THE YEAR OF THE DOG- Grace Lin

Lin, Grace.2006. THE YEAR OF THE DOG. New York: Little Brown and Company. ISBN: 0-316-06000-3
Summary:
Lin tells a modern day story of a young girl who spends the year trying to find out what it means to “find yourself.” The story begins as Pacy also known as Grace and her family are celebrating Chinese New Year and mom tells her it is her year, “The Year of the Dog.” Pacy tries to balance the traditional Taiwanese / Chinese traditions and the American ways at home and school. Pacy tries to remember the lessons of the year of the dog as she looks for wealth, luck and her talent in order to find herself before the end of the year. It is through her family, friends and special assignment at school that she discovers herself. Pacy also known as Grace finds wealth when she wins the $400.00, a prize and most of all she found her talent. She was an author and an illustrator. Grace includes Author’s Note that lets the reader know what parts are true and what parts might have been switched. There is a reader’s guide that gives suggestions to extend the learning.
Analysis:
Grace is a modern day young girl who struggles with the same problems as many young girls have with siblings, boys, friends and family. Grace is Taiwanese American and struggles with what that means to her. She struggles with what others think and explains her confusion to her mother as she says, “It’s not fair. To Americans, I’m too Chinese, and to Chinese people, I’m too American. So what am I supposed to be?” Lin uses the year of the dog to show how Grace learns the lessons of her Taiwanese culture and traditions to find out who she is. Grace learns about her family and the lessons learned through stories mom would tell throughout the story. The stories were a way of letting Grace know her struggles are not hers alone and a time to pass down family stories to the children. There are many cultural markers woven throughout the book. Lin begins the book with Chinese New Year where Chinese is spoken to friends and relatives in the greeting, “Gong xi- gong xi!” heard over and over as dad greets those who were on the phone. At the Red Egg Celebration for baby Albert the family is heard to say “Ja- ba, bei?” which Grace knew as “Have you eaten yet?” but discovers it also means “How are you doing?” Lin incorporates the special foods used during the celebrations. Grace filled the New Year tray with the “special Chinese candy” and they ate fried fish, dumplings and “shrimp in a milky sauce.” For breakfast Grace ate “watery rice porridge and flaky dried pork.” Grace was surprised when visiting Melody that all Chinese food was not the same. The rice was brown and not white and the “tofu didn’t have any shiny sauce on it”, Grace wondered “Could a person get sick from eating too many healthy things?” Grace struggles with being Chinese American when she is told at the Wizard of Oz auditions, “You can’t be Dorothy … Dorothy is not Chinese.” This is the moment that Grace realizes there are no real books that have characters like her. Grace wrote her first book about the ugly fruit and included illustrations that she painted. The Year of the Dog is over and it has been a good year for Grace and now the family celebrates with new friends the Year of the Pig. “Gong xi-gong xi! Xin Nian Hao!” “Happy Chinese New Year!” Felix hands a crate of oranges, oranges for “money.” Why oranges, because the” Chinese word for oranges sounds like the word for wealth.” Another celebration with “roasted duck with its head still on… red marinated pork, and brownish black seaweed” on the table, the sounds of Chinese and English being spoken as friends and family share their culture and traditions with each other.

Reviews and Awards
2006 Fall Publisher's Pick
• Starred Booklist Review
• 2006 ALA Children's Notable
• 2006 Asian Pacific American Librarian Association Honor
• 2006 National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) GOLD Winner
• 2007-2008 Texas Bluebonnet Award Masterlist
• 2007 Nene Awards Recommended List (Hawaii's Book Award Chosen by Children Grades 4-6)
• 2007 Cochecho Readers' Award List (sponsored by the Children's Librarians of Dover, New Hampshire)
• NYPL 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing 2006
• Kirkus Best Early Chapter Books 2006
•2006 Booklist Editors' Choice for Middle Readers
•Cooperative Children's Book Center Choice 2007
•Boston Authors Club Recommended Book
•2007-2008 Great Lakes Great Books Award nominee
•2007-2008 North Carolina Children's Book Award nominee
•2007-2008 West Virginia Children's Book Award nominee
•2009 Beverly Cleary Children's Choice Award (OR) nominee
•2009 Pacific Northwest Young Readers Choice Award (WA, OR, ID)nominee

Book Links starred 03/01/06 Notable/Best Books (A.L.A.) 01/01/07
Booklist starred 01/01/06 Publishers Weekly 01/02/06
Horn Book 03/01/06 School Library Journal 03/01/06
Horn Book starred 10/01/06 Wilson's Children 10/01/10
Booklist starred (January 1, 2006 (Vol. 102, No. 9))
Gr. 3-5. When Lin was a girl, she loved the Betsy books by Carolyn Hayward, a series about a quintessentially American girl whose days centered around friends and school. But Lin, a child of Taiwanese immigrants, didn't see herself in the pages. Now she has written the book she wished she had as a child. Told in a simple, direct voice, her story follows young Grace through the Year of the Dog, one that Grace hopes will prove lucky for her. And what a year it is!

Horn Book (March/April, 2006)
Pacy spends the Year of the Dog on a journey of self-discovery. Although sorting out her ethnic identity is important (she is Taiwanese-American in a largely non-Asian community), Pacy has another pressing question to answer: what should she be when she grows up? She likes coloring eggs for her new baby cousin Albert's Red Egg party -- maybe she will become a Red Egg colorer. Or how about a scientist (she and her best friend Melody get quite excited about their project for the science fair) or an actress (Pacy plays a munchkin in her school production of The Wizard of Oz)? Writing and illustrating her own book for a national contest makes her think that perhaps she can become an author of a "real Chinese person book." With a light touch, Lin offers both authentic Taiwanese-American and universal childhood experiences, told from a genuine child perspective. The story, interwoven with several family anecdotes, is entertaining and often illuminating. Appealing, childlike decorative line drawings add a delightful flavor to a gentle tale full of humor.

Horn Book starred (Fall 2006)
For Taiwanese-American Pacy, sorting out her ethnic identity is important, and she wonders what she should be when she grows up. Writing and illustrating a book for a national contest makes her think that perhaps she can become an author of a "real Chinese person book." Lin offers both authentic Taiwanese-American and universal childhood experiences, told from a genuine child perspective.

Kirkus Review (December 15, 2005)
…This comfortable first-person story will be a treat for Asian-American girls looking to see themselves in their reading, but also for any reader who enjoys stories of friendship and family life. (Fiction. 8-12)

Publishers Weekly (May 28, 2007)
"Lin creates an endearing protagonist, realistically dealing with universal emotions and situations," in this "autobiographical tale of an Asian-American girl's sweet and funny insights on family, identity and friendship," PW wrote. Ages 8-12. (May) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

Connections:
This is a great book to help children think about the writing process. As educators we encourage to write about what you know. I wonder if I give my students the time they need to think about what to write. As Grace struggles with what to write she learns what is important to her and what she wants to say.
Grace Lin has included at the end of her book suggestions for extending the book. The suggestions are very good and I would use them with confidence.
On Grace Lin’s website I found these two lessons that I will incorporate into my first grade classroom next year. I suggest going to Grace Lin’s website and looking for more suggestions and find her other books to use with your students.
www.gracelin.com
Lesson Suggestion: Chinese Horoscopes
In the book, Pacy is fascinated by the symbolism of the Year of the Dog. Have students research the Chinese horoscope and read about the personality traits for the year she or he was born in. Have students discuss and then write a persuasive essay agreeing or disagreeing with the horoscope descriptions of themselves.
Need some resources? Try these:
Chinese Culture's Zodiac Page
China Today's Zodiac Page


Lesson Suggestion: Memoir Writing
Much of The Year of the Dog is based on Grace's personal experience. Discuss writing from life with the students and have them write their own memoirs from the past year. This can be combined with book making, also a subject in The Year of the Dog. Give students the opportunity to develop an understanding of who they are and where they come from, and how this is connected to the past and future, the near and far away. A memoir study focusing on time, such as a certain year, as a theme can provide this opportunity.