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happylilkt's review against another edition
3.0
This was a cute YA novel about a 17-year-old Taiwanese-American college freshman at MIT trying to navigate her own goals and ambitions while her family's expectations weigh heavily on her.
There is a LOT of Mandarin sprinkled throughout, but it's integrated smoothly enough that it mostly works for a reader like me who doesn't know any of the language. Some of the conflict and culture seem a little stereotypical at times, but the author's note makes it clear that it's drawn from her and her friends' experiences. Overall, I think young adults who come from families with high expectations will find a lot of this relatable.
Note: Quite a bit of language and some sexual humor/comedic situations. No bedroom scenes.
There is a LOT of Mandarin sprinkled throughout, but it's integrated smoothly enough that it mostly works for a reader like me who doesn't know any of the language. Some of the conflict and culture seem a little stereotypical at times, but the author's note makes it clear that it's drawn from her and her friends' experiences. Overall, I think young adults who come from families with high expectations will find a lot of this relatable.
Note: Quite a bit of language and some sexual humor/comedic situations. No bedroom scenes.
ashction's review against another edition
5.0
I really, really loved this one. 4.5 stars!
It's not only really cute; you can tell how Chao has really put in her own experience in these words because it is raw and emotional. Even though I'm not racially diverse, I love seeing more diverse books on the market that let me experience different cultures as much as I love another good story coming into the world! I also love that subtle shout-out to the potential film/TV adaptation of this - I hope this story (and Chao's future works, if she writes them) have a long-lasting legacy and impact in paving the way for more fantastic, diverse lit.
It's not only really cute; you can tell how Chao has really put in her own experience in these words because it is raw and emotional. Even though I'm not racially diverse, I love seeing more diverse books on the market that let me experience different cultures as much as I love another good story coming into the world! I also love that subtle shout-out to the potential film/TV adaptation of this - I hope this story (and Chao's future works, if she writes them) have a long-lasting legacy and impact in paving the way for more fantastic, diverse lit.
jenmangler's review against another edition
3.0
This is a good culture clash story about having the courage to be yourself. Young adults who feel torn between the expectations their parents have for them and their own interests and passions will really get Mei. Young adults who love so much about their culture and yet feel constrained by some of its traditions will really get Mei.
danicapage's review against another edition
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
4.0
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: Gloria's debut novel was entertaining and engaging. Mei, like many first-generation Chinese Americans (Taiwanese Americans), feels like she can't escape the weight of her parents' expectations. The author did a great job painting Mei's angst and anxiety in trying to fulfill those dreams with her own dreams. Mei had her own character flaws, but she grew as the novel progressed. I enjoyed the supporting characters and the relationship Mei developed with Darren. The debut shines, and I'm curious to read more by the author. This book mainly focuses on character growth and character progression rather than plot. The plot isn't surprising or shocking, so if you like more plot-centric books this may not be for you, but I enjoyed this one.
I liked how Gloria Chao seamlessly depicted what it means to be Chinese/Taiwanese American, first-gen, and belonging in general.
Content: This is a new adult book with some sexual innuendos and strong language. Some high-level sexual content appropriate for 16+ (ish).
Love,
Danica Page
My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: Gloria's debut novel was entertaining and engaging. Mei, like many first-generation Chinese Americans (Taiwanese Americans), feels like she can't escape the weight of her parents' expectations. The author did a great job painting Mei's angst and anxiety in trying to fulfill those dreams with her own dreams. Mei had her own character flaws, but she grew as the novel progressed. I enjoyed the supporting characters and the relationship Mei developed with Darren. The debut shines, and I'm curious to read more by the author. This book mainly focuses on character growth and character progression rather than plot. The plot isn't surprising or shocking, so if you like more plot-centric books this may not be for you, but I enjoyed this one.
I liked how Gloria Chao seamlessly depicted what it means to be Chinese/Taiwanese American, first-gen, and belonging in general.
Content: This is a new adult book with some sexual innuendos and strong language. Some high-level sexual content appropriate for 16+ (ish).
Love,
Danica Page
alivaster's review against another edition
3.0
I was really excited to read this book when I found it. I understood most of the language and having read so many books not having an Asian main character or family, I could identify with the main character better. Mei ultimately felt pretty realistic, which is probably because it's pretty much the author's story in fictional form. The main character's likeness is even the same as the author - the mole that's off-center on the forehead.
The book was overall amusing, but I can't justify putting down more stars. Ultimately, while it was a fun read, there were some things that needed better explanation or translation so that other readers - who don't know the language - could understand it. If you're going to explain some words and parts of the book, explain them all to make it more consistent for the reader. Additionally, the characters weren't entirely fully formed and more character development was needed. While Mei seems to be well-rounded, her boyfriend, Darren, wasn't. I wanted to like him more, but just didn't know what was so immensely special about him. I didn't love him, and I wasn't entirely cheering for him.
Overall, I give kudos to the writer for capturing a good amount of culture and diversity into the book, I was just disappointed in character development and some realism issues.
The book was overall amusing, but I can't justify putting down more stars. Ultimately, while it was a fun read, there were some things that needed better explanation or translation so that other readers - who don't know the language - could understand it. If you're going to explain some words and parts of the book, explain them all to make it more consistent for the reader. Additionally, the characters weren't entirely fully formed and more character development was needed. While Mei seems to be well-rounded, her boyfriend, Darren, wasn't. I wanted to like him more, but just didn't know what was so immensely special about him. I didn't love him, and I wasn't entirely cheering for him.
Overall, I give kudos to the writer for capturing a good amount of culture and diversity into the book, I was just disappointed in character development and some realism issues.
daumari's review against another edition
4.0
Not-entirely-intentional YA stretch continues! First off, I'm glad this book exists. Contemporary YA for Asian Americans is necessary- growing up I can think of [a:Lensey Namioka|26612|Lensey Namioka|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1209043915p2/26612.jpg]'s Yang siblings and some of [a:Laurence Yep|14199|Laurence Yep|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1208559025p2/14199.jpg]'s stuff ([b:Ribbons|25284|Ribbons|Laurence Yep|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1392175703s/25284.jpg|26028], [b:The Cook's Family|25265|The Cook's Family|Laurence Yep|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1167628964s/25265.jpg|2927742] etc.) but it'd be nice to count authors on more than one hand.
American Panda is a cute debut novel. While we've seen variations on the "Tiger parents" scenario in other stories, have any really addressed what happens when a sibling is disowned? Four years prior to the start of the story, Mei's brother was cut off from family for loving a girl with reproductive issues, so all of the pressure to be the perfect golden child now falls on her shoulders. It's a lot to deal with alongside a first year at college (and while a teenager to boot) and grappling with the idea that maybe germophobes don't make great doctors.
I'm 3rd or 4th generation depending on which side you look at, so I certainly don't have similar pressures as Mei (I've been told it's not a race to have kids lol), but dealing with estrangement from people who love you but are holding you at arms length because of that love? oooh resonance. At least one of my rating stars is for Xing because that is a hella rough place to be in, especially while taking the high road in interactions. I also recall older generations having very negative associations with Japanese people, somewhat justified by personal experience but not a good enough excuse to yell at a pair of 20 somethings in the 90s, so that too has some truth grains for me.
The author is clearly an MIT grad, because there's a lot of very granular detail that's likely understood by people who went there. I went to a talk recently where the speaker said, "It's okay to have multiple identities", and the presence of Taiwanese, dance, and MIT-specific shibboleths speaks to that. I do think the "I'm here a year younger than my peers because I skipped a grade!" thing could've been explored more because teen girl anxiety (or maybe it's for the best it wasn't, because a year off doesn't seem that out of the ordinary?)
American Panda is a cute debut novel. While we've seen variations on the "Tiger parents" scenario in other stories, have any really addressed what happens when a sibling is disowned? Four years prior to the start of the story, Mei's brother was cut off from family for loving a girl with reproductive issues, so all of the pressure to be the perfect golden child now falls on her shoulders. It's a lot to deal with alongside a first year at college (and while a teenager to boot) and grappling with the idea that maybe germophobes don't make great doctors.
I'm 3rd or 4th generation depending on which side you look at, so I certainly don't have similar pressures as Mei (I've been told it's not a race to have kids lol), but dealing with estrangement from people who love you but are holding you at arms length because of that love? oooh resonance. At least one of my rating stars is for Xing because that is a hella rough place to be in, especially while taking the high road in interactions. I also recall older generations having very negative associations with Japanese people, somewhat justified by personal experience but not a good enough excuse to yell at a pair of 20 somethings in the 90s, so that too has some truth grains for me.
The author is clearly an MIT grad, because there's a lot of very granular detail that's likely understood by people who went there. I went to a talk recently where the speaker said, "It's okay to have multiple identities", and the presence of Taiwanese, dance, and MIT-specific shibboleths speaks to that. I do think the "I'm here a year younger than my peers because I skipped a grade!" thing could've been explored more because teen girl anxiety (or maybe it's for the best it wasn't, because a year off doesn't seem that out of the ordinary?)
anaffpereira's review against another edition
3.0
This is both a heartwarming and impactful reading: sometimes funny and witty, other times emotional and conflicting.
I’ve heard people that know Chinese/Taiwanese culture better than me saying that some issues seem rather stereotypical and, unfortunately, I’ll have to agree. Even the characterization of Darren, the Japanese boy, was rather banal; I still don’t understand how “spiky anime hair” works in real-life, but okay… That felt a little low effort.
Nevertheless, the pacing was what put me off the most: some chapters felt disconnected, and I could never guess the temporal gap between the events.
Those two chapters where Mei follows the doctor around at the clinic and where she takes part in an anatomy lesson were just ridiculous. You can’t simply blurt out “Can I watch?” and NO doctor in the real-world would say “Sure, come along while I practice medicine”. That little chapter where Mei is at the financial office and accidentally meets the boy that her mother wishes her to date is too unrealistic as well; don’t “Harvard students come to MIT all of the time” me, narrator, it was ludicrous and forced.
I still found the book enjoyable and important though, but there were a lot of little things that made this book a 3 star for me.
I’ve heard people that know Chinese/Taiwanese culture better than me saying that some issues seem rather stereotypical and, unfortunately, I’ll have to agree. Even the characterization of Darren, the Japanese boy, was rather banal; I still don’t understand how “spiky anime hair” works in real-life, but okay… That felt a little low effort.
Nevertheless, the pacing was what put me off the most: some chapters felt disconnected, and I could never guess the temporal gap between the events.
Those two chapters where Mei follows the doctor around at the clinic and where she takes part in an anatomy lesson were just ridiculous. You can’t simply blurt out “Can I watch?” and NO doctor in the real-world would say “Sure, come along while I practice medicine”. That little chapter where Mei is at the financial office and accidentally meets the boy that her mother wishes her to date is too unrealistic as well; don’t “Harvard students come to MIT all of the time” me, narrator, it was ludicrous and forced.
I still found the book enjoyable and important though, but there were a lot of little things that made this book a 3 star for me.
phoenix2's review against another edition
3.0
American Panda was an okay read. As I'm not a fan of contemporary YA with romance as the main theme, I was skeptical about reading this one. But, American Panda was not what I was expecting. It concentrated more on the family dynamics and the journey that Mei (the main character and narrator) had to take to find herself, rather than MIT student life and finding a boyfriend. I enjoyed reading about the chinese-american cultural differences (while watching Fresh off the boat) and the age gap and how that was enhanced by the cultural differences between Mei, Xing and their parents. The ending was also kind of realistic. I also enjoyed Darren, who was the perfect love interest for this story, as he was cute and he didn't overshadow the main story. Finally, the pace was quick and the writing smooth and simple, so this is a quick read.
Unfortunately, there were some parts that I didn't like. Mei, even though she was an okay character, was annoying at some point. Also, her big revolution happened very fast for me and it wasn't a smooth transposition. The chinese words were confusing as well, as I'm not really familiar with the language as I'm with japanese. Thus, I felt like I was missing some important details when I had to ignore them. Finally, and this is me nitpicking, the mother was presented at first to have difficulties with english but the author kind of forgot about it (?) as the story progressed.
Unfortunately, there were some parts that I didn't like. Mei, even though she was an okay character, was annoying at some point. Also, her big revolution happened very fast for me and it wasn't a smooth transposition. The chinese words were confusing as well, as I'm not really familiar with the language as I'm with japanese. Thus, I felt like I was missing some important details when I had to ignore them. Finally, and this is me nitpicking, the mother was presented at first to have difficulties with english but the author kind of forgot about it (?) as the story progressed.
amymiller's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
daniber's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5