Bibliographic data
Yep, Laurence. The Imp That Ate My Homework. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.
Brief plot summary
Jim doesn’t know what to write about when his teacher gives him an assignment about writing about his grandfather, who just happens to be the meanest man he knows. An Imp shows up and eats the report that Jim just finished about his grandfather. Jim and everyone around him is in trouble with that mischievous Imp running around destroying everything. Follow Jim and his grandfather around Chinatown as they try to keep the sanity while the Imp runs around destroying things.
Critical analysis
This was a very odd book for me to read in this module. I have never heard of anything named “Imp.” I actually had to look up what Imps really were about after reading the short novel. I found out that they are not devious, as they most commonly are referred to as, but instead they act mischievous.
The family and their culture truly stand out in this book by Yep. Jim’s grandfather truly has difficulty with feeling comfortable in American civilization. He criticizes everything about American and American culture. He causes traffic jams with his temper, criticizes the way his family cooks rice, not staying with Chinese traditional methods.
The language is also a bit different in this novel. It contains some broken English when the grandfather is speaking. The entire family works hard in Chinatown to make ends meet. The mother works in a sweatshop. What is different than today is that Jim tends to be able to visit his entire family while they are at work. I know that is not a custom in most family’s work situations today.
The illustrations in the book are plain with just pencil-type drawings but very detailed. The drawings of the Imp help readers like myself be able to see what an Imp truly looks like. They almost tend to look like the Chinese dragon that is used to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
Review excerpt
School Library Journal
Yep has written a fast-paced, light adventure that is full of the flavor of San Francisco's Chinatown. The clash of modern and traditional cultures is common among many immigrant groups and perhaps this whimsical look at the conflict will help children value and understand their grandparents. Huang's humorous and lively illustrations capture the personalities and action of the story.?
Kirkus Reviews
Yep telescopes the plot severely; he occasionally checks the pace long enough for a peek into a sweatshop, or a conversation about the younger generation's drift away from traditional culture. Still, readers will not be able to put this light, funny fantasy down.
Connections
Laurence Yep is a very prominent Asian American author. Read Dragon’s Gate, his Newbery Honor book and his picture book, The Dragon Prince.
Yep, Laurence. The Imp That Ate My Homework. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.
Brief plot summary
Jim doesn’t know what to write about when his teacher gives him an assignment about writing about his grandfather, who just happens to be the meanest man he knows. An Imp shows up and eats the report that Jim just finished about his grandfather. Jim and everyone around him is in trouble with that mischievous Imp running around destroying everything. Follow Jim and his grandfather around Chinatown as they try to keep the sanity while the Imp runs around destroying things.
Critical analysis
This was a very odd book for me to read in this module. I have never heard of anything named “Imp.” I actually had to look up what Imps really were about after reading the short novel. I found out that they are not devious, as they most commonly are referred to as, but instead they act mischievous.
The family and their culture truly stand out in this book by Yep. Jim’s grandfather truly has difficulty with feeling comfortable in American civilization. He criticizes everything about American and American culture. He causes traffic jams with his temper, criticizes the way his family cooks rice, not staying with Chinese traditional methods.
The language is also a bit different in this novel. It contains some broken English when the grandfather is speaking. The entire family works hard in Chinatown to make ends meet. The mother works in a sweatshop. What is different than today is that Jim tends to be able to visit his entire family while they are at work. I know that is not a custom in most family’s work situations today.
The illustrations in the book are plain with just pencil-type drawings but very detailed. The drawings of the Imp help readers like myself be able to see what an Imp truly looks like. They almost tend to look like the Chinese dragon that is used to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
Review excerpt
School Library Journal
Yep has written a fast-paced, light adventure that is full of the flavor of San Francisco's Chinatown. The clash of modern and traditional cultures is common among many immigrant groups and perhaps this whimsical look at the conflict will help children value and understand their grandparents. Huang's humorous and lively illustrations capture the personalities and action of the story.?
Kirkus Reviews
Yep telescopes the plot severely; he occasionally checks the pace long enough for a peek into a sweatshop, or a conversation about the younger generation's drift away from traditional culture. Still, readers will not be able to put this light, funny fantasy down.
Connections
Laurence Yep is a very prominent Asian American author. Read Dragon’s Gate, his Newbery Honor book and his picture book, The Dragon Prince.
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