Erin Yun

Pippa is looking forward to Christmas until she learns that her mother won't be able to visit from Korea like she usually does. To add on to her troubles, Pippa's new friends at her private school decide to throw a big Christmas Eve party -- and put Pippa in charge of running it all. But can Pippa fit everyone in her family's small apartment? And how will she ever pay for all the decorations and food? This is only made worse by her family's finances being tighter than ever; in fact, Pippa must also help out at a local church's pageant in order to give her sister's laundromat business a boost. There, she re-connects with an old friend named Marvel Moon and starts to crush on him -- except she still hasn't lost the crush she developed on Elliot when she first joined her new school. How can Pippa handle it all?

This book's predecessor, Pippa Park Raises Her Game, was one of my favorite books of 2020. I was so excited to see it had a sequel, but unfortunately it didn't quite live up. Despite the title, the book is less about her new crush and much more about her worrying about this party. As an adult, I try not to be dismissive of children's concerns, even if they seem minor compared to all the problems in the world. But to have anxiety about something as trivial as a party seemed ridiculous; I know that the larger concern was about fitting in and pleasing her new friends, but I also wanted to shake some sense into Pippa and say that friends who need to be impressed by shows of wealth and expect you to shoulder all the burdens of the group aren't friends.

Pippa's issues could also have been resolved much quicker if she had just tried a smidge harder to talk to literally anyone about them; I know that the drama is created by her doing the exact opposite, but frankly this book didn't have enough actual content to warrant its length. It's not a particularly long book, but 200+ pages about how is Pippa going to pay for the party is way too much. Meanwhile, other smaller plot points got lost in the shuffle (such as Mina's financial troubles) or aren't satisfyingly concluded (such as why Caroline is so awful to Pippa).

The subplot about Pippa being unsure whether she likes Eliot or whether she likes Marvel is also beaten to death. As I mentioned, it's not actually as big a discussion as the party, but every time it comes up, it's basically the same thing over and over again. Pippa's actions on this front are also kind of a mess, as she ends up dragging both boys along for a ride while she waffles indecisively.

By the end, however, it's sort of an "all's well that ends well" conclusion with Pippa finally confessing to her various mistakes and lies, apologizing to wronged persons, and working to fix what she can so that everyone has a happy holiday.

That all being said, I don't particularly recommend this title. The first one was so good but this one just fell flat and it took far too long for bad behavior to be pointed out and corrected -- not a great message for the intended audience of middle schoolers.… (meer)

It's probably a good thing I didn't know about the Great Expectations angle until after I started reading -- I have terrible memories of that book from 7th grade -- but this book is clever and Pippa is a great character. I'm a big fan of her loving family (even if they have high expectations) and her solid skill with basketball. Friendship drama, some cyberbullying, some poverty shaming. Mother had to return to Korea, Pippa lives in Western Mass with her sister and husband. Very tween coming of age -- making mistakes, learning and taking responsibility. Really well done.
… (meer)

Seventh-grader Pippa Park lives with her older sister, Mina, and Mina's husband, Jung-Hwa. Mina runs a laundromat and Jung-Hwa works at a factory; Mina and Pippa's mother lives back in Korea. Mina is strict with Pippa and has forbidden her to be on Victoria Middle's basketball team this year due to her grades, but when Pippa gets scouted by a fancy private school and her scholarship is contingent on her playing basketball, Mina agrees. At her new school, Pippa tries to fit in with the "Royals," popular girls (some nice, some mean), but soon someone is cyberbullying her. Between that, stressing over her math grades, and worrying that her new friends will learn who she really is, Pippa is struggling - and then her mom is in a car accident.

Pippa makes a series of familiar bad choices. Her motivation for wanting a new life is murky, and her desire to remain friends with the Royals is told more than shown. Nevertheless, this is a worthwhile middle grade story featuring a sympathetic character plunged into a new world.

Quotes

Stereotypes sucked, but sometimes not being able to live up to the stereotype ["Aren't Asians supposed to be good at math?"] felt even worse. (19)

How could Mina forbid me from playing on the team? It was the one thing I was really good at, and she had taken it away from me. (40)

Had that been a successful encounter - or a terrible one? And why was it so hard to tell the difference between the two? (73)

I hadn't exactly lied, but I hadn't corrected people's wrong ideas about me - and it was getting harder and harder to keep the truth hidden.... I'd wanted a different life, but changing myself into the popular, private school Pippa had left me feeling more alone than ever. (146)

...I felt haunted by the sense I was missing out on something fun somewhere. (157)

"Remember...the lower you fall, the more room you have to rise. This will pass, eventually." (Jung-Hwa to Pippa, 233)

...most of what he said was stuff that I already knew deep down. (234)… (meer)