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kaneli's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer and Terminal illness
Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent, Dementia, Grief, Vomit, Car accident, and Terminal illness
Minor: Racism and Car accident
sarah984's review against another edition
hopeful
sad
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? No
5.0
This book was fantastic, it really surprised me. I loved the writing, and the plot deftly handled subject matter like loss of a family member, personal identity and intergenerational trauma. The characters were super charming, and the way mythology tied into the story was well done.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Terminal illness
Moderate: Ableism, Cancer, Car accident, Death of parent, Dementia, and Vomit
Minor: Abandonment and Medical content
lilcoppertop's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Grief, Terminal illness, and Vomit
maryberthelsen's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Dementia
brogan7's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Dementia
Minor: Death of parent
thehaileybirdie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved this book so much! It was so melancholy
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Dementia, Death, Grief, and Terminal illness
Minor: Medical content
storiesandsidequests's review against another edition
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Diversity/Representation: Korean-American Protagonist and Author, LGBTQ+ side character
Content Warnings: death of a family member, cancer, dementia, racism
I picked this up because my local library and some bookshops were hyping this up after it won the Newberry Award. It was a quick and enjoyable middle grade book that incorporated Korean folktales and magical realism and deals with some heavier topics.
The main themes throughout the story are family, identity, and death. I enjoyed the way the family relationships developed and the growth Lily and her sister go through as siblings. At the beginning of the story, there is a wall that has grown between them, evident when Lily’s sister berates her for being a stereotypical QAG (Quiet Asian Girl). I enjoyed the way that Lily found her voice and was able to write her own ending to the Tiger’s story but I wish there had been more build of this hidden talent as a storyteller throughout the book. Before that moment, she always seemed very interested in hearing the stories but never told them herself.
It’s never explained if the things Lily experienced with the tiger happened purely in her head, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think it works well with the atmosphere of the story to leave it open to interpretation but the fact her halmoni who had dementia was the only other person able to see the tiger raises some questions about her own experience. There also seemed to be some inconsistencies in regard to the tiger’s character. The tiger is described as menacing and we are told that she is hunting Lily’s grandmother but once we meet her we never get that impression. Even from Lily’s point of view, there’s not a real sense of fear or threat.
I liked the use of Korean folktale stories as a way for Lily to process the changes in her life but I personally wished there was a better connection between the stories and the overall narrative. I also don’t understand why Halmoni was so intent on keeping the stories bottled up since they weren’t anything particularly scary. Granted, this book was targeted to younger children, but I felt like there could have been more depth to the stories. For instance, they alluded very briefly to the challenges Halmoni faced in the wake of the Korean American War but didn’t elaborate.
“Lily, when I tell my story, I am sad. So much of our family story is sad. And more than that: so much of Korean people story is sad. Long, long ago, Japan and United States people do wrong things to our country. But I don’t want to give you sad, angry stories. I don’t want to pass you those bad feelings.”
I think mentioning this but glossing over it does a disservice to readers. I understand wanting to protect children from the generational trauma of the war but children are not as delicate as adults often think they are and this could be an opportunity for Korean-American children to understand their heritage since US history curriculum does such a terrible job giving an unbiased account of certain events (if they even mention them at all).
As far as other characters go, Ricky wasn’t really necessary to the plot itself but served the purpose of bringing up race and stigma/perception around people who are different, particularly Asian-Americans. I liked the way the author included the incident of casual racism and stereotyping that happened when Ricky’s friends showed up and met Lily for the first time. Showing Ricky’s response and effort to understand more of Lily’s culture and connection with Halmoni was nice to see on the page.
Overall, the family relationships were well developed and the way the story deals with death and grief through magical stories was beautiful. Lily’s growth was wonderful to read and it was nice to see her write her own ending of the tiger’s story. I would highly recommend this book for younger readers.
Content Warnings: death of a family member, cancer, dementia, racism
I picked this up because my local library and some bookshops were hyping this up after it won the Newberry Award. It was a quick and enjoyable middle grade book that incorporated Korean folktales and magical realism and deals with some heavier topics.
The main themes throughout the story are family, identity, and death. I enjoyed the way the family relationships developed and the growth Lily and her sister go through as siblings. At the beginning of the story, there is a wall that has grown between them, evident when Lily’s sister berates her for being a stereotypical QAG (Quiet Asian Girl). I enjoyed the way that Lily found her voice and was able to write her own ending to the Tiger’s story but I wish there had been more build of this hidden talent as a storyteller throughout the book. Before that moment, she always seemed very interested in hearing the stories but never told them herself.
It’s never explained if the things Lily experienced with the tiger happened purely in her head, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think it works well with the atmosphere of the story to leave it open to interpretation but the fact her halmoni who had dementia was the only other person able to see the tiger raises some questions about her own experience. There also seemed to be some inconsistencies in regard to the tiger’s character. The tiger is described as menacing and we are told that she is hunting Lily’s grandmother but once we meet her we never get that impression. Even from Lily’s point of view, there’s not a real sense of fear or threat.
I liked the use of Korean folktale stories as a way for Lily to process the changes in her life but I personally wished there was a better connection between the stories and the overall narrative. I also don’t understand why Halmoni was so intent on keeping the stories bottled up since they weren’t anything particularly scary. Granted, this book was targeted to younger children, but I felt like there could have been more depth to the stories. For instance, they alluded very briefly to the challenges Halmoni faced in the wake of the Korean American War but didn’t elaborate.
“Lily, when I tell my story, I am sad. So much of our family story is sad. And more than that: so much of Korean people story is sad. Long, long ago, Japan and United States people do wrong things to our country. But I don’t want to give you sad, angry stories. I don’t want to pass you those bad feelings.”
I think mentioning this but glossing over it does a disservice to readers. I understand wanting to protect children from the generational trauma of the war but children are not as delicate as adults often think they are and this could be an opportunity for Korean-American children to understand their heritage since US history curriculum does such a terrible job giving an unbiased account of certain events (if they even mention them at all).
As far as other characters go, Ricky wasn’t really necessary to the plot itself but served the purpose of bringing up race and stigma/perception around people who are different, particularly Asian-Americans. I liked the way the author included the incident of casual racism and stereotyping that happened when Ricky’s friends showed up and met Lily for the first time. Showing Ricky’s response and effort to understand more of Lily’s culture and connection with Halmoni was nice to see on the page.
Overall, the family relationships were well developed and the way the story deals with death and grief through magical stories was beautiful. Lily’s growth was wonderful to read and it was nice to see her write her own ending of the tiger’s story. I would highly recommend this book for younger readers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Dementia, Death, Terminal illness, and Vomit
Minor: Racism
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