The Year of the Fortune Cookie
CCBC Review:
Sixth-grader Anna Wang is accompanying her fifth-grade teacher to China because Ms. Sylvester and her husband are adopting baby Jing and have invited Anna along on the trip. In China, where her mom grew up, Anna is hopeful of seeing the orphanage where her baby sister Kaylee once lived. She’s even brought presents she and her friends made for the children there. In the meantime, as the Sylvesters are getting to know Jing, Anna is becoming friends with Fan, a young woman working at the hotel restaurant. Immersed in Chinese language and culture, Anna realizes that while she feels very Chinese in America, she feels very American in China, and reflecting on who she is and what it means to be both is at the heart of a novel full of small yet meaningful moments as Anna thinks about identity and assumptions, as well as family and friendship. There is always a sense of complexity beneath the surface of Andrea Cheng’s characters, and Anna, who was first introduced in The Year of the Book (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012) continues to grow. ©2020 Cooperative Children's Book Center
Illustrated by Patrice Barton
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 8-10
Age Range:
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Adoption
Asian Americans
Chinese and Chinese Americans
Families
Friendship
Identity
Teachers/Mentors
Travel
Diversity subject:
Asian
Publisher:
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publish Year: 2014
Pages: 155
ISBN: 9780544105195
CCBC Location: Fiction, Cheng