Yellow Singing Sail: A Memoir of an Only Child in China

Evergreen concerns regarding doing well in school, making one’s parents proud, and longing for friendship and connection permeate this uncomplicated graphic novel memoir by Huang (The Couch Potato), who chronicles her experience growing up during the one-child era in 1990s China. An adult Huang narrates as she illustrates her youth using crisp line art and watercolor swathes of black, red, and green. The creator recalls living “a happy, carefree early childhood in Xintian, in Hunan Province in South China,” until her father gets a new job in Guangzhou. While her parents establish themselves in the city, the child temporarily moves in with her grandparents. She eventually relocates to Guangzhou, where the family lives with fractious relatives until they can afford their own apartment. Then parents and child settle into a ninth-floor walk-up apartment; there, Huang discovers a secret staircase to the rooftop, where she spends summer days. Simplistic language and imagery portray young Huang’s various mishaps and youthful adventures. Chapters read like slice-of-life vignettes, each of which loosely interconnect to depict the many small, seemingly innocuous events that can shape a child’s life. Ages 11–14. (June)