A Day for Vincent Chin and Me

by Jacqueline Turner Banks

Overview

Sixth-graders Tommy, Angela, Faye, and the twins, Judge and Jury Jenkins, have been friends forever. Now they’re faced with new problems and need to find new solutions to them—even if it means breaking the law. How can they help prevent an inevitable accident on Tommy’s street, other than by trying to stop cars from speeding past Tommy’s young, deaf neighbor?

Not only must the Posse mastermind a plan, but Tommy must confront his doubts about his mother’s participation in a rally to fight racism. The last thing Tommy wants is to be singled out as a Japanese American, so why does his mother insist on drawing attention to his family?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780618548798
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/30/2005
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	128
Product dimensions:	5.12(w) x 7.62(h) x (d)
Lexile:	700L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jacqueline Turner Banks is the author of three previous young adult novels, Project Wheels, The New One, and Egg-Drop Blues, all of which feature the animated exploits of the Posse. Formerly a teacher, Ms. Banks now devotes herself full-time as a writer and literary agent. She lives with her family in Sacramento, California.

Editorial Reviews

"The crisp writing and active plot will draw readers in.” —School Library Journal School Library Journal

“Thought-provoking but not pushy, this should resonate with a variety of readers.” —The Bulletin Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books —

From the Publisher

The characters introduced in Project Wheels and Egg-Drop Blues return in Jacqueline Turner Banks's A Day for Vincent Chin and Me. This time, sixth-grader Tommy narrates the events as his mother organizes the Asian-American community to draw attention to the death of the Chinese-American man whom his murderers blamed for Detroit's declining car sales and soaring unemployment. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 4-6-Another sequel to Project Wheels (Houghton, 1993) involving a racially mixed group of sixth-grade friends living in Kentucky. Japanese-American Tommy saves his sister's deaf friend from being hit by a speeding car. The incident spurs the boy and his friends to try and build a speed bump to deter further accidents. His quest coincides with a rally his mother is planning to fight racism. The Vincent Chin of the title was a Chinese American who was beaten to death in 1982 by disgruntled Detroit auto workers, who blamed Japan for the decline in the auto industry and mistook the victim for Japanese. Tommy attempts to fit in and not be distinguished by his Asian heritage, and tries to be proud of who he is. In the end, he manages to find balance and realizes that the struggle his mother is fighting is similar to his own. The book ends with a note from the author about the real Vincent Chin and a time line of the trials resulting from his murder. The crisp writing and active plot will draw readers in.-DeAnn Tabuchi, San Anselmo Public Library, CA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal