Born Naughty: My Childhood in China

Gr 2-4–While not quite the memoir of a wanton troublemaker, this is the tale of a real-life lovable scamp along the lines of Sara Pennypacker’s Clementine. With the help of Johnston, Wang gives her audience a sense of her family’s life in Inner Mongolia in the early 1980s, growing potatoes, awaiting the arrival of the local popcorn vendor, and celebrating the New Year. Young Jin—then known as Haiyan—is depicted in illustrations with a grin and two skyward-pointing pigtails, the kind of exuberant kid anyone would want to follow up a tree or join to see if an icy doorknob is as delicious as it looks. This is an approachable memoir for readers transitioning into chapter books, with episodic storytelling that honors a child’s viewpoint and avoids too much explanation. A long recovery from a possible rabies infection is presented with the same matter-of-fact tone as hunting for mushrooms after the rain. Some readers will need coaxing to consider picking up Born Naughty, as high stakes and drama are nearly nonexistent, save one scene in which Haiyan’s Ma fights off a thunderstorm. Back matter includes illuminating information on how the authors began their collaboration.