I Am America WHEN THE EARTH DRAGON TREMBLED A Story of Chinatown During the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire By Judy Dodge Cummings Illustrated by Eric Freeberg Consultant Lei Qin PhD Assistant Adjunct Professor of Modern Chinese Culture and History University of California Los Angeles JOLLY FISH PRESS Mendota Heights Minnesota
Chapter 1 April 17 1906 4 30 p m The box of groceries nagged Han from its perch on the counter He was to deliver it to a house outside of Chinatown Not just yet An off-key hum drifted from the storeroom where Father was counting inventory Through the shop’s front window Han watched a man and two little boys cross the street Each boy’s long braid swung from side to side as if the queues danced to a rhythm only they could hear Han crossed his fingers and waited The trio passed by He had the store to himself and enough time for some adventure Plunging his hand into a jar of sugared almonds Han grabbed one and popped it into his mouth He crunched down on the treat and picked up the novel Miss
Cameron had loaned him for the third time this year He opened the book to his favorite scene a murder in a graveyard at midnight As Han read his mind entered the story and the room around him transformed Store shelves became the branches of an elm tree Barrels of dried oysters abalone and cuttlefish turned into tombstones The Chinese lantern that dangled from the ceiling was the full moon Han turned the page Three men stood beside an open grave One was a doctor who wanted to experiment on the corpse in the coffin The other two were outcasts hired to dig up the body The diggers demanded more money but the doctor refused A thrill of excitement crept up Han’s spine as the diggers and doctor grappled Han’s heart beat faster as one digger picked up a knife
