Love, Love

March 27, 2020

Gr 3-7-Frances Chin is a Chinese American girl living in Detroit with her family. Her older sister Clara is losing her hair, and Frances wants to help her. She attempts to find the wig Clara wears to school but does not return home wearing, she observes her sister to see what could be making her hair fall out, and she tries to stay out of her parent's way as they try to find solutions. Chang's novel in verse thoughtfully addresses hair loss in children, being an immigrant in the United States, and the plight of kids who are worried but do not have the words to share their concern-whether they are too scared or too shy or just do not know what to say. Frances deals with isolation from her peers (she has only one real friend), and struggles connecting to other children who make fun of her and her sister because of their appearance and ethnicity. Frances lives in the shadow of her sister, and she has talents that her parents do not recognize because they are not strictly based in academic excellence. Her time on the tennis court allows her to be herself and forget about her worries-but that time is not always supported by her parents. VERDICT Chang speaks to readers who quietly observe the world and reminds those who do not to look around and to be kind. Thoughtful, heartbreaking, and honest, this is a must-purchase for middle grade shelves.-Lia Carruthers, Gill St. Bernard's School, Gladstone, NJ

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2020
Grades 4-6 Growing up as an immigrant can be difficult, even if you are fortunate enough to live in a well-to-do area. Eleven-year-old Frances is bullied at school, feels pressure from her parents to excel, and worries about her older sister, Clara, whose hair is falling out. She finds solace in playing tennis with her one Asian friend, and the two decide to play Nancy Drew to uncover Clara's problem. Told in verse, this fictionalized memoir speaks to the stresses experienced by many immigrant children, who often receive mixed messages urging them to take advantage of everything America has to offer but cautioning them to remain true to their first culture. Chang also shines a spotlight on the destructiveness of undiagnosed mental illness (Clara, who secretly pulls her own hair out, suffers from trichotillomania, a form of OCD). While it's unfortunate that the bullies are labeled Jewish, and it's disappointing that the ending offers little hope that tensions for these sisters will ease, Frances' experiences will resonate with many readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2020
This semiautobiographical verse novel begins with eleven-year-old Chinese American girl Frances Chin witnessing an attack on her older sister, Clara, behind their school. (Frances herself has endured taunts centered on race: "you're SO SO ugly / open your eyes / he laughs with his fingers pulling / his eyes to make / them squinty.") But with passive bystander classmates and a mother who stresses maintaining family honor, Frances remains silent, internalizing her feelings. The one place she feels a sense of control is on the tennis court, playing with her friend Annie and eventually on the school's team ("I feel like I can / lift the world with / my racket"). After noticing some worrying behaviors (and hair loss) in her sister, she finds and ultimately reads Clara's diary, which reveals Clara's struggles with trichotillomania, also called hair-pulling disorder. In a heartfelt scene, Frances overcomes emotional barriers and silently reveals to Clara that she knows her secret. Themes of bullying, empathy, family, and identity are explored through Chang's spare prose. The author elegantly expresses Frances's complex emotions and provides an intimate portrait of immigrant lives. An appended note provides insight into Chang's experience growing up in an immigrant family "not familiar with mental health issues such as trichotillomania." Kristine Techavanich

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2020
This semiautobiographical verse novel begins with eleven-year-old Chinese American girl Frances Chin witnessing an attack on her older sister, Clara, behind their school. (Frances herself has endured taunts centered on race: "you're SO SO ugly / open your eyes / he laughs with his fingers pulling / his eyes to make / them squinty.") But with passive bystander classmates and a mother who stresses maintaining family honor, Frances remains silent, internalizing her feelings. The one place she feels a sense of control is on the tennis court, playing with her friend Annie and eventually on the school's team ("I feel like I can / lift the world with / my racket"). After noticing some worrying behaviors (and hair loss) in her sister, she finds and ultimately reads Clara's diary, which reveals Clara's struggles with trichotillomania, also called hair-pulling disorder. In a heartfelt scene, Frances overcomes emotional barriers and silently reveals to Clara that she knows her secret. Themes of bullying, empathy, family, and identity are explored through Chang's spare prose. The author elegantly expresses Frances's complex emotions and provides an intimate portrait of immigrant lives. An appended note provides insight into Chang's experience growing up in an immigrant family "not familiar with mental health issues such as trichotillomania."

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from March 15, 2020
Rooted in personal experience, this novel in verse captures the trials of being a young Chinese immigrant in suburban Detroit. Frances Chin, the 11-year-old daughter of Chinese immigrants, struggles to adapt to life in America with her parents and older sister, Clara, who is experiencing inexplicable hair loss. Clara's only wig is stolen by school bullies. Endless doctors' appointments fail to unearth answers. Frances is bullied at school and feels overlooked at home. Like Nancy Drew, Frances becomes obsessed with determining the cause of Clara's hair loss. In five chapters of short, free-verse poems, Chang shows young Frances blossoming with the help of a friend named Annie, who is also Chinese American, and a tennis coach. Readers first see the pain and loneliness of being different before Annie's friendship distracts Frances from her daily troubles. Frances channels her frustration onto the tennis court under the tutelage of an interested coach, which gives her the strength and courage to find the root of her sister's illness. The starting point of a tennis match is stated as "love, love"--a place of equality. Amid the challenges of first-generation life, Frances grasps onto the hope that there is a level playing field in this country. This lyrical story shows that, for some, the pressure of success is hard to bear. In her author's note, Chang describes her sister's experiences with mental illness and provides links to resources. An expressive book of poetry that provides a glimpse at life in an immigrant family. (Verse fiction. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.