Audiobook Review: Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok offers a heartbreaking look at the immigrant experience through the eyes of 11 year old Kim Chang and her mother. Kim and her mother leave Hong Kong and arrive in Brooklyn, NY where they live in an unheated, roach infested apartment and work long, grueling hours in a factory (sweatshop) making skirts. As the book progresses, Kim comes of age, assimilates to her new land and makes her way through some grim circumstances. She does it all, however, with a grace and resilience which is well beyond her years.

Kim and her mother arrive in New York thanks to the “charity” of Kim’s aunt and mother’s older sister. She sponsors her sister and niece but totes up what they owe her for the cost of their flights, visas, etc and takes it from the meager salary paid to Kim’s mom at the factory - including interest. After working long days in the factory, Kim’s mother returns home to their apartment and tries to keep herself and Kim warm in the apartment without heat. Despite the literally cold welcome from her sister, Mrs. Chang respects her sister and refuses to challenge her or express dissatisfaction with the conditions of the apartment or the her work at the factory. Young Kim feels differently but stays quiet at the behest of her mother. Even this early, Kim’s toughness shines through and it is obvious she knows she and her mom have a place in this world and deserve to be treated better.

Kim’s mother knows that education will allow Kim to take advantage of all America offers and she does what she can to prioritize school for Kim. My heart nearly broke as Kim, 11 years old and only in the US for a few days, parted ways with her mom at the subway as she headed off to her first day of school all by herself. Still speaking broken English, she navigated to her classroom where she endured the disdain of her teacher and the taunts of her classmates. After the ordeal of her first day at school was over, she got back on the subway and headed to the factory to help her mother. Because payment is made by the piece, they need Kim’s contributions after school to make enough to survive. Some nights they get home well past 10pm and Kim still needs to do homework for school the next day. The single comfort is that Kim and her mom sustain each other through these long, often demoralizing days.

Always a good student, Kim struggles initially in the US as she tries to learn the language. But soon she is excelling and is offered the chance to attend an elite private school thanks to a scholarship. Again, my heart broke, as Kim traveled to the school alone for her interview because her mother had to work in the factory due to a shipment going out that night. Faced with this opportunity, Kim worries about things most children never have to consider - how will she and her mother afford the clothes required to meet the dress code? Perhaps having to concern herself with these basics allowed her to weather the larger concerns like fitting in with an affluent student body and navigating the offers from classmates to go to their homes after school when she knew she could never let them see her apartment without heat and crawling with roaches.

Despite these obvious obstacles, Kim develops into a young woman with a strong sense of self and rises above tough circumstances. She is an endearing character with a strength that emanates from the page (or in my case, through the headphones). Girl in Translation is a reminder of what so many endure when they come to a new land and the focus with which they work to make their lives better. Seen through the eyes of a child, the immigrant experience is often heartbreaking but also laced with such hope for all that is to come as they reap the benefits of the sacrifice made by their families.

Audio
I listened to this on audio and it is excellent. The book is read by Gracye Wey and her touch of an Asian accent is perfect for the now adult Kim relating her story. It was an easy story to follow on audio and the narrator brought scenes with dialogue to life.

This is a selection for my challenge Immigrant Stories. JoV at Book Pyramid also reviewed this book for the challenge - you can see her review here. I especially like what she calls “the skirt metric” - it is heartbreaking but very apt.