- No wait, no problems
- What's new?
- Popular titles
- Check these out!
- Readalongs
- See all ebooks collections
0 of 2 copies available
This "timely and compelling" (Kirkus Reviews) middle grade novel about courage, hope, and resilience follows an Asian American boy fighting to keep his family together and stand up to racism during the initial outbreak of the coronavirus.
When the coronavirus hits Hong Kong, ten-year-old Knox Wei-Evans's mom makes the last-minute decision to move him and his siblings back to California, where they think they will be safe. Suddenly, Knox has two days to prepare for an international move—and for leaving his dad, who has to stay for work.
At his new school in California, Knox struggles with being the new kid. His classmates think that because he's from Asia, he must have brought over the virus. At home, Mom just got fired and is panicking over the loss of health insurance, and Dad doesn't even know when he'll see them again, since the flights have been cancelled. And everyone struggles with Knox's blurting-things-out problem.
As racism skyrockets during COVID-19, Knox tries to stand up to hate, while finding his place in his new country. Can you belong if you're feared; can you protect if you're new? And how do you keep a family together when you're oceans apart? Sometimes when the world is spinning out of control, the best way to get through it is to embrace our own lovable uniqueness.
-
Creators
-
Publisher
-
Release date
March 1, 2022 -
Formats
-
OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781797136608
- File size: 232695 KB
- Duration: 08:04:46
-
-
Languages
- English
-
Levels
- Lexile® Measure: 630
- Text Difficulty: 2-3
-
Reviews
-
January 24, 2022
Drawing deeply from her own family’s experiences, Yang (the Front Desk series) pens a tender, resonant narrative following the Wei-Evans, an American family living in Hong Kong when news of Covid-19 arises in January 2020. Middle child Knox, 10, who has a “blurting-things-out problem,” doesn’t want to leave his best friend—his white father—in Hong Kong as his work-focused Chinese mother, overachieving 12-year-old brother Bowen, and cheery six-year-old sister Lea plan to head to an inherited home in El Tercera, Calif. But soon, the oft-squabbling siblings must adjust to a single-parent household, East Bay schools, financial tension, an ADHD diagnosis for Knox, and mounting anti-Asian racism, including hateful confrontations as well as avoidance of Chinese people and food. Banding together, the siblings launch Operation Dad Come Over: raising money to afford their father’s plane ticket, and applying to jobs on his behalf. Narrating from Knox’s approachable, first-person-present perspective, Yang adeptly maintains a sense of hope and belief in love, balancing haunting dramatic irony (“That won’t happen in America.... They have the most advanced medical system in the world”) with moments of levity as the family works to be reunited. Back matter features an author’s note. Ages 8–12. Agent: Tina Dubois, ICM Partners. -
Sensitivity and verve characterize Justin Chien's narration of this heartfelt story. Ten-year-old Knox is the middle child in a biracial family. Impulsive and tenderhearted, he has the hardest time leaving his father in Hong Kong when he flies with his mom and siblings to San Francisco to avoid the pandemic. Sadly, COVID-19 and anti-Asian prejudice follow them. Chien's sincerity and depth of feeling make these situations relatable. The audiobook ends with a note on the author's own pandemic experiences. Her family got her through it, she says, along with their understanding that "love is the only vaccine against hate." S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine -
Starred review from October 1, 2022
Gr 4-7-Narrator Justin Chien elevates Yang's latest, expertly distinguishing every member of the biracial Wei-Evans family. In January 2020, the United States is Covid-free, so Chinese American Mom and white American Dad reluctantly split the family, with Mom and three kids returning to their Oakland home while Dad and pup remain in Hong Kong for work. Middle child Knox narrates, revealing his growing anxiety about their overwhelmed parents, repeated bullying, oppressive racism, his new (Chinese American) best friend. Chien endows distinct personalities on rambunctiously earnest Knox, controlling older brother Bowen, adorably wise Lea. He's impressively empathic as best friend Christopher trying to save his family's Chinese restaurant. Even the 'bad guys' avoid becoming caricatures, from the racist dog owner to the opportunistic sanitizer-hoarding scammers. VERDICT Listen while you can: a new Netflix series just grabbed Chien as Michelle Yeoh's costar, surely curtailing Chien's short-but-impressive audiobook career.
Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
-