The Earth Dragon Awakes

Bibliography
Yep, Laurence. 2006. The Earth Dragon Awakes: The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN: 9780060275259.

Plot Summary
This is fictional story of two young boys Henry and Ching that experience the earthquake that truly happened on April 17, 1906. This earthquake was one of the most devastating ones that hit San Francisco and caused great loss of life and property. The boys see that their fathers were actually heroes in crisis.

Critical Analysis
This book is an unusual mixture of fiction and non-fiction. Readers get to experience the historic earthquake through the eyes of two young boys. The author gives two perspectives – one rich, one poor. The story shows that although people deal with crisis differently the disaster hit both the rich and the poor in the same way. Nobody was spared the wrath of the earth dragon. Laurence Yep has done careful research about this earthquake and gives important facts about it throughout the book. Emphasis is paid more on the historical part than the fictional part. The story is used as means for conveying the emotions and to give the readers a more personal journey through the earthquake. Young readers who like non-fiction might like the fresh approach to reading about earthquakes.