Bookworm for Kids presents books for toddlers to teens and everything in between: board books, picture books, chapter books, middle grade reads, tween reads, and young adult literature.
A fast-paced, high-kicking debut that’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon meets Stand Up,
Yumi Chung as a young taekwondo artist uses an ancient book to help save her dreams—
and her father.
Twelve-year-old Modesty “Mo” Seto dreams of being a taekwondo champion. Even though her mom disapproves, Mo can always count on her dad, who is her number one fan and biggest supporter. Lately, Mo has been on a losing streak, and it doesn’t help that she keeps losing to her archnemesis, Dax, who’s much bigger than her. If only she were faster, stronger, not so petite. Mo can’t even lean on her dad like usual with how distracted he’s been lately.
When Mo learns about the chance to audition to star alongside her idol and legendary martial artist and movie star Cody Kwok, she knows this her chance to prove to her dad, to the world, and to herself that she can compete with anyone, no matter her size. Unfortunately, Dax is auditioning, too. As Mo and her nemesis progress to callbacks, someone attempts to sabotage the movie set and Mo’s dad disappears—and both events seem linked to a mysterious book, the Book of Joy.
MY TIDBITS
Action mixes with determination and heart to form an exciting adventure from beginning to end. And yes, this one is hitting my possible favorites of the year list.
Mo loves taekwondo, and while she's always excelled, she can't seem to beat one person, Dax. While she once out-did him, he's grown and become so much larger than her puny 4'6". Gosh, she hates being short. Add that her mother is constantly badgering her to try something else, and she's more than frustrated. Her biggest supporter, her dad, isn't there for her either, especially when he takes off for a company emergency and doesn't even respond when she informs him that she's trying out for a movie role to play alongside the most amazing action star ever! Mom doesn't know anything about this, but Mo is determined and pretty good at being sneaky. Until she learns that they only want people over 5 feet tall...and Dax is there, too. Somehow, she's going to seal this role, even if it's basically impossible.
This is such a fun read! It surrounds Mo, who is at odds with her height and doesn't seem to get support from almost anyone. The feeling of inadequacy and not being satisfied with ones' own appearance is something which will ring true with almost every reader in some way. Luckily, this struggle, while propelling the plot, doesn't overburden it, either. Mo is amazing character with a heroine heart, and that brings her from one tense scene to the next. It never talks down to readers, but lets them sink into an exciting tale with danger, amazing fight scenes, and high stakes. It is hard to put down and promises unexpected twists and turns the entire way through. Action fans and martial art enjoyers are going to like this one.
A. Y. Chan grew up in Canada’s Greater Toronto Area reading all the middle grade and young adult books she could get her hands on. To this day, those remain her favorite genres. After achieving her black belt in Taekwondo, she explored other martial arts, such as Wing Chun, Hapkido, and Muay Thai. These days, she continues her martial arts training some mornings, writes in the afternoons, takes long walks to muddle out plot points, and falls asleep reading.
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