Book Review: Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang

Publisher’s description

From New York Times bestselling comic artist Betty C. Tang comes a funny, fast-paced, and heartrending story about three siblings living on their own as undocumented new immigrants, inspired by the author’s own childhood as a parachute kid. Perfect for fans of New Kid and Front Desk.

★ “Emotionally moving and beautifully executed.” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ “A compelling story of immigration and family bonds; highly recommended.” — School Library Journal, starred review

A DREAM TRIP TO AMERICA TURNS INTO A NIGHTMARE!

Feng-Li can’t wait to discover America with her family! But after an action-packed vacation, her parents deliver shocking news: They are returning to Taiwan and leaving Feng-Li and her older siblings in California on their own.

Suddenly, the three kids must fend for themselves in a strange new world—and get along. Starting a new school, learning a new language, and trying to make new friends while managing a household is hard enough, but Bro and Sis’s constant bickering makes everything worse. Thankfully, there are some hilarious moments to balance the stress and loneliness. But as tensions escalate—and all three kids get tangled in a web of bad choices—can Feng-Li keep her family together?

Amanda’s thoughts

Here’s a thing that I love: graphic novels. I love them in general. I read SO MANY graphic novels. And one thing that I love about them is that they present such a wide variety of representations and experiences. Hands down, graphic novels are the most popular format of book in my school. Which means all kinds of kids are reading them. Which means all kinds of kids are getting the messages, getting to see the lives, getting to experience the feelings. I really feel that, certainly for younger kids, a graphic novel is reaching a wider readership than a traditional narrative book, and I love that graphic novels are tackling EVERYTHING.

So to the snide adult human who said to me the other day, “Oh, I don’t like graphic novels,” and I replied that I love them, and they replied, condescendingly, “Yes, I know,” MAYBE YOU SHOULD ACTUALLY READ THEM AND HAVE SOME IDEA OF WHAT IS GOING ON IN GRAPHIC NOVELS AND THE MILLION REASONS WHY THEY ARE WONDERFUL AND USEFUL AND WHY KIDS LIKE THEM. Yes, I was yelling just now. You know that line in a Rilo Kiley song, “There’s blood in my mouth cuz I’ve been biting my tongue all week”? Yeah. That’s me a lot. So sometimes I need to yell here. It’s okay—if you can’t yell to your friends, who can you yell to? 

Anyway.

So this book is about a family that comes to the US from Taiwan, allegedly for a visit but really to stay. The dad goes back, the mom goes back, the three kids (ages 10, 14, and 16) stay. Can I, the parent of a 16-year-old, picture this? Not really. Can plenty of families relate to this storyline? Of course. And the kids do their best. They take care of each other, they learn how to mostly fend for themselves, and they make plenty of mistakes along the way. It’s a story of learning and growing, of family and the hope for a better life, of sacrifices and love. In so many of the best stories for kids, parents fade to the background so the kids can take center stage, something that may be a dream for a lot of kids (some portion of life without parents around to get in the way and ruin all the fun) but in reality looks very different when parents are actually completely removed from your life. It’s hard. Tang ultimately writes an uplifting story of support and love that doesn’t shy away from the challenges that come with this family’s decisions. I adored this book and hope to see many more from her.

ISBN-13: 9781338832693
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date: 04/04/2023
Age Range: 9 – 12 Years

Filed under: Book Reviews