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From Horn Book

November 1, 2024
In a graphic memoir set in 1993, thirteen-year-old Chinese Canadian Ruth is apprehensive about her family's upcoming move from Toronto to Hong Kong. While her parents are thrilled (her mother is returning home after thirty years), Ruth loves her life in Toronto and doesn't want to leave. Her father tries to reassure her, telling her that "it's okay to be nervous about change and the unknown. Just remember that you'll be okay. The unknown is simply a part of life." But adjusting to the move is difficult. Ruth feels alienated from her extended family, struggling to communicate in Cantonese and often breaching Chinese etiquette. When a new friend begins ignoring her and her father's job takes him away from the family during the week, Ruth's emotions erupt over a double-page panel. She finds understanding when her mother shares her immigration story and when her father acknowledges her difficulties. Showing the courage, perseverance, and patience of her ancestors, Ruth gains confidence in herself and learns to thrive in her new home. Ruth's emotional world is active and relatable, and she is depicted with a range of facial expressions. Panels set in 1993 are shown in a soft, neutral color palette and reflect the bustle of her modern-day life in Hong Kong; flashbacks to her parents' stories are sepia-toned, evoking nostalgia about villages and farms. Sincere and engaging, Chen's memoir explores themes of cross-cultural family dynamics and finding a place to belong through human connection. Kristine Techavanich

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From Booklist

Starred review from September 15, 2024
Grades 3-7 *Starred Review* Tween Ruth is apprehensive about leaving everything she loves in Canada as her family moves to her mother's hometown of Hong Kong. Lonely and uncertain, with her dad often away on business and her mom busy with family and old friends, Ruth navigates all kinds of unfamiliar, unappetizing novelties--languages, food, school--all while juggling universal teenage challenges--friendship fluctuations, enigmatic boys, the endless search for a decent cool-kid vibe. In their traditional bedtime talks, her dad tries to help with details about his perilous birth when his parents were in a desperate flight from war. The tale of that displaced family's narrow survival long ago doesn't immediately resonate with Ruth; when much in her unmanageable new life goes even further downhill, she feels utterly alone and adrift. Though angry and defiant, Ruth ultimately manages hard conversations with her family and friends that she finds both revelatory and redemptive. Experienced illustrator Chan tells this lovely, lively, open-hearted memoir with her signature appealing style: clear lines and flat colors in well-paced panels present relatable characters and offer compelling narrative detail. A sensitive, authentic, and funny portrayal of a real kid grappling with change and uncertainty, and showing that persistence, courage, and patience make all the difference in finding that your place in the world really can be right where you are.

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From School Library Journal

Starred review from September 1, 2024

Gr 4-8-Chan perfectly captures the voice of her 13-year-old self in this graphic memoir. Moving from Toronto to Hong Kong sends Ruth into a panic. She will be leaving her very best friends, she barely speaks any Cantonese, and her brother won't be there. Her father's job will take him to China for long stretches, leaving Ruth the sole target for her mother's high expectations. Ruth is faced with a completely different culture where she is not "Chinese enough," as well as common new kid issues of making friends and trying to fit in. This is compounded by the language barrier, especially when interacting with her mom's family, attending a private school that is German-based, and finding herself alone more than she expected. Chan frames some pivotal moments in the book with a retelling of her grandparents' harrowing journey, fleeing the Japanese invasion during the Second Sino-Japanese War. These passages are illustrated in sepia tones. Ruth realizes that she is developing the same family characteristics of courage, perseverance, and patience. Family love and support are present throughout the story, even when Ruth doesn't see it herself. The full-color, detailed illustrations capture every high and low, pulling readers into the experiences. Panel sizes vary in ways that match the emotions perfectly, such as when Ruth swims in her apartment complex pool. VERDICT A truly uplifting read for anyone, but especially for those who have ever felt alone and unheard by being new, different, or othered. Highly recommended for any library serving youth.-Elisabeth LeBris

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From Kirkus

Starred review from July 15, 2024
Leaving everything behind and starting anew requires courage, perseverance, and patience. It's 1993, and Ruth loves her life and friends in Toronto. So when her parents decide to move back to Hong Kong, she can't help but focus on the negatives. Not only will she leave her school and friends behind, but she has only vague, unpleasant memories of visiting Hong Kong when she was younger, and she understands but barely speaks Cantonese. On top of that, her older brother, who's a year from graduation, will be staying behind to attend boarding school, and her dad will be traveling extensively for work in China. This is a coming-of-age immigrant memoir with a twist that highlights the complex nature of migration: While many such stories take the characters somewhere new, Ruth and her family are ultimately returning to her parents' home, albeit one that's unfamiliar to Ruth. A story-within-a-story retelling of Ruth's father's family's flight during the Sino-Japanese War in the 1940s provides further depth and context. Chan illustrates the stories with her signature humor and wit. The panels, colored in a soothing palette, feature clean lines and vividly express the characters' range of feelings. Many of Ruth's reflections on her extended Chinese family will ring true to those with Asian or immigrant families: A family tree that starts with Poh Poh and Gong Gong and ends with "NOT EVEN GONNA TRY" and an unwelcome encounter with a dish of chicken feet will have readers laughing in recognition. Earnest, funny, and evocative. (language note, author's note)(Graphic memoir. 8-14)

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