Girl in Translation
Books | Fiction / General
3.9
(323)
Jean Kwok
New York Times bestseller Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok is a powerful story about a Chinese immigrant family in Brooklyn. Kimberley Chang and her mother move from Hong Kong to New York. A new life awaits them - making a new home in a new country. But all they can afford is a verminous, broken-windowed Brooklyn apartment. The only heating is an unreliable oven. They are deep in debt. And neither one speaks one word of English. Yet there is hope. Eleven-year-old Kim goes to school. And though cut off by an alien language and culture and forced by poverty to work nights in a sweatshop - she finds the classroom challenges liberating. In books and learning she'll be saved. But can Kim successfully turn to lost girl from Hong Kong into a happy American woman? And should she? Jean Kwok's powerful and moving tale of hardship and triumph, of heartbreak and love, speaks of all that gets lost in translation. 'A sensitively handled rites-of-passage account...has the unmistakable ring of authenticity' Metro 'A truly amazing story that'll leave you full of admiration and affection for the characters' Easy Living 'A classic and moving immigration story' Red Jean Kwok emigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn as a child; her first novel Girl in Translation is based loosely on her own experience as a Chinese immigrant in America. With Girl in Translation Jean Kwok has won the American Library Association Alex Award, an Orange New Writers title and international critical acclaim.
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More Details:
Author
Jean Kwok
Pages
293
Publisher
Penguin
Published Date
2011
ISBN
0141042745 9780141042749
Community ReviewsSee all
"This book explores the hardships of adapting to a new culture and trying to survive as an immigrant. Kimberly is an extremely bright Chinese girl that has to battle poverty and a language barrier while growing up in a foreign place. The writing is beautiful and clear, which makes it easy to read, and the characters are complex with so many intriguing layers throughout the story. I enjoyed reading it. "
Katie Harrison
"This was just fantastic. I loved it."
Maria Paula
"great concept, a bit predictable though but it’s interesting if you want to learn more about the industrial revolution and asian immigrantion."
Shib D
"This is the type of book I picked up and didnt put down until the very end (at 4:30 AM... Totally worth it!) Wonderfully strong female protagonist tells a story of her life without pulling punches --and your heart soars with her triumphs, dips with her sad circumstances. Great story, wonderfully written, addicting until the last page."
Dana Reinert
"*♾/5. I..love this book so freaking much. Definitely a comfort/favorite book."
Raven
"Perfect for people who want an Asian American Female Lead in the story "
Casey Chan-Smutko
"I couldn’t put this down had to finish."
M
Michele
"Loved this so much. You never know an immigrant’s story unless you’ve lived one yourself."
Kim James
"Started out promising - was interested in Kimberly's story and was rooting for her. I really disliked the final third though and how it fast-forwarded through the end of the story."
G N
Gretchen Nord