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A review by danadays
Good Enough by Paula Yoo
4.0
Context: I was so frustrated by the terrible representation of Koreans in Frankly In Love that I am reading more Korean-American books to see what representation I have.
SO. Given that, I liked this book a WHOLE LOT BETTER. I'm not giving it full 5 stars cuz I think the story is a little basic :/:/ Immigrant parents who want ivy league and push her to play music, she's obsessed with grades and SATs, etc. HOWEVER, I do think it's a relatively common experience. It was just all the combos in one made it a little generic :/:/
MOST IMPORTANTLY, I really appreciated Patti's acknowledgement and appreciation for both her American side and Korean side. She wasn't trying to reject Korea in order to fit in, but she also recognized her place as the only Asian in her school (wow). I loved that she actually got to know a little more of her parent's stories and saw them as humans, rather than these life-controlling alien immigrants who don't understand ANYTHING AT ALL (cough cough. Frank Li)
I also appreciated Patti's romantic interests and how it ended up being played out. I feel it was a realistic representation of what usually happens.
Overall, this was a quick and easy read that I feel represented Korean-Americans a lot better and more accurately. It humanized people, from Patti's parents, to the Korean and Korean-American leaders at her church. I'm off to read and compare more Korean-American books! Let's see if my rating for this book changes O.o
SO. Given that, I liked this book a WHOLE LOT BETTER. I'm not giving it full 5 stars cuz I think the story is a little basic :/:/ Immigrant parents who want ivy league and push her to play music, she's obsessed with grades and SATs, etc. HOWEVER, I do think it's a relatively common experience. It was just all the combos in one made it a little generic :/:/
MOST IMPORTANTLY, I really appreciated Patti's acknowledgement and appreciation for both her American side and Korean side. She wasn't trying to reject Korea in order to fit in, but she also recognized her place as the only Asian in her school (wow). I loved that she actually got to know a little more of her parent's stories and saw them as humans, rather than these life-controlling alien immigrants who don't understand ANYTHING AT ALL (cough cough. Frank Li)
I also appreciated Patti's romantic interests and how it ended up being played out. I feel it was a realistic representation of what usually happens.
Overall, this was a quick and easy read that I feel represented Korean-Americans a lot better and more accurately. It humanized people, from Patti's parents, to the Korean and Korean-American leaders at her church. I'm off to read and compare more Korean-American books! Let's see if my rating for this book changes O.o