Flamingnet Student Book Reviewer TKono
"Good Luck Gold" by Janet S. Wong is a collection of short
poems. It is very short and not even fifty pages. This is
a quick read that is more for leisure and perspective than a
long rainy day. The poems revolve around the author's Asian
heritage, particularly being Korean. They discuss some
aspects of culture, such as food, jewelry, family, chores,
and gender roles. There is also prejudice, fear, sorrow,
and some seeds of hate intertwined in the poems.
poems are curtly to the point, some are mildly amusing, and
some are deeply profound. Children reading this book will
learn about how Asians feel when segregated. Based on some
of the context of this book, it seems as if the setting for
the girl in the poems is near the time of Pearl Harbor.
However, readers can still understand that segregation goes
on today and that it hurts. There are more serious topics
in this book that are subtle but still evident and not for
very young readers.
Topics such as death, intense
segregation, and stereotypes make this book not suitable for
very young children.
State and Country: Staten Island, NY USA