Wai ChimRecensioni

7/10

Very enjoyable YA read about a Chinese-Australian family and how they deal with a family member's mental illness.

Anna's father is often away, working long hours at his restaurant, and her mother sometimes stays in bed for weeks on end. Anna just wants normalcy -- she doesn't see herself excelling as a student, despite her teachers' exhortations to push herself and the guidance counselor's focus on adding extracurriculars and personal development. She'd love to be able to help out more at the restaurant, but with her mother's fragile mental health, she often ends up caring for her younger siblings. A sweet romance blossoms with her father's new delivery boy, but in the meantime, her mother's grip on reality is growing more and more shaky.

This is a good exploration of what it's like to deal with a parent who is struggling with mental illness. I had expected the romance to be more of a focus, but it's really mostly about Anna's family relationships. I don't feel like the characters are all fully developed, and certain elements are very predictable. I think a teen experiencing similar issues might find it a comforting read, but I probably wouldn't recommend it to adults in general.½

#3 in the Goodreads NZ Readathon

CW: Suicidal thoughts, mental health issues resulting in child neglect and institutionalisation (possibly bipolar), racial stereotyping, animal cruelty.

Warning: This book will bring on an intense desire to eat dumplings and other delicious Chinese food.

What a gem of a book. I loved the dynamics between the different family members and reading about the customary deferential treatment of parents in Chinese culture. The way the tension built up slowly was quite masterful. As the mother started becoming more erratic I could feel my own anxiety rising as an inevitable breaking point drew closer. I thought the portrayal of the stigma around mental illness was good, and having the Chinese cultural views carefully and respectfully added in brought another layer of depth. The heart-breaking moments were balanced nicely with the warmth I felt at the loving moments between the siblings. I think this is also quite an important book in terms of understanding the pressures faced by young people who have family responsibilities and obligations. These responsibilities are juggled with school, following their own interests/hobbies, building relationships and developing their own sense of identity. Anna is navigating all of this as a Chinese-Australian. This adds a further layer of complexity as her parents maintain that their Chinese values need to be upheld by the family. Anna was an endearing character and I really enjoyed her journey.

A book with incredible heart and depth. I thoroughly recommend it.

This book contains content related to mental health and illness.
This review refers to it too.

This book is truly a wonderful read which messes with your emotions.
Its heart wrenching and focuses on mental illness.
It's an own voices story focusing on Anna, a young Chinese girl who struggles with diaspora at times and wants to be a correct Chinese girl, even knowing there is no such thing. She speaks very basic Cantonese and fears she is a terrible Chinese daughter. We see her life at school and I loved how the book told us that it's ok to want to go work after you graduate before going to Uni, or even never go at all. Anna's sister relationship with Lily was full of snark and was relatable to all the siblings out there I'm sure (I have no siblings) Anna truly went through a lot, working, school, trying to keep the family afloat. Anna's development and the arc were written really well. Her Mother is in this depressive spiral so Anna steps up, trying to take over from her Mum.
Its a great story that is set in Australia.
I found out that the Author currently lives in Australia!
Great book!

I was walking through the YA/Teen section of my public library, searching for a contemporary fiction book. The library had a big display of "New" titles, and this one caught my eye. It has a young, Asian girl walking on a pair of chopsticks, which are holding a dumpling, hence the title The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling. The title and illustration alone were enough to make me pick up this book and read the inside cover. I knew this was a book I needed to read. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book. Readers follow Anna as she watches her mother experience emotional highs and lows, before the ultimate, disturbing low sends her into the mental hospital. Anna must take on the roll as both mother and daughter, while her father hides away at the family restaurant, unable to accept what is happening with his wife. Eventually, Anna meets Rory, who her father hires to be a delivery driver for the restaurant, and the two hit it off over Macbeth. Rory suffers from his own mental illness, and attempted suicide. He is understanding of what Anna and her family are going through.

I felt such emotional highs and lows reading this book and learned so much about what goes on behind closed doors that people are unwilling to acknowledge or accept. Anna's family does not accept mental illness culturally, hence why Anna's mother goes untreated for so long. Anna struggles with being the perfect Chinese daughter, and I find this is a commonality in a lot of what I have observed with my own Chinese American friends. They get so much pressure to have perfect grades and perfect appearance (dressing well, to their parent’s standards) while observing piety to their parents. I think this book is an important one to read in understanding mental illness and how it affects not just the individual, but the family as well. This book ends with the hope that although life is not perfect, knowing that family always has each other’s back is what counts, and is what helps make life worth living.

Wai Chim was born in NYC to immigrant parents. She had to learn English. Her experience of being an immigrant child helped mold Anna's character and experiences in this story. I enjoy reading works from authors of the same ethnicity of their characters, especially when its a new to me author.

Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction

I'm not sure what I expected from this book -- the target audience is YA, so I was looking for something that was entertaining, have a bit of romance, and would maybe address a YA specific issue. Well, I was bowled over by this book. It really packs an emotional punch and deals with issues that have relevance to adults young and old. From mental illness to immigrant assimilation to family dynamics in an immigrant family where one member suffers from mental illness, this story is complex and told with so much heart. Really loved this!

Gut wrenching tale of mental illness and the taboo that exists in certain cultures surrounding it. This is the story of a Year 11 Chinese Australian called Anna who must cope with her mother's bipolar disorder and her father's inability to deal with it ( he stays overnight in his restaurant miles away rather than facing what is happening at home.) and also look after her 6 year old brother Michael and her 14 year old sister. Anna must dress her brother, feed him, take him to school and even forge notes in her mother's name so he can go on excursions, because her Mum either stays in bed all day or worse, thinks that everyone is out to "get " her family - paranoid delusions.

During the school holidays, Anna decides to take a break from her mother by working at her father's Chinese restaurant. There she meets delivery boy Rory, a boy with his own secrets and mental health issues, who shows her that she shouldn't have to cope alone. Then Anna 's sister rings and says the mum has disappeared and taken Michael with her- where can she be?

For older readers due to the language and the fact that Rory and Anna have a physical relationship. A very accurate picture I think of what can happen when people are not given support for mental health issues, where they don't take their medicine and have psychosis. I thought the descriptions of the mental health ward at the hospital - with their rigid rules and confusion over names of patients and doctors, etc - were spot on. You feel very uncomfortable reading them, and that is how it should be - you don't want readers to think that the hospital is a holiday camp - you want to show it warts and all, so people want to get better and get home. Bravo to the author for portraying it exactly how it really is.½

I found this book rather frightening, although it deals with historically accurate events. There is a great deal of pathos in the characters, and the situation of 1970s China is tellingly rendered. Very worthwhile read, and well-structured.

Reviewed for VPRC. It is a real pity that this book has such a boring cover as boys will really like this once they get into the story of life for poverty stricken rural teenagers in Mao's China. Ming has survived the famine that killed his parents and works all day in the fields to provide food for the commune. Into their village one day come a group of city boys who have been sent to be "re-educated" into the communist ideal way of life. One of these boys is called Li and he makes friends with Ming. Even so far as helping him overcome his shyness towards a beautiful village girl Fei and the two share a love of evening swims. As conditions get harder and both suffer from bullying and general torment, they confide their ultimate dream - swimming to freedom. Will they see it through? Gripping and fascinating book that had a few plot twists that I didn't see coming. One for the older, thoughtful student who likes history or who may have family connections to that period of time.½