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?
Editorial Reviews
Review
“Extraordinary photo-realistic paintings and spare, free-verse poems bring New York’s Chinatown to life. Readers will come away with a deeper interest in Chinatown’s culture and in immigration stories in general.” – Booklist (starred review)
Distinctly personal – School Library Journal (starred review)
From the Back Cover
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!
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 called Chinatown.
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 then he has illustrated book jackets for numerous publishers and taught painting at the Fashion Institute of Technology.
He has also illustrated The Moon of the Monarch Butterflies by Jean Craighead George, The Year of the Panda by Miriam Schlein, and The Dragon Prince by Laurence Yep. Kam Mak lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, son, and daughter.
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