Three characters, three dilemmas, and one shared objective to fit in. A young Chinese boy named Jin Wang transfers to a new school only to be bullied and discriminated against because he is the only Chinese-American student. All he wants to do is to fit in. As he grows up, he ends up falling in love with an all-American girl. Wanting her to like him back, Jin attempts to imitate a teenage white boy. Danny, a popular All-American boy, receives the yearly visit from Chin-Knee, his Chinese cousin. Chin-Knee accommodates Danny to school, but all he does is embarrass Danny from his obnoxious, stereotyped behavior. Mastering all four heavenly disciplines and kung fu, the Monkey King is set to join the immortal gods in heaven. Whether he liked it or not, the Monkey King is still a monkey and is not allowed passage into heaven. These three different stories end up crossing each other with a twist in hopes of helping one another fix their seemingly different but same problems. In this comic book, I can relate to this discussion of racism and discrimination because I am a Filipino-American living in an area with a high percentage of caucasian. Although I have not experienced it personally, I have seen other people offend and make fun of my race in general to others. Throughout the book, I noticed common threads to each person, such as insecurity and the struggle to accept your identity. I have in one way or another related to each character’s feelings of shame and embarrassment about their heritage and being an outcast. I like this book because of the way the author built the stories. As you progress in the book, the stories start developing together little by making connections between each individual. I gave the story a 4/5 because sometimes the storyline was confusing and hard to follow, otherwise, I enjoyed the book. I advise the people who decide to read this short comic to keep an open mind. Though the comic relates to Asians, I think people of all races and ethnicities would enjoy this story and find some way to relate to it. This story can help bring awareness and compassion to the difficulties that minorities experience.
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