to mature reluctant readers.

Reviewer: Laura A. Woollett

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Grace Lin. To Yenyee, the Pacific Ocean capriciously changes people's lives. In China, her fisherman father is lost in a storm, despite her tossing in her beloved jade necklace as an offering. After immigrating to Canada alone, she saves a drowning friend, and the sea returns the pendant and indirectly reunites her with her mother and brother. The story is told with lyrical symbolism and complemented by folkloric illustrations.

Reviewer:

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Harvey Chan. These ten original ghost stories, alternately tragic, ironic, and gentle, are informed by two millennia of Chinese tales about wandering souls. Chinese-Canadian archivist and storyteller Yee dramatizes the killing work, the broken dreams, the humiliation, loneliness, heartbreak, and loss experienced by Southern-Chinese immigrants to North America over the past one hundred years. A rough-hewn black-and-white illustration introduces each story.

Reviewer: Margaret A. Chang | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2003