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Almost everyone who reads “American Born Chinese,” Gene Luen Yang’s groundbreaking graphic novel, is a little afraid of Chin-Kee.

The book is a classic of young-adult literature, threading together stories of Asian American boyhood with a revered Ming dynasty novel. Chin-Kee’s role in it is a small one, but he is the bomb at the book’s heart. He’s a kind of Urkel character, embarrassing comic relief that isn’t so funny for the people who have to live with him — a cruel marionette pieced together from ugly stereotypes. He makes the old schoolyard “me Chinese” rhymes and begins sentences with “Confucius say …” He sings “She Bangs,” in a library, in the style of the “American Idol” contestant William Hung. At one point, he eats a packed lunch with a cat peeking out of the container. A laugh track runs in a ribbon under each scene, a brutal little receipt: “HA HA HA HA HA.”

So when news arrived, in 2021, that “American Born Chinese” would be adapted as a live-action Disney+ streaming series, the first reaction from some readers was, more or less, “Oh, no.”

This story was recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.

Canada is a land ripe with legends of the unexplained. When early Irish settlers came to Newfoundland, it is believed they brought with them creatures from the homeland. Are there fairies in Canada? There might be on Bell Island. The decendents of the original settlers have had their own experiences with fairies in Newfoundland and then passed down their stories of these firefly-like flying creatures to their children. Member Adam Stone comes on the show to tell of his family's history on Bell Island and the bizarre happenings in this remote area in Canada. This part of the world has stories about everything from Bigfoot to mischievous little creatures that abduct children. The easternmost tip of North America is very blurry. This is a members-only episode. 

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Adam Duritz is a singer, songwriter, and frontman of the Counting Crows. The band's first record in seven years, "Butter Miracle, Suite One", is available now.