Scan barcode
A review by pagesofmilkandhoney
American Panda by Gloria Chao
4.0
3.5 stars. This was completely adorable, and I don’t mean that in a condescending, cutesy way either. Okay, maybe kinda cutesy. First though, I want to stress that I am a person commenting on a story that is not my own heritage, and that everything I say should generally be taken with a grain of salt because I am in no way qualified to having any real opinion about experiences that are not my own. I in no way mean to delegitimize them. On that note though, one of the things I think this book does best most of all is comment on the relationships and struggles one has with their family, whom they generally love, but also find themselves in conflict with their values and beliefs. Underlying all the traditions that Mei is forced to uphold under the gaze of her overbearing, traditional parents, I think she really does love them, and honors and appreciates the sacrifices they have made to help her get where she is in her life today. That being said, the most tragic part of the story is that with her parents being so headstrong and overbearing and Mei being shy and reclusive in the beginning, it becomes almost impossible to imagine that any happy ending can happen at all without some sort of heartbreaking moment from either party. Throughout the novel, Mei struggles immensely with keeping her secrets from her parents, and it feels like she is literally being eaten inside with the guilt that she is throwing away everything her parents have sacrificed. The very fact that she does have this guilt is proof, I think, that she does truly love them and where they came from. That being said, as someone on the outside of this kind of family relationship, sometimes it did feel a bit forced and overly dramatic, almost bordering on stereotypical, but I am fully prepared to accept that is because I have no personal experience with immigrant/Taiwanese parentage whatsoever.
One thing I definitely want to comment on is Mei and her relationship with Xing and Xing’s disownment. We know from the summary that he is going to be part of huge moment of transition for Mei. My thing with Xing though, is that he remains shrouded in mystery for a good chunk of the novel and we aren’t given much explanation until he and Mei meet up later on. We know that he was disowned because of the girl he was dating, but that’s about it and I really felt like I was straining for more information to clarify the situation. When he becomes part of Mei’s life again, it becomes a lot clearer and less unnatural and artificial. I feel it would have made for an easier reading experience if there was more of a buildup to their final meeting. The scene where he appears at Chow Chow and there is a big fight between him and his family was a lot of information to take in at once and felt overwhelming, especially because it read as if we knew a lot of information, though we didn’t.
The relationship between Mei and Darren was pretty cute, even if at times it felt rather awkward. As embarrassing as this would be for Mei, I was kind of hoping that the guy who barged in on her checking her rash was going to be Darren. It would be totally awkward and embarrassing for sure (I know I would die on the floor for sure) but it could have been a funny icebreaker for their relationship. It’s interesting to note the differences between Mei and Darren’s upbringing. One is the child of immigrants and thus closer in proximity to the corresponding traditions, and the other is from a family that has been American for generations. I was a little surprised by how mean Darren was with his comment about Mei being brainwashed, though. Their relationship was really starting to build a foundation at that point, and I felt it was clear that Mei was struggling with her parents’ traditions. It was cruel and frankly, unnecessary. I really hurt for Mei after that comment, and I wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be the end of them or not. Thankfully, it wasn’t, and we got lots of hot chocolately goodness after he apologised and they made up. Also, because Mei didn’t seem to have many friends, I was glad she had someone her own age that she could rely upon. (As a side note though, what is up with the Lady Peanut/Pecan/Almond nicknames? Is that another MIT thing? Because I feel like I completely missed where that came from (I mean, all the MIT lingo completely went over my head, so it’s not entirely unexpected).)
I really liked the structure of the novel though. I thought the voicemails from Mei’s family were an interesting addition, even if they were just a comedic effect. The little notes about having no chapter four or chapter thirteen were quirky additions that took no effort at all but added to the cultural aspect of the book. As much as I didn’t understand a single Mandarin word, I also really liked the emphasis on them as well. I super appreciated the Author’s Note at the beginning, where she explains the Romanization of the words and how to pronounce certain letters based upon their accents. Even if I was hopeless at translating, I thought it was a nice consideration to the readers.
I think a lot of my comments and thoughts about this book stem from the fact that I haven’t experienced anything that Mei has by myself. I haven’t been pressured to study a subject I cannot stand, and I haven’t been threatened with expulsion from my family and only support system if I didn’t follow the rules. But for the record, as I previously said, I do think the author did a great job at exploring the relationships Mei had and her own internal struggles with it all in a clash of her own culture and that of her parents. I did feel like I got to know Mei the best, and even if the rest of the characters felt a bit one-sided at times, they provided a good balance for Mei. The only character that was just plain awkward for me was Dr. Chang, from the moment she was introduced to her near repulsion at just being a doctor in general (if I were her patient, I’m not sure I would feel entirely confident that my health was in her hands). Also, as a final note, I loved the emphasis that was placed on Mei’s love of dance, and I especially loved that it was Chinese dance in particular. Another reason why I feel that she truly does love her heritage, if not always the traditions and superstitions. I wish it had been in the summary though, because throughout the book it often felt like a side note and I didn’t figure out how much attention I was supposed to pay it until halfway through the book. Anyway, overall I did really like it and I’m super glad I got to read it. I am totally here for diverse reads and main characters and am thrilled that books like this are being written and published.
I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
One thing I definitely want to comment on is Mei and her relationship with Xing and Xing’s disownment. We know from the summary that he is going to be part of huge moment of transition for Mei. My thing with Xing though, is that he remains shrouded in mystery for a good chunk of the novel and we aren’t given much explanation until he and Mei meet up later on. We know that he was disowned because of the girl he was dating, but that’s about it and I really felt like I was straining for more information to clarify the situation. When he becomes part of Mei’s life again, it becomes a lot clearer and less unnatural and artificial. I feel it would have made for an easier reading experience if there was more of a buildup to their final meeting. The scene where he appears at Chow Chow and there is a big fight between him and his family was a lot of information to take in at once and felt overwhelming, especially because it read as if we knew a lot of information, though we didn’t.
The relationship between Mei and Darren was pretty cute, even if at times it felt rather awkward. As embarrassing as this would be for Mei, I was kind of hoping that the guy who barged in on her checking her rash was going to be Darren. It would be totally awkward and embarrassing for sure (I know I would die on the floor for sure) but it could have been a funny icebreaker for their relationship. It’s interesting to note the differences between Mei and Darren’s upbringing. One is the child of immigrants and thus closer in proximity to the corresponding traditions, and the other is from a family that has been American for generations. I was a little surprised by how mean Darren was with his comment about Mei being brainwashed, though. Their relationship was really starting to build a foundation at that point, and I felt it was clear that Mei was struggling with her parents’ traditions. It was cruel and frankly, unnecessary. I really hurt for Mei after that comment, and I wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be the end of them or not. Thankfully, it wasn’t, and we got lots of hot chocolately goodness after he apologised and they made up. Also, because Mei didn’t seem to have many friends, I was glad she had someone her own age that she could rely upon. (As a side note though, what is up with the Lady Peanut/Pecan/Almond nicknames? Is that another MIT thing? Because I feel like I completely missed where that came from (I mean, all the MIT lingo completely went over my head, so it’s not entirely unexpected).)
I really liked the structure of the novel though. I thought the voicemails from Mei’s family were an interesting addition, even if they were just a comedic effect. The little notes about having no chapter four or chapter thirteen were quirky additions that took no effort at all but added to the cultural aspect of the book. As much as I didn’t understand a single Mandarin word, I also really liked the emphasis on them as well. I super appreciated the Author’s Note at the beginning, where she explains the Romanization of the words and how to pronounce certain letters based upon their accents. Even if I was hopeless at translating, I thought it was a nice consideration to the readers.
I think a lot of my comments and thoughts about this book stem from the fact that I haven’t experienced anything that Mei has by myself. I haven’t been pressured to study a subject I cannot stand, and I haven’t been threatened with expulsion from my family and only support system if I didn’t follow the rules. But for the record, as I previously said, I do think the author did a great job at exploring the relationships Mei had and her own internal struggles with it all in a clash of her own culture and that of her parents. I did feel like I got to know Mei the best, and even if the rest of the characters felt a bit one-sided at times, they provided a good balance for Mei. The only character that was just plain awkward for me was Dr. Chang, from the moment she was introduced to her near repulsion at just being a doctor in general (if I were her patient, I’m not sure I would feel entirely confident that my health was in her hands). Also, as a final note, I loved the emphasis that was placed on Mei’s love of dance, and I especially loved that it was Chinese dance in particular. Another reason why I feel that she truly does love her heritage, if not always the traditions and superstitions. I wish it had been in the summary though, because throughout the book it often felt like a side note and I didn’t figure out how much attention I was supposed to pay it until halfway through the book. Anyway, overall I did really like it and I’m super glad I got to read it. I am totally here for diverse reads and main characters and am thrilled that books like this are being written and published.
I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.