My Chinatown

My Chinatown, first published in 2001, is a critically acclaimed, spectacularly illustrated homage to family, culture, and a childhood spent in one of the most exotic places in any city—Chinatown.

My Chinatown is a deeply personal account by Kam Mak, who grew up in New York’s Chinatown. It explores a boy’s first year in the United States—after emigrating from China—as he grows to love his new home in Chinatown through food, games, and the people surrounding him. The streets come vividly alive through Kam Mak’s spare verse and richly detailed artwork.

Kam Mak grew up in New York City's Chinatown. He earned his bachelor of fine arts degree from the School of Visual Arts, and since then he has illustrated book jackets for numerous publishers and taught painting at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

He has also illustrated The Moon of the Monarch Butterflies by Jean Craighead George, The Year of the Panda by Miriam Schlein, and The Dragon Prince by Laurence Yep. Kam Mak lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, son, and daughter.