Description: All Jin Wang wants is to fit in. When his family moves to a new neighborhood, he suddenly finds that he's the only Chinese American student at his school. Jocks and bullies pick on him constantly, and he has hardly any friends. Then, to make matters worse, he falls in love with an all-American girl... Born to rule over all the monkeys in the world, the story of the Monkey King is one of the oldest and greatest Chinese fables. Adored by his subjects, master of the arts of kung-fu, he is the most powerful monkey on earth. But the Monkey King doesn't want to be a monkey. He wants to be hailed as a god... Chin-Kee is the ultimate negative Chinese stereotype, and he's ruining his cousin Danny's life. Danny's a popular kid at school, but every year Chin-Kee comes to visit, and every year Danny has to transfer to a new school to escape the shame. This year, though, things quickly go from bad to worse... Review: Yes, the description of this novel is very weird. Yes, this novel has many weird parts in it. Yes, you should read it. I had to read this novel for a college class I am taking, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint me at all: not for a book I would read on my own and definitely not for a school book! Although it is a lighter read, it does deal with mature themes such as identity and cultural assimilation, although it does so in a silly way that will make you laugh. I love how it brings up the conversation of identity but at a level that is easy to understand and relate to. The storyline is pretty great as well. The ending was a little off for me and could have used a bit more explanation or could have been tied together a little better, but the overall story was great. This novel is intended for an audience in the middle-grade range, which is awesome because it teaches very important lessons for a younger audience who might not understand it otherwise. It also has the very hilarious and well-known middle school humor. There is everything from first crushes to finding out who you truly are in this book. I loved it. Plus, there is also the story of a monkey king! It's awesome! Anyways, I am sorry for rambling and if any of this is incoherent. It is literally like one in the morning but I really wanted to create some new content for you guys! Thanks for reading my post, now go read the book! Rating: 4/5 |
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