Dragonwings, by Lawrence Yep

In this historical novel about the pursuit of dreams, Moon Shadow is a young Chinese immigrant who comes to San Francisco at the turn of the century to join his father Windrider, whom he has never met. At first father and son live and work with relatives in the Chinese section of town, but when a man is killed and their lives are endangered, the two move out and make friends with a woman and her granddaughter. The four survive the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, but Moon Shadow and his father are forced to move again. With Moon Shadow's help, Windrider begins to pursue some of his long-held dreams.