Triplines: An Autobiographical Novel

Gr 8 Up—A thought-provoking story of a Korean American boy growing up in Long Island with an abusive, alcoholic father. Though slow to start—the novel at first focuses too much on 11-year-old Lenny Chang's bad-tempered father and overly meek mother—the pace soon accelerates. Lenny observes his parents' marital troubles and financial stresses, tries to avoid his father's rages, and sympathizes with his hard-working mother. Though his father has few redeeming qualities, young Lenny does try to understand the source of the violence and drinking—perhaps it was his father's difficult childhood, or brutal experiences in the South Korean Navy. Readers will root for the precocious protagonist. He's teased at school by racist bullies, but because he doesn't speak Korean, he also has trouble fitting in with his mother's church group and communicating with his grandmother. The story really takes off when Lenny gets involved with an older pot-dealing teen. Sal offers to pay Lenny to guard a patch of marijuana hidden in a swamp, and then help harvest it. The protagonist soon discovers library research as a means to learn about everything, from cultivating marijuana to descrambling cable TV signals. The ending is harsh but satisfying. Though the novel has some flaws, such as the occasionally awkward third-person narration, this is a welcome addition to a multicultural library collection. Teens will relate to Lenny's desperate wish to understand his father, and his eventual realization that some things will never change.—Miranda Doyle, Lake Oswego School District, OR