My Chinatown: One Year in Poems

by Kam Mak

My Chinatown is a critically acclaimed, spectacularly illustrated picture book homage to family, culture, and a childhood spent in one of the most striking places in any city—Chinatown. Kam Mak grew up in a place of two cultures, one existing within the other. Using extraordinarily beautiful paintings and moving poems, he shares a year of growing up in this small city within a city. My Chinatown explores a boy's first year in the United States—after emigrating from China—as he grows to love his new home in Chinatown through food, games, and the people surrounding him. Through Kam Mak's spare verse and richly detailed artwork, the streets of Chinatown come vividly alive. Included in Brightly.com's 2017 list of recommended diverse poetry picture books for kids. Chinatown—a place of dragons and dreams; fireflies and memories
Chinatown—full of wonder and magic; fireworks on New Year's Day and a delicious smell on every corner
Chinatown—where every day brings something familiar and something wondrously new to a small boy
Chinatown—home?

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books, Cultural, Childrens, China, Asian Literature, Family

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Kam Mak grew up in New York City's Chinatown. He earned his bachelor of fine arts degree from the School of Visual Arts, and since has illustrated book jackets for numerous publishers and taught painting at the Fashion Institute of Technology. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, son, and daughter.

Reviews

[Jasmine Na · Rating 5 out of 5]

"My Chinatown: One Year in Poems is written and illustrated by Kam Mak. Although the book is a collection of poems, the poems follow the life of a young boy who immigrated from Hong Kong to the United States. The poems are categorized by seasons and starts off during the winter time, around Chinese New Year. The poems share the struggles and thoughts of the child as one year goes by and ends with New Year's Day in Chinatown. The poems are written beautifully and would recommend this book to be for 3rd-5th graders. Even the illustrations done by the author are breathtaking. The pictures look realistic and depict the main idea of the poem that is on its page. The author shows the Chinese culture he grew up in and although some people may not relate to it, I think that through his poems, others will have an understanding and grasp the emotion of the character himself.

[The Reading Countess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both the illustrations (gorgeous) and the poetry (lyrical) tell the story of a young boy with feet in two places. This is a wonderful mentor for figurative language and character change. I plan to read it when we celebrate our annual Valentine's Day/Chinese New Year party (my Social Studies teaching partner covers ancient China during this time of year). Highly recommended!

[Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting things:

New year - firecrackers to scare off every evil spirit in the world, noodles for breakfast, sweet rice cakes, red envelopes 🧧 stuffed with money, parade with dragon dance

Red - the color of luck

Finding kumquats with leaves is lucky because leaves are good luck

Pickled kumquats

Animal chess game - red and green pieces. Cat, mouse, elephant

Once a year - lake in Queens - carved dragon boat race with drums and people cheering and betting on the race

Mah-jongg tiles

Paper finger traps

Moon festival - moons with golden egg yolk at the center, paper lanterns

Curried squid, crispy cakes, tofu in syrup, fried noodles, sweet buns with coconut or bean paste in the middle, fish balls bobbing in brown soup in a white carton salty as the ocean steaming hot 10 for a $1

Chicken playing tic tac toe game - they win and get grains

——

The part I liked:

“Twelve hours every day the needle on her sewing machine gobbles up fabric, turning miles of cloth into pants and jackets, skirts and dresses. After super I sit beside my mother, listening to the hum of the motor, the soft chatter of the hungry needle.

——
HarperCollins publishers - children’s books division

Sometimes I fall asleep beside her, the sound of her work a lullaby.”

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Chinatown: One Year in Poems is a children's anthology of poems in picture book format written and illustrated by Kam Mak. It is a collection of fifteen poems and pictures about an immigrant's life in Chinatown.

The poems are simplistic, yet have some depth to them, which good poems do. It centers on a year of an immigrant boy, divided by seasons, as he meanders through life. The illustrations are simply phenomenal and beautifully depict the poems extremely well.

The premise of the book is also rather straightforward. It is a collection of fifteen poems and pictures that the author, Kam Mak, written and drew. It centers on an immigrant's life throughout the year, divided into seasons. It starts out in winter, just shortly after the Lunar New Year and progresses through the other seasons – spring, summer, autumn, and back to winter again and ends with the Lunar New Year.

All in all, My Chinatown: One Year in Poems is a wonderful anthology of poems and art that depicts an immigrant's life in Chinatown.

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Chinese boy remembers how his life and experiences are different when living in the U.S and his hometown. In Chinatown is a small city within a big city. In there, New Year’s day is his favorite holiday where his family has noodles for breakfast and sweet rice cakes. These important holidays and traditions are so important for him because they define his culture. The poem is about Chinese traditions and culture. It describes how people celebrate special occasions and holidays in Chinatown, New York. The poem reflects on the traditions of the authors hometown. While he lives and grew up in Chinatown, he remembers with nostalgia when he and his family left Hong Kong and adapted to a new life style in the New York. I consider, many students who are immigrants in the U.S will find a personal connection easily. Poems like this will help other students understand about cultures and traditions. It also shows how is like living in a community located in a big city.

[Ma Jiani（Marjorie） · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is also a book on multiculturalism. The theme of the story is around this immigration, Asian Pacific American Heritage and Chinese New Year. This book is very suitable for application in school. This is a book that combines poetry. Students can read and learn Chinese culture and immigration together in classes and promote mutual understanding among classmates. In addition, it is interesting that the artist grew up in Chinatown, New York, showing exactly what it takes to change the mind of a boy who is suffering from homesickness by capturing every person and moment in it, rather than taking in the full Landscape of Chinatown. It gives new experiences and information to unfamiliar children in Chinatown. I personally like the illustrations that make the city stand out, and the design of the book seems to fit well with writings and illustrations.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mak, Kam. My Chinatown, One Year in Poems, PICTURE BOOK. HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2002. $6.99.

A young boy talks about his life in Chinatown after moving from Hong Kong. He describes the differences and similarities, the things he misses from his home before, and we see how he begins to love things about his new home, throughout the year. Written as different poems through the year, with illustrations that look very similar to photographs. The reader can definitely see the progress that the main character goes through to enjoy his new home. The poetry format will be good for kids to see the world from a different viewpoint.

PRE-K, EL (K-3)- ADVISABLE. Reviewed by Shay, School Librarianhttp://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2017/...

[Morgan Bindas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The poems in this book show all different emotions of happy and sad. The author shows the moments of his childhood he had in New York and Hong Kong. This book is one of my favorites to show to children what goes on here and then what goes on in China. The pictures in the book are bright, and have lots of color, to guide where the boy is going on his adventure.

[Tori Augustine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is about a family and involves their culture and the great town they grew up in, Chinatown. Reading this story with children is great because it introduces them to new cultures and things they did not know before. This little boy grows up with two different cultures and learns a lot at a young age.

[Katie Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a boy showing the beauty of Chinatown in New York . He talks about the comparison to Honk Kong and Chinatown in New York and how he misses Hong Kong, but still loves his home in New York. This book is all about embracing your culture and finding the beauty in even if you are not actually there. I would recommend this book to grades 3-5.

[Brooklyn Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story from a boy's perspective on Chinatown throughout a year. This book is a great example of children's poetry and teaches kids a lot about a culture. This would be a great read aloud for my future classroom.

[Neeli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated. Ideal for starting discussions with tweens during Lunar New Year.

[Margaret Chind · Rating 5 out of 5]

did I review another edition?

[Nicole Petersen]

Slice-of-life, family, multicultural, poetry

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice cultural touches for an introduction to the ideas

[Danielle Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Community, Change, Adapting.

[Danielle T · Rating 4 out of 5]

A year in NYC Chinatown with a boy who's recently moved from Hong Kong. beautifully illustrated.

Definitely intended for older children than babies

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would say this is more appropriate for older elementary schoolers.

This book is a compilation of poems from the seasons which are narrated by a boy living in Chinatown who used to live in China. He talks of the different things he is able to do compared to what it was like in China.(Assignment 5)

I would use this book when teaching about poems since this poems don't rhyme and that's what most kids think of when they think poem.

[Leane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story of a young Chinese immigrant is told completely in poetry. After moving to Chinatown, the narrator feels homesick and longs for things he has left behind in China. Over the course of a year, he begins to not only simply describe China and the things he misses, but what he sees around him in vibrant Chinatown. He begins to see that Chinese tradition and things like games and birds singing can be found in his new home as well as his old. As the year progresses, he watches dragon boat races in Queens, hears both the Chinese and English language spoken daily, makes new friends, learns American games like kick-the-can, and celebrates the Moon Festival and Chinese New Year, this time with a smile on his face. At the end of the story, the narrator has embraced Chinatown for what it is, including all its ethnic foods, sights, and smells.

This is a great book to use when talking with elementary-age children about immigration, settling into a new community, and experiencing both old and new cultures at the same time. I enjoyed the fact that the book was completely in poetry and took us through winter, spring, summer, and fall as the narrator grew to accept his place in Chinatown. Author and illustrator Kam Mak's illustrations are beautiful and authentic, making me feel like I was really there.

[Gracie Larcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, I really enjoyed My Chinatown: One Year in Poems. The illustrations are beautiful, and the story line is interesting. This is definitely a story I want to share with my future students.

The book is made up of several poems that also tell the story of a young boy who moves from Hong Kong to America. Each poem is based on a season, telling about the things the main character is experiencing at the time. Not only does this book expose students to poetry, but it also gives them a glimpse into different traditions of the Chinese culture. My Chinatown would enrich several different lessons in the classroom. The book could be used in addition to a lesson on the Chinese New Year, or during a poetry unit. It would also be a great book to read if you had a new student in your class coming in from another country to even state. Each poem is full of figurative language. For example, at one point the author states "english words taste like metal in my mouth", as well as comparing a sewing needle to being hungry and gobbling fabric. Due to the language, I think Third and Fourth Graders would benefit most from this read. This book could foster several class discussions and I think the class would benefit most if the book was read aloud.

[Gayle Swift · Rating 5 out of 5]

Images and Sounds That Capture Both Longing for "Home" and Ethnic Pride
My Chinatown: A Year in Poems by Kam Mak will delight the eye and the ear. The imagery of the poems convey an appreciation for the energy and culture of Chinatown. Readers of any ethnicity will enjoy the boy's stroll through the fascinating and exotic city. He struggles to understand how he can be in America and appreciate and feel connected to his native home in Hong Kong. Chinese culture exists in Chinatown but its different from the way things are observed there. Any child who has ever moved, will identify with his longing for "home" in Hong Kong and the security and familiarity it represents.

Adoption-attuned Lens: This book will resonate with internationally adopted kids via the boy's sense of yearning for "home"--for the way it smells, looks, sounds, and the way things are done there. His struggle to feel at home in America will connect with that rootlessness that many adoptees feel, (even those who were adopted domestically.)
Another "note" which will connect with many adoptees is that struggle to blend a dual heritage into a unified whole that results from valuing and merging both.
—Gayle H. Swift, “ABC, Adoption & Me, A Multicultural Picture Book”

[Paige Cedergreen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personal Reaction: I really enjoyed the diverse perspective of this book. It used a lot of sensory images to describe Chinatown and each season.

I think this book would be good for ages first through third grade. It tells a lot about the Chinese culture that students may not know about and through that it includes new vocabulary and is rich in figurative language. I would use it on a lesson on the Chinese New Year or on different cultures. Also, since each page is a poem related to part of his year in Chinatown it all contributes to a narrative poem which is a concept that students need to learn about. The book was classified as a poetry and picture book because of the rich pictures and story it tells but it is also told through poems. I thought that it could fit in both categories. Some of the figurative language examples to name a few are: "the needle on her sewing machine, gobbling up fabric", "where the English words taste like metal in my mouth", and "wooden crates packed full of suns". This can expand the children's knowledge of types of figurative language and their knowledge of another culture.

[sarafem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story about a young boy from Hong Kong who is new to the States and living in Chinatown - what city I don't know and I guess it's not important.

It is Chinese New Year when he first arrives and he is not happy because it just isn't home. He misses all the things about Hong Kong that he cannot get there, such as his grandmother's pickled kumquats - uh, yum, sounds delicious. Just wait, you haven't heard his description of fish balls yet.

Anyway, you see his attitude start to change after his mother goes to a fortune teller (not as "voodoo" in Chinese culture as it is in American), and the teller predicts good luck and happiness for him. He starts to find little things that ARE like home, and new things to enjoy. Within a few months, he is a happy kid learning about his new home, happy but always proud of his culture.

By the next Chinese New Year he is a different kid, proud of his culture, his past, AND being a part of Chinatown. Great story that depicts a lot of a new culture for kids.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author, Mak, recounts his wonder and joy at seeing the colorful and uniquely Chinese traditions brought to life in a year in America’s Chinatown. From Winter, with its New Year’s celebrations, firecrackers, fortune-tellers and kumquats, to Spring with its street cobblers, animal chess games and exotic caged birds, these seasons come alive with vibrant watercolor illustrations and insightful poems. The pages of the book move on to Summer, with its sleepy days listening to the hum of a sewing machine, a dragon-boat race and conversations sent between connecting clotheslines on the apartment buildings. And finally on to Fall, where fish are waiting to be caught, where the Moon Festival makes the neighborhood glow with lantern light and paper dragons enchant children, Mak takes the reader on a expedition that is beyond doubt a captivating and illuminating glimpse into life in America’s Chinatown. The illustrations are brilliantly hued and are so life-like they almost seem to be photographs

[Greg]

My Chinatown A Year in Pictures is a wonderful children’s picture book. When looking at other children’s books about Chinatown, authors took an approach that seemed to neglect the true cultural aspects of Chinatown in New York. Some authors talked about the perfume shops and fortune cookies. What makes My Chinatown stand above all the rest is that within each page is wonderful artwork capturing that daily life and experiences of Chinatown through the seasons. Accompanying each piece of art are wonderful poems or vignettes of life in Chinatown. Many books about Chinatown use photos and just simply explain Chinatown. It is hard for the reader to connect with the piece. But by using poetry and paintings to capture the emotion of Chinatown, the reader will have an easier time feeling the experiences of Chinatown. I would definitely recommend My Chinatown to any teacher who is looking to not only teach about a culture but want their students to truly experience a culture without leaving the classroom.

[Jenny Ma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nostalgic feelings of a young Chinese boy, who immigrated to New York’s Chinatown from Hong Kong, are expressed in 15 untitled poems. The poems span the time from one Chinese New Year to the next highlighting important Chinese holidays in between. The simplicity of language and photo-realistic paintings evoke poignant imagery, such as this phrase “. . . school where English words taste like metal in my mouth.”

A great poetry book to teach imagery, simile, and metaphor.
Readers may need support in understanding the specific cultural references in each of the poems.

Pair this study with William Low's picture book "Chinatown" which depicts a boy and his grandmother walking through the streets

[Beth Schencker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This beautiful picture book written in poetic form tells of a year in the life of a young immigrant boy from Hong Kong. As the year progresses through pictures and verse, the young boy learns to love his new home in the Chinatown of New York City as much as the one he left. Understanding that life in America is different, the young boy can accept that there are many similarities too. The beautiful paintings by Kam Mak, the author and illustrator are just as special. Growing up in New York's Chinatown, Mak gives authenticity to this very tangible tale. A must have in any classroom or school library.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

What incredible detail this book exhibits. I enjoyed the poetry, the mastery of literary devices, the narrative thread that each poem maintained, but more than any of that, the illustrations. This man is truly a master of his craft. I have never seen such vivid detail conveed in an image. I am astounded by how lifelike the images were. I honestly believed at times that I was looking at a photograph lightly modified to appear to be a painting. The colors were so vivid and lifelike, the shadowing and shading completely mesmerizing I am curious as to how he did it. This is a great piece of work.

[Ckorbakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very descriptive poems divided into the 4 seasons. The pictures go along with the poems and enhance the understanding of them. The sequence of the poems creates a sense of a Chinatown neighborhood. This will work very well in our unit of Chicago neighborhoods and prior to and after our trip to Chinatown. It would be interesting to look at examples of the 5 senses through the descriptions and illustrations.

[Christa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A boy adjusts to life away from his home in Hong Kong, in the Chinatown of his new American city. The realistic, representational art used in this book is amazing! And the poems are just as poignant. A very nice book, I really enjoyed it. The author uses illustrations, format, and content relevant for children. The characters are well-developed and the content goes well with the setting of the story line.