Hope you all are doing as good as possible. I’ve spent the week working on catching up on some of my ARCs and playing Dragon Age Veilguard. One of the ARCs I finished was How to Draw a Secret by Cindy Chang. It continues in the tradition of strong middle grade graphic novels from others like Jen Wang’s Stargazing or Betty C. Tangs Parachute Kids.
Synopsis
How to Draw a Secret is Chang’s autobiographical take on her early adolescence. It features twelve year old Cindy a Taiwanese American artist. Cindy is struggling to find her voice in her changing family. Cindy’s family changed four years ago when her father left to live in Taiwan.
Cindy isn’t super clear on what happened. She was young at the time, her father left, but knows she misses her father. She also knows can’t tell her friends about her strange situation. However Cindy finds it easy to relax in drawing beautiful images.
That all changes when she gets a prompt for an art competition about what family means to her. She begins to question how her strange family situation fits. When sh and her mother and sisters are called back to Taiwan for an emergency. Cindy gets the opportunity to see her father again and secrets are revealed.
Cindy must figure out how she and her mother and sisters now fit in this new reality. She must go through the stages of grief about the changes and find a way to accept her new normal. Though her family is changing she must realize that she is still a very important person in her family. Cindy her voice deserves to be heard. She must learn to embrace her changed family and her new life even with its messy and confusing parts.
Review
This was a very good novel for a late elementary to middle grade audience. Cindy is easy to relate to especially for young adults with complicated family situations. I’d give this book four stars, both for the story. The pacing was good. The voice was consistent and the characters were detailed and interesting. Even the characters we don’t get to see much of have their own goals, and motivations.
I enjoyed the art too. I think its bright style will appeal to its target audience. I can tell the author is very invested in her work and detailing her life and her adolesent adventures in Taiwan.
If you enjoy middle grade novels or have someone in your life who is at that age, this is a great book to check out.
The book is out February 4th.
Pre-Order it here.
About the Author
Cindy Chang was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and holds degrees in education and computer science. She works as a digital product designer in addition to writing and illustrating children’s books. How to Draw a Secret is her first book.
Say hi on Instagram @cindobindo or cindychang com
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