sophie5927's review against another edition
4.0
Okay so I really really did like this read. I loved every aspect of it, from the family drama to the roommate situation to her struggle with becoming a doctor to her romance with Darren. Despite all of this, there was something about Mei herself that didn’t sit well with me for the first half-ish of the book. I still don’t know what it is, it may have just been the way she was written because she was still figuring out herself who she was, but otherwise great book that deals well with some cases of immigrants children and their struggle in America.
angelicasreads's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this so much! I was pleasantly surprised by this one. It was equal parts funny and earnest, heartwarming and heartbreaking and it was so good!
I laughed so hard while reading this book. And no, I don’t mean awkward little smiles and little huffs of air. No. I actually laughed out loud the entire time. I was reading it between class breaks at school and I keep getting weird looks from people as I tried to contain my laughter. And the way I see it, if a book can make you look like a fool and you still keep reading it, then it must be a good book!
The writing was good. The plot was nicely done. And the characters were compelling, especially Mei’s mom. She ended up being my favorite, as well as a very complex character despite her first impression.
So, why not the full five stars, you may ask. Well, I just don’t feel like this is as strong as my previous five-star rated books. While this was fun at the moment, I don’t think that it will withstand the test of time and it will make me want to reread it. As much as I liked it, it didn’t quite make it into my list of favorites.
Overall, this book was great. I highly recommend it. It’s a quick read that is both fun and wonderfully diverse. I look forward to the author’s future work.
This review first appeared on The Book Cover Girl blog.
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I laughed so hard while reading this book. And no, I don’t mean awkward little smiles and little huffs of air. No. I actually laughed out loud the entire time. I was reading it between class breaks at school and I keep getting weird looks from people as I tried to contain my laughter. And the way I see it, if a book can make you look like a fool and you still keep reading it, then it must be a good book!
The writing was good. The plot was nicely done. And the characters were compelling, especially Mei’s mom. She ended up being my favorite, as well as a very complex character despite her first impression.
So, why not the full five stars, you may ask. Well, I just don’t feel like this is as strong as my previous five-star rated books. While this was fun at the moment, I don’t think that it will withstand the test of time and it will make me want to reread it. As much as I liked it, it didn’t quite make it into my list of favorites.
Overall, this book was great. I highly recommend it. It’s a quick read that is both fun and wonderfully diverse. I look forward to the author’s future work.
This review first appeared on The Book Cover Girl blog.
Follow Me Here Too: My Blog || Twitter || Bloglovin' || Instagram || Tumblr || Pinterest
candy31385's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ancillary_reader's review against another edition
2.0
I appreciate having more diversity in YA books, but this one felt particularly heavy handed and stereotypical/unoriginal to the point it almost felt like a caricature of a 2nd generation Asian-American experience.
zaheerah's review against another edition
5.0
Content warning: ableist language, fat-antagonism, the death of a family member and mentions of suicide. (If you've read the book and felt like I've missed something out, please tell me!)
At seventeen, Mei is a freshman at MIT and on the road to complete her parent’s dreams for her: become a doctor, marry their preapproved suitor and continue their family line with children. Living in fear of being disowned like her older brother, Mei can’t seem to bring herself to tell her family her real dream lies with dance. Now she’s away from home and falling in love and learning the truth that could possibly shatter her future forever.
I’m not going to lie, I was surprised by how much I loved this book. I was genuinely thrown off by how much I ended up liking this. The narrative was so compelling as we watch Mei struggle with her overbearing parents and how cultural differences clash with what she wants to achieve – I really enjoyed the emphasis on the issue not being with cultural differences but how her parents use it to put their happiness over Mei’s. Even though Mei as a character and myself are worlds apart, I found her journey so relatable and it had me in tears at so many moments.
Honestly, Mei’s development was one of the best parts of this entire novel. We watch her try to struggle between being a good daughter while also wanting to follow her dreams and you get caught up very quickly in her emotions. She starts off as a sheltered kid who does her best to keep up with her parent’s expectation to slowly learning that it’s okay to not be the perfect image she’s expected to upkeep. And she slowly learns to get rid of the initial stereotypes she holds over other. Chao does an excellent job of portraying the drama between her and her family, which was so heartbreaking to read. Mei’s mother took a long time to grow on her, but you honestly develop a sense of appreciation for her, especially towards the end of the book and how the very same family issues and cultural values that affect Mei has had an impact on her.
The background characters all have my heart. And I loved how Mei’s personal development with all of them ended so happily. Especially with Darren and Nicolette.
Overall, Chao’s debut novel is a hit for me. It was such an emotional rollercoaster and a profoundly personal read that I recommend to anyone.
At seventeen, Mei is a freshman at MIT and on the road to complete her parent’s dreams for her: become a doctor, marry their preapproved suitor and continue their family line with children. Living in fear of being disowned like her older brother, Mei can’t seem to bring herself to tell her family her real dream lies with dance. Now she’s away from home and falling in love and learning the truth that could possibly shatter her future forever.
I’m not going to lie, I was surprised by how much I loved this book. I was genuinely thrown off by how much I ended up liking this. The narrative was so compelling as we watch Mei struggle with her overbearing parents and how cultural differences clash with what she wants to achieve – I really enjoyed the emphasis on the issue not being with cultural differences but how her parents use it to put their happiness over Mei’s. Even though Mei as a character and myself are worlds apart, I found her journey so relatable and it had me in tears at so many moments.
Honestly, Mei’s development was one of the best parts of this entire novel. We watch her try to struggle between being a good daughter while also wanting to follow her dreams and you get caught up very quickly in her emotions. She starts off as a sheltered kid who does her best to keep up with her parent’s expectation to slowly learning that it’s okay to not be the perfect image she’s expected to upkeep. And she slowly learns to get rid of the initial stereotypes she holds over other. Chao does an excellent job of portraying the drama between her and her family, which was so heartbreaking to read. Mei’s mother took a long time to grow on her, but you honestly develop a sense of appreciation for her, especially towards the end of the book and how the very same family issues and cultural values that affect Mei has had an impact on her.
The background characters all have my heart. And I loved how Mei’s personal development with all of them ended so happily. Especially with Darren and Nicolette.
Overall, Chao’s debut novel is a hit for me. It was such an emotional rollercoaster and a profoundly personal read that I recommend to anyone.
supallis0n's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
emjrasmussen's review against another edition
I loved this book?? So much??
Mei is such a wonderful, vivid main character. American Panda is a pretty character-driven book, which works SO WELL because it’s basically impossible NOT to fall in love with/cheer for Mei. Her struggle between family v. personal identity is beautifully portrayed and had me on the verge of tears (both happy, sad, and bittersweet) multiple times.
Also: a YA book set during the protagonist’s freshman year at uni! I’m here for this!
Mei is such a wonderful, vivid main character. American Panda is a pretty character-driven book, which works SO WELL because it’s basically impossible NOT to fall in love with/cheer for Mei. Her struggle between family v. personal identity is beautifully portrayed and had me on the verge of tears (both happy, sad, and bittersweet) multiple times.
Also: a YA book set during the protagonist’s freshman year at uni! I’m here for this!
ennitsud's review against another edition
5.0
this was such a cute and pretty relatable book. many of the anxieties that mei went through are things that i have worried over and still worry over today–being a role model, pursuing a career that makes lots of money and is stable, getting the best grades. unfortunately for my parents, while i am pursuing a not-so-bad major (it's still not anything medical so it's not the best. whelp.), i'm still not sure what i want to do and it's approaching deadbeat territory. and having the strict parents plus the traditions and those damn superstitions (my mom's very big on the bad of my zodiac signs–chinese and the other–and constantly likes to tell me to watch out and read my horoscopes).
but outside of those relatable aspects, reading about mei's specific taiwanese-american experience was interesting. the anxieties of trying to impress her parents and also trying to be herself were issues i felt when i was just a freshmen (i still feel, but less). reading about her family's traditions, (her aunt is wild) and how it tore the family apart nearly tore my heart apart. but the changing relationship between her, her mom, and her brother made me uwu and i'm so happy that her and her roommate are getting along. and then darren. the sweetheart!! ahhhh!
overall, a cute, witty, and somewhat eye-opening story!
but outside of those relatable aspects, reading about mei's specific taiwanese-american experience was interesting. the anxieties of trying to impress her parents and also trying to be herself were issues i felt when i was just a freshmen (i still feel, but less). reading about her family's traditions, (her aunt is wild) and how it tore the family apart nearly tore my heart apart. but the changing relationship between her, her mom, and her brother made me uwu and i'm so happy that her and her roommate are getting along. and then darren. the sweetheart!! ahhhh!
overall, a cute, witty, and somewhat eye-opening story!
evybird's review against another edition
4.0
3.6 stars.
I reeeally liked a lot of things about this book. The romance is cute and believable. I found Mei to be a great character. I liked the way her relationship with her roommate developed. I liked all the bits about MIT culture. From my outside perspective, the examination of Taiwanese culture and traditions seemed really great; I liked how many different sides of the Taiwanese-American experience the author presents. I was entertained by the plot.
The book didn't absolutely blow me away, but I have no real problems with it and my true rating is probably a solid 4 stars.
However, the audiobook.
I did like that the audiobook narrator was a native Chinese speaker, which was great for all the Chinese words and phrases thrown in throughout the book. This is one of the best things about audiobooks.
But, in the end, the audiobook ruined the experience of reading this novel. The narrator had a quiet "whisper" voice, and a loud voice that she used exclusively for some of the more dynamic dialogue. This means that she whispers almost the entire novel.
Consequently, I could not hear the narration at all if I was anywhere outside of my apartment, despite having the volume up to max. If I was on the bus, I'd have to mostly stop listening. If I was walking down the street and a car went by, I'd have to pause or miss parts of the book. If I was on the subway, not a chance. Since commuting is where I regularly do all my listening, outside of like 20 minutes a day doing the dishes or whatever (which rarely worked either, since the water was too loud), this was a HUGE PROBLEM.
And this wasn't just me having bad ears, which I did consider quite frequently. I've started my next audiobook now, and am back to being able to listen on transit. Leaps and bounds better.
The whispering thing made this book half way to impossible to get through. It made me frustrated and angry!! Not to mention, the tone itself got annoying after a while. Listening to someone talk to you under their breath will begin to grate at your nerves after 30 minutes or so.
Do audiobook narrators realize that when they use different volumes, it just means we have to adjust the volume on our headphones to compensate?? It doesn't actually work well as a narration style, sorry.
I feel a bit uncomfortable giving the book a lower rating because of an issue that doesn't really have anything to do with the novel itself, but on the other had, I'm angry and frustrated, and it definitely impacted my experience with the novel. So while my rating of the audiobook alone would probably be a 2-3 (out of frustration and anger lol), I'm giving this book a 3.6, which is how I feel with my experience having been diminished by the stupid whispering, and rounding up to a solid 4, 4/5 probably being my true feelings about the book, had I read it in print. That doesn't make a ton of sense but whatever, I can do what I want.
Anyway, maybe I just need better headphones.
I reeeally liked a lot of things about this book. The romance is cute and believable. I found Mei to be a great character. I liked the way her relationship with her roommate developed. I liked all the bits about MIT culture. From my outside perspective, the examination of Taiwanese culture and traditions seemed really great; I liked how many different sides of the Taiwanese-American experience the author presents. I was entertained by the plot.
The book didn't absolutely blow me away, but I have no real problems with it and my true rating is probably a solid 4 stars.
However, the audiobook.
I did like that the audiobook narrator was a native Chinese speaker, which was great for all the Chinese words and phrases thrown in throughout the book. This is one of the best things about audiobooks.
But, in the end, the audiobook ruined the experience of reading this novel. The narrator had a quiet "whisper" voice, and a loud voice that she used exclusively for some of the more dynamic dialogue. This means that she whispers almost the entire novel.
Consequently, I could not hear the narration at all if I was anywhere outside of my apartment, despite having the volume up to max. If I was on the bus, I'd have to mostly stop listening. If I was walking down the street and a car went by, I'd have to pause or miss parts of the book. If I was on the subway, not a chance. Since commuting is where I regularly do all my listening, outside of like 20 minutes a day doing the dishes or whatever (which rarely worked either, since the water was too loud), this was a HUGE PROBLEM.
And this wasn't just me having bad ears, which I did consider quite frequently. I've started my next audiobook now, and am back to being able to listen on transit. Leaps and bounds better.
The whispering thing made this book half way to impossible to get through. It made me frustrated and angry!! Not to mention, the tone itself got annoying after a while. Listening to someone talk to you under their breath will begin to grate at your nerves after 30 minutes or so.
Do audiobook narrators realize that when they use different volumes, it just means we have to adjust the volume on our headphones to compensate?? It doesn't actually work well as a narration style, sorry.
I feel a bit uncomfortable giving the book a lower rating because of an issue that doesn't really have anything to do with the novel itself, but on the other had, I'm angry and frustrated, and it definitely impacted my experience with the novel. So while my rating of the audiobook alone would probably be a 2-3 (out of frustration and anger lol), I'm giving this book a 3.6, which is how I feel with my experience having been diminished by the stupid whispering, and rounding up to a solid 4, 4/5 probably being my true feelings about the book, had I read it in print. That doesn't make a ton of sense but whatever, I can do what I want.
Anyway, maybe I just need better headphones.