Dumpling Days (A Pacy Lin Novel)

by Grace Lin

Hardcover, 2012

Status

Available

Local notes

Fic Lin

Barcode

333

Publication

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (2012), 272 pages

Description

When Pacy, her two sisters, and their parents go to Taiwan to celebrate Grandma's sixtieth birthday, the girls learn a great deal about their heritage.

Awards

Massachusetts Children's Book Award (Nominee — 2015)

Triple Crown Awards (Nominee — 2015)

CCBC Choices (2013)

Capitol Choices Noteworthy Book for Children and Teens (2013)

Original language

English

Original publication date

2012-01

Physical description

272 p.; 5.7 inches

User reviews

LibraryThing member EdGoldberg

Pacy Lin, her two sisters and her parents have traveled from the small town of New Hartford, NY to Taiwan for her grandmother’s sixtieth birthday party. It is the first time the sisters have visited Taiwan and Pacy is sad to be leaving her friends for the month. Her mother enrolled her in art

school, which she is unhappy about as well. Her inability to understand Chinese and Taiwanese, the hustle and bustle, traffic, strange foods and aromas and customs just add to Pacy’s sadness. She would much rather be home. The Lin sisters’ inability to speak the language is frowned upon in Taiwan and America where Pacy has been labeled a Twinkie by other Asians. She feels like a Twinkie in Taiwan. To top off her discomfort, she thinks art is her ‘talent’ but is finding painting with bamboo brushes on rice paper very difficult.

Grace Lin has written a Taiwan travelogue in Dumpling Days. Pacy eats dumplings on her first day and wants them every day, thus the title. Readers will certainly learn about Taiwan’s various foods (a mixture of Chinese and Japanese cultures), some Taiwanese folklore and get a sense of Taiwanese life. However, the story and writing are not compelling. The crude drawings of such things as dumplings or a McDonald’s rice burger, scattered throughout the book add little. The family Pacy meets have interesting names like her small Uncle Big but seem stereotypical. Geared for lower middle school readers, Dumpling Days is a discretionary purchase.

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LibraryThing member KimJD

Readers who met Pacy in Year of the Dog (2006) and Year of the Rat (2008) will love this latest addition to the series. Pacy's family is spending a month in Taiwan to celebrate her grandmother's 60th birthday. It's a new experience for Pacy and her sisters: new food, relatives they have not met, a

language they do not understand. Lin humorously captures the mixed emotions of the girls as they are travelling (who knew the bathrooms were so different, and could be so entertaining to read about?). This title is longer than the previous two, and stands alone nicely on its own.

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LibraryThing member AlishaM.B3

It all started when Pacy and her family were going to Taiwan for a month of Summer break. Pacy was on the plan wearing a neon pink overall like her sisters Lindsay and Ki-Ki. The plane ride was really boring. When they landed Pacy's uncle and aunt came running for them to greet them. Pacy and her

sisters forgot their uncles name, but Lindsay remembered it was a name of a flower so they called him uncle flower. When Pacy's family got to their grandma and grandpas house, their uncles. aunts, and cousins stormed on them. They go to eat at a restaurant down the street. There where a lot of foods, mostly dumplings. Pacy and her sisters went to the art store to get there supplies for their art classes Pacy's parents signed them up for. There were name chops so Pacy and her sister each got one. On the way back a fortune teller pulled Pacy over, but it was to late when Pacy's mom saw her. The fortune teller said that Pacy was going to get in trouble. When Pacy's classes start she sits next to a girl named Audrey. After a few days in classes Pacy and her family go to the market where she tries tofu. After looking at something Pacy loses her family. When they found her Pacy and her grandmother and mother go home. On the last day of class Pacy drew a picture of a tree with three pink birds in it. She didn't win first prize at the show. For Pacy's grandmothers 60th birthday Pacy gives her grandmother the picture as a present.
The book Dumpling Days by Grace Lin is a book of fiction and nonfiction. It is a little of Graces own trip to Taiwan and a few made up thinks. The book has the rating of a four because the book is a little question. There are Taiwanese words in the book to learn but only the names of the dumplings Pacy ate. I think it needs a little more vocabulary to learn. The book would be great if you want a story with a little bit of Taiwanese culture. I recommend this book to high readers in 4th to 6th grade. It just got the right amount of pages. Grace Lin has written this book really good.

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LibraryThing member devafagan

Adorable! And now I am craving dumplings and pineapple cakes.

LibraryThing member joeydag

After "Year of the Dog", and "Year of the Rat", comes "Dumpling Days". The author uses a family vacation in Taiwan as the frame story for many family stories and Chinese legends. A lovely continuing story and very much autobiographical. She comes close to the live wire of politics in Taiwan

mentioning the unjust persecution of one of the main character's uncle and the motivation for her family's move to the US.

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LibraryThing member mirikayla

I spent the whole book thinking how lucky Pacy and her sisters were, and I loved watching them learn to feel at home with this less familiar part of their identities. I wish I'd been able to have that experience as a kid; I'll be turning 30 this year, and I've never been to Israel or met several of

my relatives who live there. For kids who have a similar situation, there will be a lot to relate to in this book, but I almost think it'd be more interesting to kids who've never had experience with a culture different from their own. And I want nothing more right now than to try all the kinds of dumplings Pacy described.

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