Summary
Maizy and her mom are visiting her mom’s childhood home in Last Chance, Minnesota. Her mom is planning to stay for a couple weeks until her grandfather gets better. The plan changes, and as Maizy spends more time in Last Chance and at the Golden Palace, the restaurant her family has owned for generations, she discovers new things. Maizy’s curiosity keeps growing as she discovers more. She wants to find the truth when she discovers a family treasure has gone missing and a racist note was left.
Theme(s):
Family, Race, Identity, Immigration
Personal Response
In this story, we learn about the heritage of one Chinese family and how the granddaughter is at the center of it all. All students should read this book and learn about the challenges Chinese immigrants have faced while immigrating to the United States. It signifies the importance of family through Isabella’s discovery and tells an interesting story that will keep the students engaged. I thought that it was awesome that it was a Newberry Honor Book winner.
Teaching Ideas
We will read this book as a class where we will read some in class together and some at home on their own for homework. We will discuss Chinese culture and what some of the students may know or want to know. Maizy in the story wrote messages on fortune cookies for the people in Last Chance. The students will be able to create their own fortune cookie messages and answer the questions, “What would you write on Maizy’s fortune cookies if you could?”” and then explain why they would write that.
Recommended Reading Level
Grade 04, Grade 05
