This graphic novel is book 2 in Betty Tang's Parachute Kids series. It is an "own voices" title and themes are based on what Betty experienced in the U.S. in the early 80's as an undocumented Chinese immigrant. The main character is Feng-Li (American name-Ann) and you follow her life from October 1981-February 1982. She experiences her first Halloween and Thanksgiving, but also tries to figure out why people don't celebrate Chinese New Year. Her parents are in Taiwan as they are having a difficult time getting a Visa and Feng-Li lives with her older sister (still in high school) and brother. You also see the difficulty in learning the English language and trying to figure out some of the American idioms. Parachute kids is a real phrase that refers to kids in the U.S. without their Chinese parents, who were sent here to have a better life or education.
While a good read, it doesn't make it into my top 5 for this award. I do suspect that it will end up on at least one ALA award or book list in January.
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