Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok
Author Biography: Jean Kwok immigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn when she was five and worked in a Chinatown clothing factory for much of her childhood. She won early admission to Harvard, where she worked as many as four jobs at a time, and graduated with honors in English and American literature, before going on to earn an MFA in fiction at Columbia.
Reviews:
From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. This audiobook is the perfect match of narrator and material. Grayce Wey's performance as immigrant Kimberly Chang feels absolutely authentic. As the adult Kimberly looking back at her life, Wey has just a touch of a Chinese accent (appropriate for a character who's lived in America for two decades), and her tone conveys bittersweet regret even while knowing she made the right choice. But when speaking as the younger, newly arrived Kimberly, Wey's Chinese accent is much heavier, and we can hear Kimberly's confusion, anxiety, and struggle to adjust to this new culture. Wey perfectly evokes Kimberly's growing assertiveness and determination, her teenage longing, joy, and pain when falling in love for the first time, and her conflicted feelings when making difficult decisions about her path in life. A moving and memorable listen.
Reviews:
"At age 5, Kwok moved with her family from Hong Kong to a New York City slum. . . . She has spun some of her experiences into this involving debut. . . . Kwok drops you right inside Kimberly''s head, adding Chinese idioms to crisp dialogue. And the book''s lesson-that every choice comes at the expense of something else- hits home in any language."
-People (3 1/2 stars)
"Writing in first-person from Kim''s point of view, Kwok cleverly employs phonetic spellings to illustrate her protagonist''s growing understanding of English and wide-eyed view of American teen culture. The author draws upon her own experience as a child laborer in New York, which adds a poignant layer to Girl in Translation."
-USA Today
"Though the plot may sound mundane - a Chinese girl and her mother immigrate to this country and succeed despite formidable odds - this coming-of-age tale is anything but. Whether Ah-Kim (or Kimberly, as she''s called) is doing piecework on the factory floor with her mother, or suffering through a cold New York winter in a condemned, roach-infested apartment, or getting that acceptance letter from Yale, her story seems fresh and new."
-Entertainment Weekly
"The astonishing - and semi-autobiographical - tale of a girl from Hong Kong who, at age eleven, shoulders the weight of her mother''s American dream all the way from Chinatown sweatshop to the Ivy League."
-Vogue
"Part fairy tale, part autobiography... what puts this debut novel toward the top of the pile is its buoyant voice and its slightly subversive ending that suggests "happily ever after" may have more to do with love of self and of family than with any old Prince Charming."
-O, The Oprah Magazine
"Dazzling fiction debut."
-Marie Claire
"In Kimberly Chang, Jean Kwok has created a gentle and unassuming character. But Kimberly is also very clever, and as she struggles to escape the brutal trap of poverty she proves indomitable. With her keen intelligence and her reservoir of compassion, she''s irresistibly admirable, as is the whole of this gripping, luminous novel."
-Joanna Scott, author of Follow Me
"I love how this book allowed me to see my own country, with all its cruelty and kindness, from a perspective so different from my own. I love how it invited me into the heart and mind of Kimberly Chang, whose hard choices will resonate with anyone who has sacrificed for a dream. Powerful storytelling kept me turning the pages quickly, but Kimberly''s voice-so smart and clear-will stay with me for a long time."
-Laura Moriarty, author of While I''m Falling
Author Biography: Jean Kwok immigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn when she was five and worked in a Chinatown clothing factory for much of her childhood. She won early admission to Harvard, where she worked as many as four jobs at a time, and graduated with honors in English and American literature, before going on to earn an MFA in fiction at Columbia.
Reviews:
From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. This audiobook is the perfect match of narrator and material. Grayce Wey's performance as immigrant Kimberly Chang feels absolutely authentic. As the adult Kimberly looking back at her life, Wey has just a touch of a Chinese accent (appropriate for a character who's lived in America for two decades), and her tone conveys bittersweet regret even while knowing she made the right choice. But when speaking as the younger, newly arrived Kimberly, Wey's Chinese accent is much heavier, and we can hear Kimberly's confusion, anxiety, and struggle to adjust to this new culture. Wey perfectly evokes Kimberly's growing assertiveness and determination, her teenage longing, joy, and pain when falling in love for the first time, and her conflicted feelings when making difficult decisions about her path in life. A moving and memorable listen.
Reviews:
"At age 5, Kwok moved with her family from Hong Kong to a New York City slum. . . . She has spun some of her experiences into this involving debut. . . . Kwok drops you right inside Kimberly''s head, adding Chinese idioms to crisp dialogue. And the book''s lesson-that every choice comes at the expense of something else- hits home in any language."
-People (3 1/2 stars)
"Writing in first-person from Kim''s point of view, Kwok cleverly employs phonetic spellings to illustrate her protagonist''s growing understanding of English and wide-eyed view of American teen culture. The author draws upon her own experience as a child laborer in New York, which adds a poignant layer to Girl in Translation."
-USA Today
"Though the plot may sound mundane - a Chinese girl and her mother immigrate to this country and succeed despite formidable odds - this coming-of-age tale is anything but. Whether Ah-Kim (or Kimberly, as she''s called) is doing piecework on the factory floor with her mother, or suffering through a cold New York winter in a condemned, roach-infested apartment, or getting that acceptance letter from Yale, her story seems fresh and new."
-Entertainment Weekly
"The astonishing - and semi-autobiographical - tale of a girl from Hong Kong who, at age eleven, shoulders the weight of her mother''s American dream all the way from Chinatown sweatshop to the Ivy League."
-Vogue
"Part fairy tale, part autobiography... what puts this debut novel toward the top of the pile is its buoyant voice and its slightly subversive ending that suggests "happily ever after" may have more to do with love of self and of family than with any old Prince Charming."
-O, The Oprah Magazine
"Dazzling fiction debut."
-Marie Claire
"In Kimberly Chang, Jean Kwok has created a gentle and unassuming character. But Kimberly is also very clever, and as she struggles to escape the brutal trap of poverty she proves indomitable. With her keen intelligence and her reservoir of compassion, she''s irresistibly admirable, as is the whole of this gripping, luminous novel."
-Joanna Scott, author of Follow Me
"I love how this book allowed me to see my own country, with all its cruelty and kindness, from a perspective so different from my own. I love how it invited me into the heart and mind of Kimberly Chang, whose hard choices will resonate with anyone who has sacrificed for a dream. Powerful storytelling kept me turning the pages quickly, but Kimberly''s voice-so smart and clear-will stay with me for a long time."
-Laura Moriarty, author of While I''m Falling
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