The Magic of Interwoven Stories

American Born Chinese is told as three different stories that initially appear to not have anything in common between them. The first is portrayed as an old legend about the Monkey King who commits himself to becoming a deity. The second is a more grounded story following a boy named Jin as he struggles with racism (both hostile and seemingly innocent) in his everyday life. The third is framed as a sitcom centered on a white boy named Danny and his "cousin" Chin-Kee, an over-the-top spoof of racist Chinese stereotypes. Despite each of these stories having a premise that seems to be disconnected from the others, they eventually run together to convey a moral about appreciating and accepting oneself as one is. This narrative structure makes subsequent readings of the novel much more fulfilling as readers can more easily pick up on hints throughout the story once the ending is known.

One somewhat subtle hint is how Jin begins styling his hair to try to impress a girl named Amelia. Upon observing one of his classmates appearing it hit it off with Amelia, Jin decides to copy the classmate's haircut (Yang 97-98). While it is not identical, Jin's new hairstyle closely resembles the hairstyle of Danny. For first-time readers, this similarity may be lost or just seem like a coincidence. However, once it is revealed that Danny is just a transformed version of Jin, their haircuts seem less like a coincidence and more like a nod to those who have already read the story once.

Another hint presents itself even earlier in the novel. In the Monkey King's interaction with Tze-Yo-Tzuh, the Monkey King desperately tries to prove that he is more than just a simple monkey. Despite his best efforts, he is thwarted by Tze-Yo-Tzuh at every attempt. In the end, Tze-Yo-Tzuh tells the Monkey King, "A monkey I intended you to be, a monkey you are" (Yang 81). While there are other hints earlier about where the moral of the story is going, this is the clearest statement in support of self-acceptance there is up to this point. This point is further reinforced by the Monkey King himself at the end of the story. Once Danny turns back into Jin, he asks the Monkey King what he should do. The Monkey King responds, "You know, Jin, I would have saved myself from five hundred years' imprisonment beneath a mountain of rock had i only realized how good it is to be a monkey" (Yang 223). While the foundation for this piece of wisdom is laid much earlier in the story, it takes a long time for the Monkey King to accept it, and he is able to pass it on to Jin as a result. Although it is clear that Tze-Yo-Tzuh's advice is wise, its overall ramifications aren't clear until the novel reaches its conclusion. In both of these instances, as well as in others, major clues are given about the direction of the story. However, these clues aren't readily apparent until the novel is reflected upon in its entirety.