From School Library Journal
Grade 6-9-Thirteen years after the publication of Tales from Gold Mountain (Groundwood, 1999), Yee returns with these 10 ghost stories, all infused with the experiences of Chinese immigrants who came in search of wealth in the mid-19th and early 20th centuries. In "Seawall Sightings," a woman comes to meet her lover in 1912, only to be imprisoned by the Department of Immigration for illegally entering the country. In "Digging Deep," a terrified young man promises his body to the spirit of dead miners in exchange for the courage to face his dangerous job in the coal mines. Readers will absorb a great deal of the history of hard labor and prejudice faced by these immigrants while enjoying the supernatural elements that pervade each story. Chan's moody, abstract illustrations add to the dark tone of the book, which is for an older audience than the previous book. Aside from a brief note, Yee provides very little history to ground readers new to the topic, and the stories, while never specifying locations, are based primarily on Chinese experiences in Canada. Still, this would make a wonderful book to read aloud or to assign as a supplement to studies of Chinese immigration.Ashley Larsen, Woodside Library, CACopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 6-12. Drawing on ghost stories told among early Chinese immigrants in Canada and the U.S., Yee brings the supernatural right into daily life, setting the harsh facts on the edge of horror or redemption. His plain, beautiful words speak with brutal honesty in 10 short stories about the immigrant struggle: the backbreaking work in the gold mines, on the railroads, in the forests, laundries, kitchens; the anguish of leaving home, and of being left behind; the dreams of riches and reunion; the shock of prejudice and betrayal. The tales are arranged chronologically, beginning with the nineteenth-century migration from China to Gold Mountain in the Pacific Northwest, and ending in the 1950s in a city near the Atlantic. In one story a woman finally gets to join her husband in the New World, only to find that he has a "local" wife who speaks English and wears modern clothes. Young lovers imprisoned and separated by harsh immigration restrictions are united after death. A gold miner steals from his best friend; a farm worker pushes his brother into the river; then the past haunts the living and won't let go. An eerie full-page illustration by Chan at the start of each story captures the strange, unsettled world of those who leave home to find home. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
Ten original ghost stories by Paul Yee dramatize the history of Chinese immigration to North America, from poor villagers who first came searching for gold in the late 1850s to new arrivals from Hong Kong. Told in the style of traditional Chinese folktales, they are illustrated with moody, abstract drawings by Harvey Chan. In the title story, two friends seek gold, but the precious metal brings riches to one man and a curse to the other. In "Seawall Sightings," young lovers kept apart by immigration laws have a tragic reunion. In "Reunited," a spoiled teenage boy leaves Hong Kong for North America, only to find that his new life is not the glamorous one he had been expecting. The stories describe the struggles, dreams, and resilience of people making new lives for themselves in a strange land, while retaining strong links to China and the past. In keeping with authentic Chinese ghost stories, wherever they go, the immigrants are followed by the curse of a friend, the ghost of a faithful spouse, or the spirit of a dead parent.

FROM THE PUBLISHER