Girl Overboard (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Defying the Diva Karen Coats Love, D. Anne Defying the Diva. McElderry, 2008 [272p] ISBN 978-1-4169-3481-3$16.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 7-10 The daughter of a billionaire entrepreneur and his apparent trophy wife, Syrah Cheng is intensely focused on what she doesn't have rather than what she does. Her parents' attention, a really good friend, the snowboarding confidence she had before she was almost killed in an avalanche, the love of her half-siblings from Baba's first marriage, the boy of her heart—the lack of these things matters more to her than her father's billions, which in fact stand as obstacles to several of them. Syrah offers a heartfelt and intimate perspective on her situation that mitigates the poor-little-rich-girl cynicism through which she might otherwise be viewed. The utter normality of the gaps in her heart makes her seem ordinary despite her vast wealth and results in a focus on the cultural nuances of her situation (her mother wants her to be a slender Hong Kong–style girl, and she alone in her family speaks English, Mandarin, and Cantonese, making her a bridge across the pain and separation the family endured as a result of the Cultural Revolution) more than the class ones. Unfortunately, an attenuated set-up features a jaded Syrah overworking her snowboarding metaphors as she teases out every gradation of action, reaction, and motivation of the hangers-on and socialites in her father's über-wealthy circle, and the plot gets leggy and sprawling, with new characters being introduced more than halfway through the book that prove pivotal to the resolution. However, once the players are all on the stage, things in the final third gather speed to a satisfying and genuinely moving conclusion that celebrates the really good things you can do with a loving, generous family behind you. Oh, and of course a couple million dollars doesn't hurt either. Copyright © 2008 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois