Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist
Geng Yeo came to the United States at age nine, a “paper son” passing, along with his father, as upper class Chinese, having memorized false histories to get around strict, racist U.S. immigration laws. Even as a child he loved making art and he grew up to be an animator at Disney. First limited to drawing the “in between” frames for Disney’s animated films—a lot of work for no recognition—when Bambi was in development, he showed how his spare style could be used to create a lush sense of landscape. Despite designing the visual look for the movie as an inspired sketch artist, he was only credited in the film as a background artist. His final years spent making beautiful kites offer a satisfying conclusion to this little known but important man’s life. ©2020 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Chris Sasaki
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 5-9
Age Range:
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Formats:
Biography, Autobiography and Memoir
Picture book
Subjects:
20th Century
Art and Artists
Biography
Chinese and Chinese Americans
History (Nonfiction)
Immigration and Immigrants
Racism
U.S. History
Diversity subject:
Asian
Publishers:
Random House, Schwartz & Wade
Publish Year: 2019
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9781524771874
CCBC Location: Non-Fiction, 700 Leung