Grace Lin

Children's Authors

by Jill C. Wheeler

This biography introduces readers to Grace Lin, the Newbery Honor winning author who wrote Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, The Ugly Vegetables, The Year of the Dog, The Year of the Rat, Ling & Not Exactly the Same, and other titles. Readers will learn about Lin's early reading experiences, the influence of her Chinese heritage, her work as an illustrator, the death of her first husband and their work on the cancer charity project Robert's Snowflakes, and the inspiration for her award-winning young readers and picture books. Easy-to-read text and full-color photos highlight Lin's childhood, family, education, and life as an author and illustrator. Checkerboard Library is an imprint of ABDO Publishing Company.

24 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grace Lin grew up in New Hartford, NY, not far from where I live, so I was especially interested in reading this brief biography. I like the way Wheeler begins by providing an anecdote from Lin's childhood--an incident at school in which she is told she can't play the part of Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" because Dorothy isn't Chinese. That incident underscores how isolating one's ethnicity can be, especially if one is in the minority. Fortunately, Grace didn't let that deter her, and grew up to become the prolific author and illustrator that she is today. Wheeler provides other details of Grace's childhood and family life, her school and college days, and her two marriages. She even discusses Lin's style of painting, called gouache (didn't know what that was until I read it there). I really wanted to know more about her, but I realize that this book was written for a particular reading level and could only include a limited amount of information. Fans of Grace Lin's books will welcome this book about her. Recommended!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Grace Lin's book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and was excited to see this biography about her. The biography gives hope to future writers and illustrators to keep going and not give up.