Half and Half by Lensey Namioka

★★½

I am purposely seeking out children's books about mixed race kids, and with so few options out there, I really wanted to like this one. Unfortunately, I just had too many misgivings while reading it.

First, it jumps right in and is very explicit about the main character Fiona feeling conflicted about whether she considers herself "Caucasian" or "Asian" or "Other". There's no nuance, no character set-up, just straight-up race exploration. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, except that I think it makes the book less appealing to people in general, and it feels like it's targeting an audience of young people conflicted about their cultural identities, or people seeking multiracial reading options (which, to be honest, is exactly how I found the book).

It may be that, as a Chinese-American myself, I was too sensitive about the way Chinese-ness was represented. I think in the end, the book balanced the Chinese and Scottish sides of Fiona, but in the beginning, it seemed like the book was down on the Chinese side. The most blatant example was when Fiona's Scottish grandfather jokingly called Fiona's brother Ron "Fu Manchu". I'm sorry, but that's racist, and a pretty infuriating thing to read in a children's book, as if it's a totally acceptable thing to do. The book just barely manages to get across that being called "Fu Manchu" isn't exactly complimentary, but Ron reacted by laughing, and the grandfather wasn't called out on its inappropriateness.

I also disliked the way filial piety was introduced in the book. Filial piety is a huge part of Chinese culture, a Confucian virtue of respect, humility, and consideration towards one's parents. In the book, Fiona's father shows filial piety towards his mother, yet his behavior is portrayed as pouty and superficial, and is even described as "acting like a child." It came across more like a ridiculous aspect of Chinese culture, rather than an honorable one.

A major component of the story is about how Fiona is learning traditional Scottish dance. The book makes it clear that Scottish folk dancing is traditionally performed by boys, and Fiona's Scottish grandfather has his heart set on Fiona's brother Ron - who even looks more Scottish - joining his Scottish dance troupe. At one point, Fiona - who looks more Chinese - laments that there are no traditional Chinese folk dances for her to learn. Her father tells her that Western ballroom dancing is what is popular in China. As a former member of a traditional Chinese folk dance troupe comprised entirely of Chinese-American girls, I took exception to the idea that there was no Chinese folk dancing for Fiona to learn!

In the end, Fiona does come to terms with her half-Scottish, half-Chinese identity. It may be worth a read if you're an elementary-school aged kid who actually feels conflicted about being mixed race, but otherwise, it didn't much appeal to me.