I could not put this book down - I quickly fell in love with Evan Pao as he navigates a new hometown after his dad left the family. While Evan makes friends quickly, there is one boy who is determined to make him feel he does not belong because he is Chinese American. This story deals with bigotry, racism, and bullying realistically, but more importantly with the right amount of optimism and hope. I will be recommending this book A LOT!9 s Ms. Yingling2,410 495

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

The Pao's lived in California before their father got into financial and business trouble and left the family. Evan, his mother, and sister Celeste pack up and move to Virginia, where their uncle lives. Money is a problem, but Evan makes a few friends at school, including Max, although Brady is constantly making stupid, racist remarks. His teacher, Mrs. Norwood, is in charge of the annual Battlefield Week celebration and has curated a vast collection of costumes and activities, but thinks that perhaps Evan should not be a reenactor, but should instead report on the activities as a scribe. She makes veiled comments about the "look" of the activity, but when Evan finds information at the public library from Mr. Masters about Chinese Americans who fought during the Civil War, she is open to his research and to his participation. Evan finds a stray dog while out with his uncle, and manages to persuade his mother to let him keep her, naming her Mochi. Gunshots are fired on the Pao household, and Brady is held responsible. The police (whose chief is Max's father) don't charge Brady, or even make him pay for the damage, and there's even some discussion that the Paos are somehow at fault! At school, the students are fed up with the way that Brady has been treating Evan, and subject him to the silent treatment for two weeks, a strategy they picked up reading Fitzgerald's The Great Brain! After Mochi bolts from the house, Brady helps Evan find him, and some secrets come out about the shooting. The two realize that they aren't that different. Will Evan and his family be able to come to terms with the father's desertion and make a home for themselves in Haddington?
Strengths: There are a lot of middle grade stories about moving, but Evan's culture shock sets this one apart from the ordinary. His school in California is culturally diverse, but the entire community of Haddington, Virginia is white. There's a strong thread of Confederate support, and even the teacher, Mrs. Norwood, would prefer to just not think about the real reasons for the Civil War and ignore any problems with the activities or background of the local heroes. Mrs. Norword is drawn particularly well; she's about to retire, she's put many years of work into the Battlefield Week celebration, but she's not unreasonable and realizes that things are changing. The town is portrayed that way as well; there is talk of taking down a Confederate statue, and discussion of the fact that many of these statues weren't put up until the early 1900s, perhaps as a reaction to Civil Rights activity at the time. There is a fantastic librarian who is a friend of Evan's uncle, and his tips on finding reputable sources were a great addition to the story! Max is a good friend to Evan, and most of the students are welcoming. Brady is truly terrible at first, but we find out HOW he was raised to be this terrible, and while he and Evan become friends, it isn't an easy process. Bonus points for a stray dog, Mochi, whom the family adopts. Evan deserved to have a dog and takes good care of her.
Weaknesses: The father's criminal activity and reasons for leaving the family never really made all that much sense to me, and weren't really necessary for the plot. The family's reason for leaving California could have just been a job change. Evan's story would have been compelling enough without that subplot. I also didn't believe that Evan wouldn't know the word "heirloom".
What I really think: This is Shang's best work so far, and is a great mix of home, school, and society problems. The phrase that keeps popping into my mind is "powerfully nuanced". There are a lot of books that I read that made me cringe or sigh because a depiction is just not quite right, but Shang nails the depictions that had me holding my breath perfectly in this one. Great books to pair this with include Landis' The Not So Boring Letters of Private Nobody or Leali's new The Civil War of Amos Abernathy.5 s Kelsey Dangelo-Worth516 12

Evan Pao and his family moves to a small Southern town after a scandal involving his now-absent father. At Battlefield school, Evan is one of two non-white students. His class is participating in a Civil War reeenactment, and Evan discovers that there were Chinese American soldiers. Evan faces prejudice from his classmate and neighbor, Brady.

This Middle Grade book is younger than I expected, and so I was a bit disappointed. I was hoping for a YA or middle school novel, but this book is more for 4-5 grade, perhaps younger. Therefore the language is very young (very simple sentences, very basic action and characters). I'm not quite sure if it is the very simple writing or the age-level, but the narrative voices (it is multiple perspectives) is very simple and doesn't feel very realistic. It feels very much an adult writing to Teach Something to kids. Perhaps that's fine for younger readers.
But it does sort of concern me when it comes to treating issues as complex and important as these (prejudice, American history, monuments, bullying, violence, COVID, sexual harassment, etc.) are treated in such an overly simplistic manner. The author is just trying to do too much, to cram too much into a short, simple story from a young perspective. If the author had focused tightly on one of the issues and given it some true depth and humanity, it would have been much better served. For instance, the older sister was talking about someone having a crush on her because she's Asian. That would have been such an interesting plot line, but it's never mentioned again. Even the main plot with their window being shot out (based on the author's own experience), was sort of confusing (Spoiler: it wasn't Brady, but then at the end, the family treats him he did do it). I just never really felt the characters and the problems, and that was a shame.
(Also confusing: it's not clear when this takes place. The kids are talking about COVID, but aren't acting it's a reality. This would have been such a great plot to dive into, the fear, the prejudice, etc. But it's just mentioned once and then everyone moves on.)
(Also concerning: there is a brief mention about how the Confederate soldiers would have been fighting to keep slaves, and there's a very unrealistic scene where Evan speaks up in a meeting about monuments--which has almost no connection to the main plot--but none of this is mentioned again and the Battlefield Day happens as sort of a happy ending. This issue is sort of glossed over.)
Another MG/YA book that has great intentions and gives voice to so many very important issues, but is just trying to do way too much and doesn't serve the material in an engaging and complex way. It might be a good introduction to some of these issues for young students. 5 s Ms. B3,353 55

What's thicker, blood or water? Find out in this story about classmates; Evan, Max and Brady. Even is the new kid, a Chinese American who recently moved from California to Virginia with his Mom and sister to distance themselves from Evan's and his sister's father a possibly shady character. Max is the boy who almost immediately befriends him and appears to be an all-around nice guy and Brady is the boy whose family has a checkered past. He isn't sure what kind of future he wants for himself.
When someone vandalizes Evan's family's home, Evan must determine whether to take the high road when others around him are more interested in a suitable punishment than forgiveness or second chances. If you know a tween or young teen who is truly looking for a good book to read, this is it. It's one of the best books I have read this year as I was not sure what direction the author was taking this story. 2023 childrens3 s Erin757 8

Evan and his family move to Haddington, Virginia from California. There, Evan is faced with bullying, microagressions, and anti-Asian hate, especially from Brady. Evan learns that Chinese soldiers actually served on both sides in the Civil War, inspiring classmates to dig deeper into history. Evan also must decide whether to treat his bully with kindness or not. When Evan's dog goes missing, he learn there can be more to people and situations that what there seems.

All of the characters felt they were pretty believable. There do seem to be some loose ends that I'd to see tied up in a sequel - What happens with Evan's dad, do Evan and Brady actually become friends, does Brady's brother change, what happens with Battlefield Day. middle-grades2 s Shelley Neville202 1 follower

I Loved this book about a 12-year-old Asian kid who with his mother and sister moved to Virginia after their father and husband left them. Great story about how this kid tries to fit in at school being the only Asian kid at the school. He finds a great friend as well deals with the local bully and sees that all is not as it seems to be.2 s Harry Brake543 5

Bullying, bullying from adjusting to a new culture, serving as the chief English translator in a family that does not speak English as the native language, and all this while trying to adjust to a new school.

There is alot the main character has to take on to survive and yet he comes up a winner in discovering research about Chinese roots found in the Civil War History, 99.9% told as a United States only American, and little to no times focusing on individuals that do not fit that description.

The amazing tales of navigating racism and isolation as a Chinese American are portrayed brilliantly through Evan Pao, the main character.

An excellent way to seeing history through the mind and life of someone that sees American history a little different, but with a clearer perspective than many.1 Libriar2,103

Evan Pao moves from California to a small town in Virginia with his mom and sister after his dad swindled money out of several neighbors. Starting 6th grade at a new school where he is the only Asian kid is hard enough but when everyone has direct connections to the Civil War (what they are studying in class this year) and he does not, makes it even harder. Add to it a family that lives next door that are less than model citizens and Evan's new life in Virginia might just be unbearable. This is a quick read with a fairly simplistic plot that contained some interesting history that was new to me. It will appeal to 4th and 5th graders who realistic school stories involving bullying.middle-grade-realistic read-in-20221 Ellen57 2

If I could give this book more stars, I would.
“This story became a question about what it means to be a gentle person in a tough world. At this time, so many people seem to have little capacity for engagement, preferring instead to shout at each other across the internet, to label, and to shut down important parts of our history. It seems safer to be hard, rather than to contemplate each other’s humanity, our mutual foibles, and the fact that we all must live together. The cracks forming in our society are leaving us with few paths to each other.” - From author’s note



1 Jennifer429 7

I would love to be Evan Pal’s teacher. The thoughtfulness and logic that he puts into each choice he makes was such a delight in reading this character. I enjoyed this story very much. I loved that it was a quick read that had some meat to it. It made me think about what I could do to further the conversation on some conflicts in my life. I think readers will love meeting Evan! 1 Christy409

More a 3.5 for me. I didn’t the ending at all. It felt the book just stopped. I also just didn’t feel connected to the characters. There were a bunch of unresolved conflicts that just bugged me. I appreciate learning the little known stories about Chinese men fighting in the Civil War. I just think this book was taking on too many different big topics without doing any one justice. 1 Taylor484 3

I loved it. Another example of why representation matters. I am going to force my 13 year old to read it...he has a Chinese friend who is experiencing (I think) a lot of micro aggressions in school.1 Lisa Simmons351 4

Outstanding.audio-books mid-school-realistic-fiction1 Gabrielle216

Funny, warm, deals with difficult issues in a compassionate way, relatable.audiobook diverse-fiction kidlit1 Miss Syreena742

Loved this story and the characters. Tackles some big topics through middle grade appropriate conversations! I wish this was a series- I still have some questions. 2024-winter1 Kirsten1,052

A good intro, for younger middle grade readers, to various kinds of racism--the rise of hate crimes against Asian Americans, whether or not confederate statues should be removed from Southern town squares, and small town, narrow thinking--it's all there. It also deals with the way we look at each other, particularly in older elementary school. We think we have everyone else "figured out" except we don't really even know ourselves. I found the story to be a little too "neat". Everything felt tied up with a pretty bow at the end. I did find the various relationships believable, however. Basic writing style that will appeal to younger readers (4th-5th grades.)good-for-book-group middle-readers my-recommendations1 BooksAsDreams (Tiffany)182 3

Great story that I couldn’t put down. Tackles issues important to young people, and the most important was sensitive boys. This is often overlooked and mistreated, so it was great to see its treatment in this book! 1 Carol YeeAuthor 1 book7

Really interesting to learn some Chinese men served in the Civil War.kids-fiction1 Cali116

Listened to this our big road trip. Good middle school reader. Good to think about people who are different and how to include.1 Kaleb249 1 follower

This book follows a young Chinese American boy named Evan who learns to adapt on the fly due to his family moving cross country from California to Virginia. Evan makes new friends/enemies and encounters different forms of racism, bigotry and bullying while settling into his new surroundings. Evan also does his best to learn and retell the history of Chinese people in America. Good read!1 Richie Partington1,147 130

Richie’s Picks: THE SECRET BATTLE OF EVAN PAO by Wendy Wan-Long Shang, Scholastic Press, June 2022, 272p., ISBN: 978-1-338-67885-7

“A simple trip to the market, thought the streets were safe
Turned targets, I speak up for my people's sake
From this pandemic, I'm hopeful that we'll see escape
Until then, love's the only vaccine for hate”
– MC Jin and Wyclef Jean, “Stop the Hatred” (2021)

“During the playoffs, right before they ran out of the dugout, Mr. Nelson gripped Evan by the shoulder and told Evan that he was a good pitcher, and that he’d be proud of Evan no matter what happened. Just go out there and do your best.
The words were a punch to the head. Evan felt dizzy, as if he were seeing double. In one frame, the coach was smiling and supportive, You’re a great pitcher! Just do your best! In the other frame, the coach was tense and unhappy, whispering, Just strike these guys out, okay? I really want to win. The coach wasn’t really saying those words, but Evan could hear the words of what the coach really wanted, slithering underneath the words he was saying out loud. There were two movies, playing side by side, but he could not get them to come into one coherent image.
Evan promptly ran out to the mound and threw up.”

Evan Pao has an unusual but unpleasant “gift”: He experiences significant physical discomfort when someone tells lies in his presence. His response is so reliable that his Mom has come to rely on Evan to judge the honesty of repairmen, real estate agents, and others that she needs to deal with.

The most unusual aspect of this phenomenon is that Evan never sussed out that his father was dishonest with him, his sister Celeste, and their mom. Dad persuaded their friends and neighbors to invest in a financial scheme he had developed, then disappeared with everyone’s investment money.

That’s why THE SECRET BATTLE OF EVAN PAO begins with Mom, Evan, and Celeste driving across the country, from California to Virginia. They’re moving away from Evan’s father’s victims, heading to the town where Mom’s brother, Uncle Joe, now lives.

From their relatively cosmopolitan California community, Evan, Mom, and Celeste arrive in Haddington, Virginia, one of those old towns where so many of the families have been around for multiple generations. There Evan becomes the only non-white student in his class at Battlefield Elementary. It takes less than a minute for the class thug, Brady Griggs, to call out to Evan as to whether he has the China virus.

Evan’s just-about-to-retire new teacher, Mrs. Norwood, has long organized an annual end-of-the-school-year Battlefield Day, when her class dresses in costume to commemorate the Civil War and parents run activities.

It turns out that Evan is a competent researcher and will surprise both the class and Mrs. Norwood regarding the fact that people who looked him–Chinese Americans–fought in the Civil War. As I was surprised to learn, Evan also discovers that,
“Because of…the Chinese Exclusion Act, Chinese were not allowed to become citizens, not even someone who had fought in the war.”

Another significant thread in the story involves the stray dog that canine-loving Evan brings home, with Uncle Joe’s support. The lovable stray they name Mochi, has a few tricks of her own to reveal.

What would it be to have a sibling or a friend who was a walking truth-o-meter?

THE SECRET BATTLE OF EVAN PAO is a lively and notable contemporary tween tale that tackles Asian hatred, contains an excellent boy-and-his-dog tale, and enlightens young readers about the Civil War. The setting is quite interesting, and a number of Evan’s classmates are well-drawn characters who could easily become the focus of a future sequel.

Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
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richiepartington@gmail.combox1 fiction read-to-chayton Kristen Blackton629 24

3.75 stars

This was a pretty solid middle grade read. We follow the Pao family, but mainly youngest child Evan, as they move from California to Haddington, Virginia, a town full of history buffs and descendants of Confederate soldiers. When Evan and has family face prejudice as the town's only Chinese American citizens, he uses the power of research, empathy, and sensitivity to shine a light on hidden parts of the past to effect change in the present.

Overall, I d this book. I thought it had good characters, an interesting plot, and a great message. I loved that the author was able to immerse readers in hidden history about the American Civil War as well as bring up timely issues regarding AAPI hate and Confederate monuments. What I didn't was that there were so many issues and subplots raised in the book, and many of them were left unresolved or simply unaddressed. In the first chapter, we are introduced to Evan's "power," which is that he is able to intuit whether or not others are lying based on some internal sensitivity meter. This seemed a completely arbitrary feature of the book as it is very rarely referenced and never really explained. Furthermore, the Pao family patriarch is absent due to some poor financial and social decisions. This, too, is not really addressed in a meaningful way, nor its ramifications on the family's monetary and emotional welfare. What was addressed well were the hardships of moving to a new place, including building friendships, facing unkindness, and learning a new culture. I just wish it would have focused more completely on that.

The author's note at the end was very meaningful, as she notes that her own family faced an act of hate that is replicated in the book. She also notes that she recently learned about Chinese American soldiers in the Civil War, a history fact that I did not know either. I did the book and definitely recommend to middle grade readers! Erin4,083 53

4.5

There were places in the beginning of this story that fell into more caricature or overly predictable than I would have d, but regardless I was quickly pulled into Evan's story. And it was mostly Evan's story, even though there are other chapters that focus on other points of view. Evan's family has just moved across country to a very southern, Confederate-loving small town. Escaping from the criminal stigma of Evan's father and moving closer to Evan's uncle puts them in a town where everyone knows everyone else and newcomers are not always treated with enthusiasm.

Evan quickly makes at least one good friend, but his status as a new arrival and the fact that there is very little diversity in the community to begin with means he stands out. There's some bullying, some inclusion of restorative justice, and a really nice use of shunning (which as a young adult I always thought would be a more effective punishment than violence). My favorite piece though was a nice plotline about the Civil War and how learning a more complete history does not change what happened, it just expands what we know. Evan learns that there were indeed Chinese soldiers who fought on the U.S. Civil War Battlefields, and one of his classmates share what she learns about the women who fought. In some ways Prairie Lotus, which also took a "well-known" historical time period and looked at it through a different perspective, this book is definitely contemporary realistic fiction. But the story asks the reader to look at the history we learn, and the history we celebrate, and also to examine the justice we would seek.fiction multicultural multiple-pov ...more Ann421 7

This was such an interesting book that tackles our complicated American history from an indirect angle. Evan is Chinese American, and his family has just moved to rural Virginia. Every year the school has a Civil War project day, and kids are supposed to research and then dress up as people from the war. Because of his Chinese heritage, his teacher tells Evan he won't be able to dress up as a soldier. (First of all, really?? We've done Wax Museums for years at school, and most of the kids choose to dress up as famous people who are different races/sexes/ages than they are.) Anyway, Evan finds out that there actually were Chinese soldiers in the war, and he's delighted because this means he can dress up a soldier everyone else. This opens the door for other kids to research how other minorities participated in the war. The teacher acknowledges that she was missing a lot of pieces and says it is exciting that she was still able to learn new things about the war (thank goodness).

As an adult, I read the book and got the message that it is important that our students see themselves represented in our history, but for Evan, this is mostly just important because he wants to wear a costume everyone else.

The other plotline concerns a kid in the class, Brady, who bullies Evan. I d how this story was handled, too. The Civil War storyline emphasizes how important it is to have truth in our history, but the Brady storyline makes a case for nuance. We don't always need to have every single fact known publicly.

This is only missing the 5 star rating because there's another main plotline about Evan's dad, and I didn't feel this resolved in any real way. I ended the book with a lot of questions about this story.

ya-book-club young-adult Dollface ;)42

Told from multiple points of view from family, friends, and people around Haddington, these different perspectives reveal themes of racism, bullying, sexism, and their prevalence in the community. Shang treats grave and demeaning topics with realism and care, and a tone of hope that lends an uplifting feel to the weighty subjects. Although Evan knows he and his family don’t fit into the small town, he strives to show that some town traditions do relate to him and that Asian Americans have a legacy in the American South, just everyone else. In the beginning, Evan struggles through many of the town’s prejudices that impact him and his family, and when it seems he could give in to hate and subjugation, Evan overcomes these ‘secret battles’ within himself to reveal that forgiveness and mercy are vital for healing all wounds. Although the novel focuses on Evan as the main male protagonist, other characters are depicted as slowly adjusting their racially insensitive biases and worldview based on Evan’s influence. Evan proves that it only takes one brave person to break a cycle of hate and racial stereotyping in order to make a difference in the community. This deeply moving novel highlights the struggle young people have with self-identity, and how hard fitting into a new place can be, but that taking the initiative and being brave has its rewards. Kathy Maggiacomo320 3

This book I believe had an underlying message about forgiveness. I was disappointed we never really found out about Evan’s Dad and his reasons for leaving his family but honestly that wasn’t important to the story. It was mostly focused on the fact that Evan, Celeste (his older sister) and mom moved to a small town in Virginia from California and they are the only Asian kids in school. I how Evan finds his place there and friends. It also focuses on the civil war and the town celebration for Battlefield Day was tough for Evan at first. Also there are some that don’t treat him well but I how you learn more about their backgrounds and understand what they are going through too. I how Evan and Brady become friends and he forgives him. Everyone deserves a second chance. This book I did feel left the reader with unanswered questions but I d the storyline with the dogs as well. As for the underlying storyline about the Civil War and the town talking about taking down the statues and others wanting to preserve history, I’m not sure the right answer there. Perhaps some forgiveness is needed there too. I also how the characters research history and learn some things aren’t always what you may have learned. (Such as the history behind the statues or who fought or their own ancestors)Research at the library is a good message too.multicultural Keshia SwaimAuthor 5 books66

I don't know what to do with this book. On one hand, it deals honestly with some pretty complicated family dynamics, without showing judgement on any of the very different ways of dealing with that. It also hits the universal middle-school issues of changing friend dynamics, not fitting in, and parent relationships, as well as the struggles of being the new kid in a small town. Also, there are some lesser-known civil war facts that are fascinating.

Then there is Evan's superpower? curse? of being a human lie detector. I didn't get it at all. It didn't advance the plot in any meaningful way, but took up quite a bit of the book regardless. While most of the characters seem to be well-developed, there are a few (POV chapter from the realtor lady) that are canned-stereotype characters. This felt weird in a book where the message seems to be "don't make assumptions." And again, these people were entirely unnecessary to the plot of the book. Last thing, and this is more of a minor plot hole quibble. The book opens with Evan saying they were going to learn Chinese on a 10 hr. trip, but he actually only learned one word. But at a few parts toward the middle and end of the book, the family uses Chinese to have private conversations around others. Again, not at all a major plot point, I just found it confusing. middle-school Josephine Sorrell1,737 33

Chinese American middle schooler struggles to adjust to life in a tight knit mostly White town.

Sixth grader Evan Pao, his divorced mother, and big sister, Celeste relocate from California to a town in Virginia to be where his Uncle Joe lives. They have left behind a scandal involving his dad. Evan, the new kid at Battlefield Elementary has a lot to get used to in this mostly white, small town community. Veteran teacher, Mrs. Norwood, constantly talks about the Confederacy and local Civil War history, Evan is also the school’s only Asian American student. The class bully Brady asks on Evan’s first day if Evan has the “China virus.” Evan is upset and confused. And things get worse from there for Evan. Meanwhile, Mrs. Norwood is all about the annual school event celebrating the Civil War era and suggests Evan be a scribe in the event and not the more desired role as soldier, because of his race.

This provokes thought so Evan surprises everyone when he researches and shares information about Chinese soldiers who fought on both sides during the Civil War. He even provides primary resources to back up his facts.

The story illustrates how hard it is to be the new kid in class, particularly if you are different.

Lots of discussion points in this 2023-msbob newbery-2023 Shella918 2

The last third of the book is very strong. How the theme came together was authentic and very distinguished. The reader discovers something about a very unlikable character. This is a great story to discuss multi-faceted characters. As a teacher I thought the question- are you really learning during this very beloved Battlefield Day or are you just going through the motions almost doing something for entertainment only. Without Evan’s discovery about his heritage, I’m not sure they were really learning much with the exception of mindless facts prior to that and it was his teacher’s “sacred cow.” I made a very strong text-to-self connection. I remember teaching in Oklahoma and there was an annual “land run” reenactment. Only one other teacher beside myself that was not from the area thought it was inappropriate since there was no mention of the cause and effect to Native Americans. All others thought we were crazy to mention that observation. As educators we need to reevaluate all the sacred cows we endorse and really see if they need to be reframed, eliminated, or continue the stays quo. It has been awhile since a middle school book made me think that. This would make a great read aloud. Rich discussions of the theme would be worth the time. Linda932 8

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