Yep, Laurence. (1996). The Lost Garden. New York: Simon and Schuster. 116 pp.

Grade Range: 6-12

Genre: nonfiction

Summary and Critique

This autobiography of children's author Laurence Yep reveals a story of a boy who never felt like he belonged. He believed his Chinese heritage prevented him from being what he considered an American, but he felt too American to walk the streets of Chinatown without his grandmother navigating. Laurence Yep shares his childhood struggles and triumphs of living in a racially-diverse neighborhood, working at his parents'grocery store, and attending a bi-lingual school in Chinatown, and he also gives readers a glimpse into his motivations for becoming a writer.

The Lost Garden provides its audience with an account of what it's like growing up in America but never feeling totally American simply due to an outward difference like race. This book is perfect for any reader who is interested in gaining perspective of someone struggling to assimilate in America. Also, anyone who aspires to be a writer or just has a love of reading heart-felt nonfiction will not regret picking up this quick read.

Themes/Topics

Families

Race, Ethnicity, and Culture

Challenges and Triumphs

Generations

Author Information

Laurence Yep was born and raised in San Francisco. He began writing science fiction while still in high school. Yep attended Marquette University, the University of California at Santa Cruz, and the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he earned a Ph.D. in English. In addition to writing novels for young adults, Yep also teaches at the university level. Two of Yep's novels, Dragonwings and Dragon's Gate, have been designated as Newbery Honor books.

For more information on Laurence Yep:

http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/yep.html Biography, bibliography, awards, and critical reviews and commentaries

http://www.harperchildrens.com/authorintro/index.asp?authorid=12929 Yep's official website, courtesy of Harper Collins Children's Books

Media Connections

Movies/Documentaries

My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) In this "Cinderella" type comedy, Toula, a thirty-something year-old woman from a traditional Greek family, meets and falls in love with a non-Greek man.

Do the Right Thing (1989) Spike Lee examines race relations, prejudice, and stereotypes in a Brooklyn neighborhood, all of which contribute to an unnecessary explosion of violence.

The Joy Luck Club (1993) Explores the lives of four Chinese women and their relationships with their four Chinese-American daughters.

The Chinatown Files (2001) by Amy Chen examines the legacy of McCarthyism on the Chinese American community. In the 1950s and 60s, thousands of Chinese immigrants and Chinese American citizens were targeted as alleged risks to national security. The filmmaker reveals a multifaceted portrait of Chinese Americans as they face another test to prove their loyalty to the United States with pride, fear, defeat and even humor.

Separate Lives, Broken Dreams (1994) Director Jennie Lew traces the painful history of Chinese immigration in the 20th century and studies the continued impact on the lives of Chinese Americans today. Available from the National Asian American Telecommunications Association (NAATA).

Becoming American: The Chinese Experience (2003) A three-part PBS special hosted by Bill Moyers about Chinese immigration to America.

Art

"Street of the Gamblers" (1896). Photo by Arnold Genthe. Tells the story of what a typical street in Chinatown, San Francisco looked like in the late 1800s.

"Grandmother, Brooklyn" (1986). Photo by Eugene Richards. Shows a grandmother and granddaughter sharing a moment by a city fire hydrant.

"McLean, Virginia" (1978). Photo by Joel Sternfeld. Shows a little market store with a burning building in the background.

"Christina's World" (1948). Painting by Andrew Wyeth. Portrays a girl in rural town USA, seemingly isolated far away from the farmhouse.

Online Resources

http://www.inetours.com/Pages/SFNbrhds/Chinatown.html Historical and present information on Chinatown in San Francisco.

http://www.gliah.uh.edu/historyonline/china1.cfm An in-depth history of Chinese railroad workers.

http://www-marine.stanford.edu/HMSweb/cea.htm The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/rcah/html/ah_016400_chineseexclu.htm A brief synopsis of the Chinese Exclusion Act and what took place in America as a result of it.

http://www.angel-island.com An oral history of experiences of those immigrants detained at Angel Island.

http://www.csupomona.edu/~tassi/angel.htm A cross-curricular lesson about the Chinese immigrants'experiences, which are both informative and user-friendly in the classroom.

http://design.art.utexas.edu/seniorwebsite/senior_pages/elaine/elaine.html A written experience of a Chinese American desperately trying to answer the question posed to him: What are you?

Related Texts

Yep, Laurence. (1977). Child of the Owl. New York: Harper and Row. 217pp.
Twelve-year old Casey stays with her grandmother in Chinatown while her father is in the hospital. The grandmother, Paw-Paw, enlightens Casey about her Chinese heritage and her family.

Yep, Laurence. (1975). Dragonwings. New York: Harper and Row. 248pp. A Newbery Honor b4teens_book. Moon Shadow Lee emigrates from China to live with his father in San Francisco, where he and his father attempt to create a flying machine.

Cleary, Beverly. (1988). A Girl from Yamhill. New York: Morrow. 279 pp. Cleary's autobiography of her childhood.

Say, Allen. (1993). Grandfather's Journey. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 32pp. Caldecott Medal winner. Say describes his grandfather's immigration to America and the complex love both men have for their native land of Japan and for America.

Cisneros, Sandra. (1983). House on Mango Street. Houston: Arte Publico Press. 103pp. Esperanza describes her life in a poor Latino neighborhood in Chicago.

Gordon, Ruth. (1995). Pierced by a Ray of Sun: Poems About the Times We Feel Alone. New York: Harper Collins. 105pp. A poetry anthology that addresses themes of alienation and loneliness.

Soto, Gary. (1990). A Summer Life. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England. 115pp. Soto describes his youth in Fresno, CA through thirty-nine short essays.

Teaching Ideas

(1) "Title" Students interview the oldest members of their extended families to find out the what's, where's, when's, how's, and why's of their younger years. Students go through the writing process for about three weeks while writing about what they found out through their interviews. At the end of those three weeks, the teacher pulls together the class to share what everybody found out through their interviews. More than likely different students will have ancestors from various backgrounds.

[Summarized/adapted from "Multicultural Awareness" by Sherryl Reed in Classroom Notes Plus. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. October 1991, pp.10-11.]

(2) "Title" The teacher lays out twelve book titles with authors or characters representing different heritages with equitable representation of women. Before students are allowed to choose from these books, they read American authors like Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Hansberry, Wright, and Salinger while focusing on what the "American Dream" looks like to these writers. Students then pick from the multicultural titles and work in groups (based on titles) with the teacher discussing how the "American Dream" meant different things for different groups of people. Finally, each group uses their book for discussions, journal writing, individual book reviews to be graded and planning a creative way to present the book to the whole class (including a visual representation). The final day is spent sharing their creative representations and turning in their reviews.

[Summarized/adapted from "Introducing Multi-Cultural Literature Through Collaborative Reading Groups" by Jean Toh in Classroom Notes Plus. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. March 1992, pp. 12-13.]

(3) "Title" Students find and read a book by an author who shares their individual culture or ethnic background. The teacher conducts a classroom discussion about what was revealed in these books, while noting struggles each author had during the times in which he or she lived. The students then write book reviews taking them all the way through the process to the end goal of publishing. Through this activity, the students have learned about their own heritage, as well as others'heritages, and expanded their own literary canon.

[Summarized/adapted from "Student-Suggested Multicultural Readings" by Carol Gladstone in Classroom Notes Plus. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. January 1991, p. 11.

(Review written by Thomas Meunier and edited by Jennifer Moore)