littlelibrarian_'s review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
ljrinaldi's review against another edition
5.0
The thing about being either a child of immigrants, or an immigrant yourself, at least in the U.S., is that you try your darndest to fit in. You want to be liked. You want to be “normal”. Unlike children whose families have been here for generations, and can afford be a little strange, you do not have that luxury.
Laura Gao’s Messy Roots is about her life first as a small child in Wuhan, while her parents were going to college in the US, to when she came to live with them in Texas, and had to learn to fit into a new life there, in the very white part of town, where she was the only Asian.
The book follows her, up until just about the time of the beginning of the global pandemic, and the increase in Asian hate. Through it all, she is trying to claim herself, her identity. This is always tricky, because, while you want to fit in, you also want to find yourself.
This is one of those graphic memoirs that I will probably have to read several times to get things I missed the first time through.
Very deep, but with humor as well. There was a page where she is saying that if she couldn’t date a doctor, then a rocket scientist should work just as well for her parents.
Highly recommend this. All the stars. (five) for this.
Laura Gao’s Messy Roots is about her life first as a small child in Wuhan, while her parents were going to college in the US, to when she came to live with them in Texas, and had to learn to fit into a new life there, in the very white part of town, where she was the only Asian.
The book follows her, up until just about the time of the beginning of the global pandemic, and the increase in Asian hate. Through it all, she is trying to claim herself, her identity. This is always tricky, because, while you want to fit in, you also want to find yourself.
This is one of those graphic memoirs that I will probably have to read several times to get things I missed the first time through.
Very deep, but with humor as well. There was a page where she is saying that if she couldn’t date a doctor, then a rocket scientist should work just as well for her parents.
Highly recommend this. All the stars. (five) for this.
enomisnekal's review against another edition
5.0
This was a fantastic graphic novel memoir! I loved reading Laura Gao's story, and I am so thankful she shared it. It's important to respect others no matter what, and Messy Roots can be a great tool to open up dialogue about differences with teenagers. I highly recommend Messy Roots!
Thanks to my library and the publisher Balzer + Bray for an advanced reader copy! All opinions are my own.
Thanks to my library and the publisher Balzer + Bray for an advanced reader copy! All opinions are my own.
brookeisbusyreading's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
4.0
A queer memoir in graphic novel format? Wasn’t expecting it but I was thoroughly intrigued!
When it comes to graphic novels (and manga), I’ve noticed some books can lose a bit of continuity. In Messy Roots, there were a few places where the story jumped, mostly at the start of a new chapter where new relationships/characters were introduced. The book does a pretty good job of backtracking and explaining the connections but it could be a personal preference that I’m not crazy about that style of storytelling within the frames. I prefer a block or arrow with words telling me the name and relationship. I do understand the purpose of that approach so I won’t trash it.
The queer elements of Book Laura left me with a few more questions than when I started. Did she explore being bisexual? Is her sexuality a case of not questioning it until she was older? She had one openly queer friend but was he gay, trans, or something else? I’m genuinely curious.
Visually, there were some GORGEOUS pages! Having the book in color was a great choice! The illustrations from the story about Chang’e, especially the rabbit, were breathtaking! I remember the story from watching Netflix’s Over the Moon and how Author Laura wove it into this book was very well done! The symbolism with it and White Rabbit candy - which is delicious - I really enjoyed too!
I’m more giving the book 4 stars because of some of the continuity and the large number of characters, some of which only appeared briefly. (I know it’s a memoir and having friends for short periods of time is a real thing, I just can’t keep up with all of them.)
And it did seem, based on the book’s summary, that COVID-19 would play a big role in the story, but I didn’t get that while reading. Still a very deep, insightful, and visually striking book on culture, identity, and expectations!
When it comes to graphic novels (and manga), I’ve noticed some books can lose a bit of continuity. In Messy Roots, there were a few places where the story jumped, mostly at the start of a new chapter where new relationships/characters were introduced. The book does a pretty good job of backtracking and explaining the connections but it could be a personal preference that I’m not crazy about that style of storytelling within the frames. I prefer a block or arrow with words telling me the name and relationship. I do understand the purpose of that approach so I won’t trash it.
The queer elements of Book Laura left me with a few more questions than when I started. Did she explore being bisexual? Is her sexuality a case of not questioning it until she was older? She had one openly queer friend but was he gay, trans, or something else? I’m genuinely curious.
Visually, there were some GORGEOUS pages! Having the book in color was a great choice! The illustrations from the story about Chang’e, especially the rabbit, were breathtaking! I remember the story from watching Netflix’s Over the Moon and how Author Laura wove it into this book was very well done! The symbolism with it and White Rabbit candy - which is delicious - I really enjoyed too!
I’m more giving the book 4 stars because of some of the continuity and the large number of characters, some of which only appeared briefly. (I know it’s a memoir and having friends for short periods of time is a real thing, I just can’t keep up with all of them.)
And it did seem, based on the book’s summary, that COVID-19 would play a big role in the story, but I didn’t get that while reading. Still a very deep, insightful, and visually striking book on culture, identity, and expectations!
michellest's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve read a lot of graphic novels about identity recently, and I think this is one of my favorites. The marketing for it makes it seem like COVID would play a larger part in this story, but it’s really only about 5-10 pages in the book. This wasn’t really a problem, just a disconnect between the publisher and author.
abc27's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Laura Gao moves from Wuhan, China to live in Texas when she was five. Since then she felt like she could never fit in. Moving from home is hard, but trying to fit into the American Identity is even harder - Missing home constantly and most of all trying to find a group of people who understand and just get you is also quite a task. Laura Gao did an amazing job with this memoir. From wonderfully drawn illustrations to a story that'll bring you to tears. Overall, it felt like a confirmation that it's okay if its hard to find where you fit into.