RED LAND, YELLOW RIVER: A Story from the Cultural Revolution

In this intense autobiography, written matter-of-factly but with deep feeling, artist and designer Ange recounts how the revolution shaped his life. A teenager in 1966, the son of Communist Party officials, Ange is among the "good guys" until his father, a famous writer, is publicly humiliated and arrested by the Red Guards, "Chairman Mao Zedong's specially chosen troops." Labeled a "black kid," he is shunned by his schoolmates. His desire to conform leads him to become involved in a faction of the Red Guard until a group from a rival faction violently beats him, and the experience unravels his idealism. When in 1968 Mao sends all students to the countryside to work as laborers, Ange discovers another source of inspiration: painting. ("I had found my own path at last, the path that would allow me to express myself as a human being.") His talent is evident in the book's shadow-dappled, realistic illustrations, which quietly convey not only revolutionary chaos but also the "color, beauty, joy and kindness" he finds in art. Interspersed family photographs and images of archival artifacts (old books and stamps) create a textured and intriguing visual mix, and endnotes offer additional details on Mao and provide important historical context. More than a history lesson, Ange's story will resonate with preteen readers; he shows that not even oppression can squelch individuality—a stirring message of hope. Ages 8-up. (Oct.)