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Gr 7 Up—In this poignant memoir, McMullan, illustrator of Kate McMullan's bestselling I Stink picture book (HarperCollins, 2002) and creator of more than 50 posters for Lincoln Center theater productions, chronicles his childhood during World War II. Born in Tsingtao, China, in 1934, young Jim lived a life of privilege as the son of wealthy Europeans. His grandparents went to China as missionaries. They operated an orphanage for abandoned infant girls and later taught the young women to embroider. Their distinctive cutwork creations became the seeds of a profitable exporting business, the James McMullan Company. By the time ...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

McMullan was born in Tsingtao, North China, in 1934 to an Irish-English missionary family. His privileged childhood was disrupted by the 1937 Japanese occupation; by 1941, he and his mother were sailing for her Canadian homeland. In 1944 the two took a freighter's "long, looping, evasive southern route" from New York to Bombay to meet his father; by 1945, the boy had circled the globe. Meanwhile, at one unsatisfactory school after another, Jimmie -- ever awkward at sports -- found bullies but few friends, though his artistic talent cha...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

McMullan's privileged childhood in North China (with missionary parents) was disrupted by the 1937 Japanese occupation; the rest of his childh...Log In or Sign Up to Read More