annieb123's Review of The Secret of the Jade Bangle (Nguyen Kids, #1)

by Linda Trinh

"Engaging and empowering"—STARRED review, Nonstop Reader

A charming early chapter book series that explores Vietnamese culture and identity through the eyes of the Nguyen siblings, with elements of the supernatural, spirituality, and social justice woven in.

I, Anne Nguyen, believe in ghosts. Not the kind of ghosts that hide in dark corners and yell boo! Not scary ghosts, but family ghosts.

Organized and introspective nine-year-old Anne Nguyen misses her Grandma Nội, a lot. But even though Grandma Nội passed away, it doesn’t mean she’s disappeared. When Anne and her younger siblings Jacob and Liz are given gifts passed on to them by Grandma, Anne soon realizes that hers—a beautiful jade bangle—has a secret power. One that might just give her the strength to stand up to her ballet teacher, who treats her differently than her white classmates, and embrace her Vietnamese identity through cooking Grandma’s recipes. No matter how difficult things get, Anne learns that the love of her ancestors is always with her.

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Secret of the Jade Bangle is an engaging and empowering illustrated chapter book for grade school age readers by Linda Trinh and the first book in the Nguyen Kids series. Due out 18th Oct 2022 from Annick Press, it's 128 pages and will be available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook formats.

This is such a fun and respectfully written book which will engage, entertain, and inform young readers. Despite the action filled plot (Anne really loves ballet but just wants to not be treated differently by her ballet teacher and the other students), the author manages to delve into deeper and meaningful themes such as integration and isolation, respect for culture, honesty, integrity, dealing constructively with racism, activism, and family in an age-appropriate manner.

The art by Clayton Nguyen is expressive and colorful and is full of small details which invite readers to take a closer look and really think about the concepts being expressed.

Five stars. Representation is important for *everyone*. Highly recommended for public and school library acquisition, home library use, reading circles and similar. This is a great kids book for -all- kids whatever their ethnicity, background, or sex.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

The Secret of the Jade Bangle (Nguyen Kids, #1)

by Linda Trinh

Reviewed by annieb123 on May 21, 2022

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