Boxers
China,1898. Bands of foreign missionaries and soldiers roam the countryside, bullying and robbing Chinese peasants.
Little Bao has had enough. Harnessing the powers of ancient Chinese gods, he recruits an army of Boxers – commoners trained in kung fu who fight to free China from "foreign devils."
Against all odds, this grass-roots rebellion is violently successful. But nothing is simple. Little Bao is fighting for the glory of China, but at what cost? So many are dying, including thousands of "secondary devils" – Chinese citizens who have converted to Christianity.
Discover the other side of the Boxer Rebellion in Saints – the companion volume to Boxers.
National Book Award Nominee (2013); YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens - Top Ten(2014)
Video
About the Boxers and Saints Series
Books in series order
- 1.Boxers(2013)
- 2.Saints(2013)
Reading age: 12+ years
Boxers & Saints is an innovative new graphic novel in two volumes – the parallel stories of two young people caught up on opposite sides of a violent rift. American Born Chinese author Gene Luen Yang brings his clear-eyed storytelling and trademark magical realism to the complexities of the Boxer Rebellion and lays bare the foundations of extremism, rebellion, and faith.
Boxers & Saints keeps alive a tradition of literature that has been known to us for centuries: the tragedy. Boxers details the life of Lee Bao, a young man who is determined to rid his country of foreign influence. Saints concentrates on the life of Four-Girl/Vibiana, a character to whom we are introduced in Boxers and from whose viewpoint we see another side of the Boxer Rebellion. Four-Girl/Vibiana is not necessarily convinced that the colonisation and missionary work of the foreigners in China is the best thing for her country; but she is also lonely and finds with the foreigners a community and even love. Through both protagonists’ eyes, readers are treated to a complex story of culture, identity, faith and love.