Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh

 

Synopsis:

A story of family, hope, and survival, inspired by the author's mother’s real-life experiences during the Korean War. Faced with middle school racism, Junie Kim learns of her grandparents’ extraordinary strength and finds her voice.

Junie Kim just wants to fit in. So she keeps her head down and tries not to draw attention to herself. But when racist graffiti appears at her middle school, Junie must decide between staying silent or speaking out.

Then Junie’s history teacher assigns a project and Junie decides to interview her grandparents, learning about their unbelievable experiences as kids during the Korean War. Junie comes to admire her grandma’s fierce determination to overcome impossible odds, and her grandpa’s unwavering compassion during wartime. And as racism becomes more pervasive at school, Junie taps into the strength of her ancestors and finds the courage to do what is right.

My Thoughts:

I loved this book! And there are no lulls! It starts immediately with the racist graffiti, and from there Junie is on her journey. It's sometimes painful and hard to read, but ultimately very positive and rewarding. I love how Junie's history project and the stories of her grandparents are weaved through the very scary day-to-day micro and macro-aggressions Junie faces at school. I know I deeply regret not getting more of my grandparents' stories, and I hope reading this will inspire more kids to interview their grandparents! 

This is just a minor thing, but I also love how Junie's parents respond to her, and are so receptive. I was afraid that they might be too busy to address her needs, but they did the right thing. Yay to responsible, caring parent representation in kidlit! 

Have you read this book? What did you think?