Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor (Zachary Ying #1)

by Xiran Jay Zhao (Author)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade
Series: Zachary Ying

Percy Jackson meets Tristan Strong in this hilarious, action-packed middle grade contemporary fantasy that follows a young boy as he journeys across China to seal the underworld shut and save the mortal realm.

Zachary Ying never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open. The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack's body and binds to Zack's AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack's mom's soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history's most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor's incredible water dragon powers.

And if Zack can't finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.

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Kirkus

Levels up legendary Chinese heroes and folklore into a thrilling adventure with video game appeal. 

Publishers Weekly

Zhao's (Iron Widow) action-packed middle grade debut transports readers to a 12-year-old's encounters with legendary Chinese figures who connect him to his personal history. Gamer Zachary Ying desperately wants to fit in outside the virtual world of Mythrealm, but as the only Asian kid in his largely white Maine town, he finds himself quietly suffering microaggressions and peer pressure to avoid standing out. Zack's Chinese family is also Hui Muslim, a minority among other Chinese and Muslim people, but he knows little about his family legacy outside of his father's execution by the Chinese government for speaking out against its oppression of Uighur Muslims. So when an attack on his mother leaves her soul in the hands of demons, and Zack is revealed to be descended from China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, he feels overwhelmed and unprepared. Things are further complicated when the Dragon Emperor bonds to Zack's gaming headset, needing the boy to host his spirit. Now, Zack must travel across China and carry out a vital mission with the fate of the mortal realm at stake. Compact history lessons woven throughout guide Zack through the plot and into a greater understanding of his identity, while plentiful pop culture references root this fantastical read in the contemporary, making for a quickly paced book that's by turns educational, reflective, and thrilling. Ages 8-12. Agent: Rachel Brooks, BookEnds Literary. (May)

Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is an edge-of-your-seat adventure that has you laughing on one page and cheering on the next. Zach is a gamer turned hero who goes on an epic quest across the globe only to find his greatest strength within. More, please!—James Ponti, New York Times bestselling author of CITY SPIES
Xiran Jay Zhao
Xiran Jay Zhao is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Iron Widow series. A first-gen Hui Chinese immigrant from small-town China to Vancouver, Canada, they were raised by the internet and made the inexplicable decision to leave their biochem degree in the dust to write books and make educational content instead. You can find them @XiranJayZhao on Twitter for memes, Instagram for cosplays and fancy outfits, TikTok for fun short videos, and YouTube for long videos about Chinese history and culture. Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is their first middle grade novel.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781665900706
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication date
May 10, 2022
Series
Zachary Ying
BISAC categories
JUV037000 - Juvenile Fiction | Fantasy & Magic
JUV001000 - Juvenile Fiction | Action & Adventure
JUV011020 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | United States - Asian American
JUV030020 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | Asia
JUV012060 - Juvenile Fiction | Legends, Myths, Fables | Asian
Library of Congress categories
History
Magic
Good and evil
China
Spirits
Chinese Americans
Spirit possession
Novels
Mythology, Chinese

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