Reviews

Girl in Translation, by Jean Kwok

rimke_vandenes's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

kjohnston01's review

hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.0

angieinbooks's review

3.0

Kim and her mom immigrate to New York from Hong Kong for the chance to start a new life in America and live the American Dream. But life doesn't pan out for them the way they think it will. Forced to live in squalor and to work backbreaking hours at Kim's aunt's sweatshop, Kim and her mom find themselves in an impossible situation. And neither of them speak English. But Kim is clever, conveniently genius-level, but she works hard and not without mishaps and failures, and she shines despite everything she's up against.

This was exactly the book I needed to read right now: quick, enthralling, funny, heartwarming. Kim's story is not easy to read, but there's such a humanity in her narration. She maintains a great sense of humor and there are a few things to celebrate: her relationship with her mother, her friendships with Annette and Matt, the educators fighting for Kim even when she's not aware of it. But there is a lot that is hard to read. Life in the sweatshop is hard and dangerous, their apartment is uninhabitable, her aunt is vindictive, manipulative, just downright evil.

I loved this book. I loved the first two-thirds, but the last third really missed the mark for me. Kim, despite all the odds against her, thrives. She succeeds when it seems like nothing will go right for her. Yes, she's brilliant, but she works hard to achieve her success.

Spoiler

So it's incredibly frustrating that the last part of the story talks about her regret for letting Matt go. For not following her heart to be with him. This story turns into a sappy romance that it doesn't need to be. This is Kim's story. Hers and her mom's. I like Matt. I like that he was good to her and her mom, but their lives could not have worked in tandem. Kim ultimately chooses herself, and it's the right decision. She becomes a successful surgeon, going through Yale and Harvard medical school as a single mother, pulling herself and her mother out of poverty. She does this and meets Matt years later. He's married now and has a family. He still lives in Chinatown, as he told her he would. He's a success in his way, too, having pulled himself from poverty. But they wouldn't have made each other happy. Kim knows this. Matt knows this. And yet it the last moments of the book center on her regret. I was just frustrated by the message that sent--that despite all of Kim's triumph and success, she's still pining for a boy who would have held her back.

brynebo's review

4.0

Wow, what a beautiful book. Beautifully sad, beautifully happy. I have to admit that I had trouble getting into this book in the beginning. It may have been because I have been reading a lot of "keep you on the edge of your seat" books lately and Girl in Translation definitely does not fall in that category. But after I got my ADD under control, I couldn't help but love it.

ccpetrikas's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

murasaki_egawa's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

 

While reading "Girl in Translation" it reminds me of a friend that had almost similar experience as Kim in the book.  This friend came to Canada from Hong Kong with her family (parents and older brothers) while she was five. It was her uncle who helped her family on immigration. They live on top of their uncle's restaurant, and work in her uncle's restaurant with a very low salary (even free if the work is done by children). 

I truly believe education is the key to escape the cycle of poverty.  But by looking at the school that my kids are in, I notice the school is not providing equal opportunity for all students. Just like in the book, Kim doesn't have a TV or newspaper to get information about current events. Not every kid in school has a cellphone or technology that they can finish their school work. And with some kids having data and some only able to use school wifi, it creates another unfair race while competing with bonus marks in some courses. 

storymel2023's review

4.0

Well written and good storytelling. I found it hard to get into at first because the conditions Kim and her mom had to live with was terrible. Eventually I realized the book gave a relevant depiction of first generation Chinese immigrants to NYC, and what it took to come out of poverty. I didn't like the ending of the book, but maybe you will.

hi_iam_jil's review

funny inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

sallielu's review

4.0

4.5/5 It was so difficult to put this book down. Such a compelling story about a poor Chinese immigrant's experience trying to survive in America. It really touched me, to feel like some adjacent parts of my own life felt vaguely represented.

I especially enjoyed how the author provided the literal translation of Cantonese phrases in the dialogue and then would explain the English equivalent meaning.

A story that should be read.

ktrok's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5