Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, 1994)
April Chen is a typical American teenager. Her flute playing is of solo quality; she's interested in geology and hopes to go to the Colorado School of Mines; she has a red-haired boyfriend, Steve, who agreeably accommodates to the demands of her Chinese-American family. As embodied in her widowed father's mother, these are difficult and, by US standards, unreasonable; indulged older brother Harry declares himself unavailable on the flimsiest of pretexts, so April must give up field trips and rehearsals to stay with Grandma, who has taken to vague wanderings. April finds her family's assumption that, as a girl, Grandma's care is her responsibility unfair but hard to challenge; in time, she also becomes aware that Grandma, far less helpless than she pretends, deliberately manipulates her. Namioka's accessible narrative verges on simplistic; supportive Steve is a stock character, and only April and Grandma are realized with any depth. Still, the questions of responsibilities within families and of the division of competences and powers between men and women are effectively addressed, illuminating both Chinese tradition and issues that transcend any particular culture. Grandma finally overreaches herself and gets a fair, but not unkind, comeuppance that frees both April and her dad: a cultural hybrid of a conclusion that's certainly satisfying and probably within the realm of possibility. 1994, Harcourt Brace, $10.95; paper $3.95. © 1994 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Tracy Jeane Babiasz (The ALAN Review, Fall 1994 (Vol. 22, No. 1))
April Chen's grandmother insists on following Chinese traditions while April wants to carve a place for herself as an American. Her boyfriend Steve does not understand why she misses activities to look after her grandmother while her brother takes no responsibility. April gradually becomes dissatisfied with allowing her manipulative grandmother to run her life, but not until Grandma's meddling threatens her future plans does she stand up for her beliefs. Namioka's description of Chinese traditions in an American home will surprise readers and inspire cheers as April realizes she does not have to sacrifice her interests for the males of her family. Ironically, she discovers that she resembles her grandmother in continuing to fight for what she wants. Namioka addresses with honesty and compassion the issue of placing forgetful grandparents in nursing homes. Although the discovery that April's father is considering remarriage is a little rushed, the ending in which her grandmother demonstrates potential for change is satisfying. 1994, Harcourt Brace & Company, 214 pp., $10.95. Ages 12 up.

Roger Sutton (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, April 1994 (Vol. 47, No. 8))
April, a Chinese-American high school senior, is happy in school, excited about a new beau, and looking forward to going off to college. The problem is Grandma, who dominates the Chen family with her demands and need for attention, and, increasingly, protection, as Grandma has become increasingly eccentric and has taken to wandering off. It's on April that most of the responsibility falls; since her mother's death two years ago, she's had to take on the role of the dutiful daughter while her older brother goes his merry way, and her father helplessly goes along with Grandma's regime. It's a compelling tangle of relationships, but the writing takes a summary, even desultory tone that makes the problem seem less serious than it's apparently meant to be. April's romance with a white boy seems more friendly than passionate, and their conversations are stiff: "It came as a shock to discover that some of my values were not the same as Steve's. 'I must have absorbed my Chinese attitudes without realizing it,' I said in a low voice. 'Maybe it's because of having Grandma live with us.'" Grandma herself is the only real live wire in the group (when she cleans out the residents of a nursing home in a mah-jongg game, for example) but not all of her tricks ring true (such as pretending she's a homeless person in order to embarrass the family into taking better care of her). Unconvincing but undemanding, smoothly if slightly written, the book presents family drama in a light way, and the resolution is contrived but satisfying for all concerned. Ad--Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. Reviewed from galleys (c) Copyright 1994, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 1994, Browndeer/Harcourt, [224p], $10.95 and $3.95. Grades 7-9.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, 1994)
An Asian-American high-school girl is caught between the demands of her traditional Chinese family and an evolving sense of identity and independence. Told from April's point of view, the cultural conflicts are clearly laid out; however, the relationships between April and the story's other characters are not as well developed. Category: Fiction. 1994, Harcourt, 214pp.. Ages 14 to 18. Rating: 4: Recommended, with minor flaws.