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A review by libraryjen
Pahua and the Soul Stealer by Lori M. Lee
4.0
Pahua Moua is an 11-year-old Hmong girl who doesn't fit in at school, spends all her free time looking after her little brother Matt, and can see spirits. When she accidentally sets a bridge spirit free one afternoon, the bridge spirit steals Matt's soul and hides in the spirit world. Pahua is determined to find Matt's soul and bring it home, but in doing so, she calls a demon and must be rescued by Zhong, a shaman-in-training. Despite their obvious differences and rough start, Pahua and Zhong must learn to work together to save Matt before his soul turns into a demon. The adventures they have together as they travel through the different dimensions is a lot of fun.
I have enjoyed everything I've read from the Rick Riordan Presents Disney imprint, but I was particularly interested in this one because I recently read the book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. Fadiman tells the true story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child born here in the US who develops epilepsy and the incredible conflict and misunderstanding between US culture and Hmong culture and between modern western medicine and traditional Hmong shaman medicine and spiritual beliefs. There's a fair bit of Hmong history and Hmong mythology in Fadiman's book, too, so I jumped at the chance to read about this mythology by an #OwnVoices author.
Pahua and Zhong are both strong characters in their own right, but they have their weaknesses and worries, just like everybody else. I enjoyed their relationship and how it progressed. I enjoyed the adventure and especially the strength they found to solve their problems. I loved the lessons from the book in being true to ourselves and recognizing our own talents and weaknesses. There is a lot of good stuff to enjoy here!
The Hmong believe in a LOT of different spirits and it was hard for me to keep track of them all. The spelling of the Hmong words is confusing (an nothing is pronounced the way it's written!), but nothing can be done about that so be sure to check the glossary at the back for help. Even with the background I have of recently reading a non-fiction book all about Hmong beliefs and culture, I still had a hard time keeping all the spirits straight so I think the target audience for this book (middle grade) will have a hard time with it, too. Hence, I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 because the mythology did get a bit overwhelming to keep track of as the book progressed.
Still, I definitely recommend this book and look forward to the sequel! (Please tell me there will be a sequel!!)
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I have enjoyed everything I've read from the Rick Riordan Presents Disney imprint, but I was particularly interested in this one because I recently read the book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. Fadiman tells the true story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child born here in the US who develops epilepsy and the incredible conflict and misunderstanding between US culture and Hmong culture and between modern western medicine and traditional Hmong shaman medicine and spiritual beliefs. There's a fair bit of Hmong history and Hmong mythology in Fadiman's book, too, so I jumped at the chance to read about this mythology by an #OwnVoices author.
Pahua and Zhong are both strong characters in their own right, but they have their weaknesses and worries, just like everybody else. I enjoyed their relationship and how it progressed. I enjoyed the adventure and especially the strength they found to solve their problems. I loved the lessons from the book in being true to ourselves and recognizing our own talents and weaknesses. There is a lot of good stuff to enjoy here!
The Hmong believe in a LOT of different spirits and it was hard for me to keep track of them all. The spelling of the Hmong words is confusing (an nothing is pronounced the way it's written!), but nothing can be done about that so be sure to check the glossary at the back for help. Even with the background I have of recently reading a non-fiction book all about Hmong beliefs and culture, I still had a hard time keeping all the spirits straight so I think the target audience for this book (middle grade) will have a hard time with it, too. Hence, I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 because the mythology did get a bit overwhelming to keep track of as the book progressed.
Still, I definitely recommend this book and look forward to the sequel! (Please tell me there will be a sequel!!)
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.