Finally Seen

My sister got to grow up with my parents. Me? I grew up with postcards from my parents.

When ten-year-old Lina Gao steps off the plane in Los Angeles, it’s her first time in America and the first time seeing her parents and her little sister in five years! She’s been waiting for this moment every day while she lived with her grandmother in Beijing, getting teased by kids at school who called her “left behind girl.” Finally , her parents are ready for her to join their fabulous life in America! Except, it’s not exactly like in the

1. School’s a lot harder than she thought. When she mispronounces some words in English on the first day, she decides she simply won’t talk. Ever again.

2. Her chatty little sister has no problem with English. And seems to do everything better than Lina, including knowing exactly the way to her parents’ hearts.

3. They live in an apartment, not a house like in Mom’s letters, and they owe a lot of back rent from the pandemic. And Mom’s plan to pay it back sounds more like a hobby than a moneymaker.

As she reckons with her hurt, Lina tries to keep a lid on her feelings, both at home and at school. When her teacher starts facing challenges for her latest book selection, a book that deeply resonates with Lina, it will take all of Lina’s courage and resilience to get over her fear in order to choose a future where she’s finally seen.

This was an absolute gem of a book.

After 5 years of living in China with her grandmother, 10 year old Lina is finally able to move to the US to join her parents and her younger sister. As soon as she steps off of the plane in Los Angeles, she soon learns that her family’s life is not as wonderful as they had made it sound in their letters.

I was 13 when my family moved to Canada and I related so much to Lina’s experiences of immigrating. School was so different and while I understood English, I didn’t understand a lot of the slang and I was afraid of mispronouncing words so I opted to talk as little as possible. Reading about Lina’s struggles brought me to that time in my childhood and while I never had a book like this growing up where I could see my experiences in a book, I’m glad it exists now and more kids (and adults!) like me can read it.

In the story, Lina finds comfort in a graphic novel about a girl who looks like her, experiencing similar things she does. This is why representation matters! As Lina was navigating her new life, she felt less alone reading this book. I also loved that Lina became friends with the school librarian and had such a supportive ELL (English Language Learning) teacher.

Lina’s family is also struggling financially and are desperately trying to raise money to pay back rent incurred during the pandemic. Without green cards, her parents are unable to get better job opportunities – her dad is working (underpaid) at an organic farm while her mom runs a small business on Etsy. Having similar experiences growing up, I felt for them so hard and rooted for their success throughout the book.

Finally Seen is hands down one of my favourite books of the year. It’s full of heart and hope but also realistically shows the hardships of immigrant families. If you know a younger person who recently moved to a different country or you yourself did when you were younger, I highly recommend reading this book. And if you are completely unfamiliar with stories like this, all the more reason I recommend it.

Lina’s story and those of many children like her are so incredibly important and deserve to be seen.

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for my review copy! All opinions my own.