Inspired by a true story and described as "Anne Frank during China's Cultural Revolution," this powerful novel is for adults and young adults alike.

Awards:

* 77th Annual California Book Award for Young Adult Literature
* 2008 ALA Best Books For Young Adults
* 2008 ALA Notable Children's Books
* 2007 Publishers Weekly Best Children's Fiction Book List
* 2007 San Francisco Chronicle Best Children's Fiction Book List
* 2008 Chinese American Librarian Association Best Book
* 2007 New York Public Library 100 Best Titles for Reading and Sharing
* 2007 Fall Book Sense Children's Picks
* 2007 Parent's Choice Silver Honor
* 2007 Cybils Award Nomination for Young Adult Fiction
* 2008 Tayshas Reading List (Texas)
* 2007 Chicago Public Library Best of the Best
* 2007 Cleveland Public Library Celebrate With Books
* 2007 Cuyahoga County Public Library Great Books for Kids
* 2008 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People —
           CBC and the National Council for Social Studies
* 2008 IRA Notable Books for a Global Society
* 2008 NCTE Award
* 2008 Capitol Choices — Best Books of the Year, Washington, D.C.
* 2008 New York Public Library's Teen Age List
* 2008 Cooperative Children's Book Center — Best of the Year
* 2008 Bank Street College of Education — Best Children's Book
* 2008 Notable Children's Book in the Language Arts
* 2008 Book of the Year Award —
           Northern California Independent Booksellers Association
* 2008 Women's National Book Association's Judy Lopez Memorial Awards Honor
* 2008-09 Maine Student Book Award
* 2008 Notable Children's Books in the English Language Arts
* 2009 ATPE Book of the Month
* 2009 Sakura Medal Book
* 2008-2009 Nominated for the Maine Student Book Award
* 2008 Among 15 books Ranked Best by Publisher's Weekly
* 2009 Nominated for the Nene Award of Hawaii

Reviews:

* A vivid account of one of the sad follies of history, made rich with details that only an impressionable young witness could supply — The Christian Science Monitor

* In her spare, lyrical style, [she] vividly portrays a world turned upside down  — San Francisco Chronicle

* A "gripping account of life during China's Cultural Revolution" Publisher's Weekly Starred review

* "The Chinese Revolution is up close and personal in this touching historical novel" — Book Sense Picks for Autumn 2007

* Lyrical yet gripping — Kirkus Reviews

* "An excellent addition to historical fiction about this period in China's history." — School Library Journal

* "Beautifully descriptive phrases allow this autobiographical fiction to come alive…Violence is highlighted in vivid detail — Voya

* "Like her cookbooks and children's books, food plays an important role in her novel…" — Lamorinda Sun

* "…a great book – there's no other way to put it." — Virginia Pilot

* "[The] clipped, lyrical first person narrative sets a naïve child's struggle to survive in the political panorama of spies and slogans." —  Booklist

Gut wrenching. Riveting... significant — Richie Partington

* A vantage point rarely seen in books about this era... An inspiring story — Shelf Awareness