Happy Birthday Mr. Kang [Hardcover]

Susan Roth (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

In this family story set in New York's Chinatown, Mr. Kang and his grandson Sam set their caged bird free and learn that choosing one's own cage is a form of freedom. At his 70th birthday party, Mr. Kang announces that he's retiring from 43 years as a restaurant cook. He has three wishes for his retirement: to have a Hua Mei, a type of bird that Chinese men traditionally keep as pets; to paint poems (in

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Roth's sumptuous, sophisticated collages fittingly chronicle this affecting tale of a Chinese-American retiree and his grandson. On his 70th birthday, Mr. Kang makes three wishes. "I want to read The New York Times every day. I want to paint poems every day. And I want a bird, a hua mei, of my own." The hua mei, a Chinese bird, connects Mr. Kang with his grandfather, who also owned such a bird, and becomes a metaphor through which Roth explores the idea of freedom and choice. On Sundays, Mr. Kang gathers with his friends and their birds at Sara Delano Roosevelt Park in New York City, and when he brings his grandson, Sam, along one day, Sam wonders aloud if the hua mei is happy in his cage. This prompts Mr. Kang to set his beloved bird free. But when grandfather and grandson return home, the bird is waiting for them. In prose as spare as Mr. Kang's poetry, Roth delicately explores generational and cultural issues ("We save, in old, grown heads,/ a full-blown rose in summer,/ the sound of bamboo leaves when/ the wind is gentle,/ the taste of mooncakes"). Arresting artwork conveys cityscapes and interiors formed from items as varied as photographs, silk brocade fabric and newspaper clippings: Roth overlays a festive birthday celebration atop a Chinese menu with wisps of pink tissue paper; Mr. Kang's hua mei sports elegant cut-paper "feathers." This poignant volume honors the value of one's native heritage while paying homage to America's great diversity. Ages 4-8. (Jan.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Gr 2-5-In a richly layered and vibrantly illustrated book, Roth creates a story about living in two cultures. Mr. Kang, now retired from cooking in a Chinese restaurant, wants to read the New York Times, paint poems, and take his caged bird-a 70th-birthday present from his wife-to the park where he can reminisce with his Chinese friends. Each Sunday, he takes the hua mei to the park where it can sing with other caged birds. But when the talk turns to cages, and Mr. Kang's grandson ventures that maybe the creature wants to be free, like an American, Mr. Kang links the bird's imprisonment to his own feelings while he made noodles for 50 years and impulsively releases his pet. Sadly, the relatives return to their apartment with the empty cage but there the hua mei is waiting to fly onto Sam's head and go inside. Roth's beautifully textured collage illustrations use Chinese papers and textiles bordered by pieces of photographs, plus a variety of page design and a "cut-out" font, to reflect culture, character, and settings. An author's note explains Roth's debts to her own family history while providing children with insight into how, prodded by a news item, she blended family memories and artifacts, research, an actual site, and a voluminous paper collection into a moving story.-Susan Hepler, Burgundy Farm Country Day School, Alexandria, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: National Geographic Children's Books (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0792277236
• ISBN-13: 978-0792277231
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 0.4 x 11.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,882,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Susan L. Roth is the author and illustrator of many wonderful books for children, including Hard Hat Area and the best-selling My Love for You. Her books have received such awards as the New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year, ABA Pick of the Lists, and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award. She has three grown children and lives with her husband in New York City.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars i know why the caged bird sings?, November 5, 2001

By 

Larry Mark "editor of MyJewishBooks.com" (nyc) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Happy Birthday Mr. Kang (Hardcover)

This unique book of text passages in a "cutout font" over illustrated collages is dedicated to the author's uncle, John Kang, and based on a New York Times article from June 1994. Mr Kang is having his 70th birthday party in New York City's Chinatown. There with his friends, family, and grandson, he makes three wishes: To read The New York Times every morning, to paint a poem each day, and to have his own caged hua mei bird, which will go with him every Sunday to Sara Delano Roosevelt Park. As the reader continues through the book, its story, poems, and its collages (one of a background of Chinese menus, another of alters, another of NYT newsprint, one of SDR Park), Sam is met. Sam, Mr Kang's grandson, comes to visit his grandparents for the weekend. On Sunday, he, his grandfather, the hua mei bird, and a warm cake from his grandmother make their way after dawn to the park. Soon there are 27 other caged bird there waiting to sing. Sam wonders whether it is right to keep the bird caged, just like grandpa was caged to his work before retirement. Will grandpa let the bird fly free? What do grandma and the retired men think? What does the hua mei bird desire? Read and discover.