Kelly Yang’s spectacular YA debut follows the lives of Claire, a “parachute” – the teenage daughter of a wealthy Chinese family sent to the United States to attend high school – and Dani, daughter of a first-generation Filipino immigrant. Claire and Dani become reluctant roommates, setting the stage for a novel that has it all – compelling friendships, insights into wealth and power dynamics, complicated relationships with parents, and two #metoo moments that made me feel all the things and had me rooting for Dani and Claire. I didn’t want it to end. A fantastic older YA book.
Parachutes by Kelly Yang, (List Price: $15.99, HarperCollins, 9780062941091, July 2021)
Reviewed by Elese Stutts, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina