Review: Parachutes

Parachutes by Kelly Yang
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I sometimes get books and don't bother reading the backs or insets to get the general summary. This book came up as a top read on several lists --one compared this to Moxie, which I really loved, and I decided to add it based on that and the fact that I'm a librarian at a public school with a large Asian population. Kelly Yang is an amazing author. She effortlessly switches between narrators from chapter to chapter -- we have Claire, a Chinese immigrant from a wealthy family who send her to California to finish high school and Dani, an American Filipina whose mother decides to host Claire. The book moves from Claire's difficult acclimatization to America and Dani's difficult path as a full-scholarship student at the school they both attend, American Prep. Unfortunately for both, the girls face very serious challenges that shape their futures for worse before they shape them for better.
I'd recommend this book to YA who yearn to be believed. Warning: does contain sexual content and a rape scene.
If you like this book, I'd also recommend This Time Will Be Different by Misa Sugiura, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks Landau by E. Lockhart

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