A review by amylandranch
American Panda by Gloria Chao

3.0

This book cracked me up in so many ways. I think the voice mails from her mom were the best. Mai is a young 17 year old heading off to MIT to become a doctor, even though she is a germaphobe and wants to dance. Her parents and their rigid beliefs and traditions have helped mold her but she also wants to break free and be her own person. I appreciated learning more about the culture of Taiwan and how teens may have to balance two worlds. Family, tradition and hard work are important and so is love and acceptance. Lots of humor, poop sayings, some sad parts, and because she is entering college there is some talk of sex and STDs (and some pretty funny stories to go with that). 9th grade and up.