Author Michaela Maccoll tells the tale of her great-great-grandmother Neenah’s harrowing journey as an immigrant in the 1870s. Readers are given a bird’s-eye view of the sheltered lives of Chinese upper-class women during this time period. Maccoll introduces Neenah as a 12-year-old who questions why she doesn’t have her feet bound like her mother and why she is viewed so differently from everyone else. Neenah’s parents fell in love in Shanghai and married at a time when interracial relationships were taboo. Perhaps seeking a better life for Neenah, her mother sends her to live in New York with her American father, whom she has never met. Maccoll does not mince words about the distrust and outright racism Neenah and other Chinese immigrants experienced in the United States. While it was interesting reading about Neenah’s life before immigrating to New York, there were many aspects of Chinese culture and customs that could have been clarified further. Even though there is an author’s note explaining some historical context and a list of resources to learn more, the inclusion of maps and a glossary mentioning Chinese customs would have been helpful. This text could be used in history lessons to support discussions about immigrant experiences in the late 1800s. Laura Dooley-Taylor, Librarian, Lake Zurich Middle School North, Hawthorn Woods , IL

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