The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Shang

This memory of finding out through books about other people’s lives but never delving more deeply into my own through literature (at least, not until my university years), is the major reason why as an adult today I am drawn particularly to children’s books that reflect diverse backgrounds. It is difficult to articulate the psychic toll this invisibility takes on a young person. In fact I passionately devoured so many classics from the British Isles that when I finally landed in Wales at the age of 16 it felt more like a homecoming than an adventure abroad! However, in all the thousands of pages I consumed in my youth and the millions of virtual miles travelled, I never once encountered a child like myself – one who was Asian American or even one who was navigating her way carefully between multiple cultures. Reading was an education, a comfort and an escape.

I started reading very early and I have read nonstop ever since. Lucy's year is ruined - or is it?Ī wonderfully funny, warm, and heartfelt tale about the ways life often reveals silver linings in the most unexpected of clouds.As a child I was an insatiable reader. Lucy's vision of a perfect year begins to crumble, and in its place come an unwelcome roommate, foiled birthday plans, a bully who tries to scare Lucy off the basketball team, and Chinese school with the annoying know-it-all Talent Chang. In an instant, though, her plans are shattered when she finds out that Yi Po, her beloved grandmother's sister, is coming to visit for several months - and is staying in Lucy's room. She's ready to rule the school as a sixth grader, go out for captain of the school basketball team, and take over the bedroom she has always shared with her sister.

Lucy Wu, aspiring basketball star and interior designer, is on the verge of having the best year of her life. Publisher's Synopsis: A humorous and heartwarming debut about split cultural identities, and all the ways life fails to go according to plan for sixth-grader Lucy Wu. The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Shang Shang did an excellent job of developing Lucy’s internal struggles so that her change in attitude is believable and understandable. We see a lot of growth in this character who experiences many situations which are true to life and easy to identify with. She’ll probably always prefer Italian food to Chinese, but nothing will bring her more satisfaction than her aunt’s noodles. Lucy hasn’t given up completely on her Chinese culture, she’s just at a stage in her life where she’s about to begin self actualizing, figuring out who she really is and what she really values. Lucy is bitter about her aunt’s visit, about being forced to give up basketball for Chinese school and she’s confused about what to do about Sloan.