China Boy [Paperback]

Gus Lee (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Dutton; Advance reading copy. edition (January 1, 1991)
• ASIN: B000U2DJA6
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An insightful autobiographical look, May 14, 2005

By 

Dr Data "Duke" (Tacoma, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: China Boy (Paperback)

Most of the reviews here are critical and misinformed. They appear to be written by disgruntled hisgh school students who have probably been assigned to read Lee's book as an effort to heighten their multi-cultural sensitivities. The kids miss the point. This is an excellent, sensitive novel about growing up in many worlds at once. Where ever Kai Ting is, is the wrong place, even home. His way of finding himself, finding a place, is through an unlikely venue, the local Y. There is a gritty truth thst comes off of every page here. Lee is exposing a great deal of his soul and, at the end, I felt part of his life. This was the first work of Lee's I read. My satisfaction with China Boy led me to the rest. He has much talent, a powerful voice and a sharp sense of humor... even when it hurts.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An exerpt from my American Studies assignment, November 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: China Boy (Paperback)

Kai, is the main protagonist of an inspiring novel called China Boy, which is written by Gus Lee. The novel is actually a "semi-autobiography", the author states, " `China Boy' is a story about my family in China before immigrating to the United States during the war and then (after we settled in the U.S.) my own attempts become a successful African-American male youth in the Panhandle of San Francisco." Even though Gus Lee has Chinese blood (in his childhood) he tries to adapt or assimilate into the American culture by learning the street fighting of blacks in the Panhandle. The book depicts the author's own struggle to defend himself during his childhood in the Panhandle. Fabricated with characters of different races, the story captures the vision of America as a "melting pot." Through the keen entangling-details of Ting's family fleeing to America, the boxing lessons that Kai takes at YMCA, and Kai's fighting with his stepmother and the bullies on the street one extricates the lesson that life always has trials and tribulations, some things can't be changed, but others can.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fast-paced funny story about a young Chinese American boy, December 7, 1999

By 

Noel (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: China Boy (Paperback)

This novel is funny because the author uses slangs throughout the story to make the reader feel how people really talk and trying to use chinese words that is translated to how the word sounds. He uses descriptive words and a lot of metaphors in his writing which flows from one sentence to another and would not stop till the end of the book. The story is from a young chinese boy's perspective who is unaware what American culture is about, living in San Francisco in the early fifties and dealing with a new American stepmom who tries to erase the family's chinese culture. This book inspires me how this young boy reminds me of how fun a child can be, growing up, adopting new styles from the streets and where everything is always changing. I would recommend to anyone because it's easy to read, funny, and have a unique ending that you to find out for yourself.