Gus Lee, whose semiautobiographical first novel has received praise from reviewers and other writers, will be the commencement speaker for the UC Davis College of Letters and Science Sunday, June 16. In "China Boy," Lee, who received his bachelor's, master's and law degrees from UC Davis, tells the story of Kai Ting, a 7-year-old boy whose once-wealthy family flees China after the Communist takeover and settles in a poor, predominantly black neighborhood of San Francisco. "China Boy" is the season's major fiction offering from the Dutton publishing company, and movie rights for the book have been optioned. The commencement ceremonies will begin at 9 a.m. in Recreation Hall on the UC Davis campus.