American Panda by Gloria Chao

It’s Mei’s first semester at MIT, and her parents are still trying to run her life. They want her to study hard, get good grades, get into med school, and marry a Taiwanese doctor (preferably a friend of the family). Problem is, Mei is germaphobic and doesn’t want to be a doctor — and she kind of has a crush on a boy who doesn’t meet her parents’ specifications.

I went into this thinking it would be a lighthearted romantic comedy, but found it more serious and less funny than expected. Mei’s romance does have some cute moments (though I’m a little bothered that she fell in love with practically the first guy she saw), but the story is much less about the romance, and much more about Mei’s relationship with her parents, and whether she can meet their expectations. It’s a good story, just not, you know, frothy. So, recommended — not as a romance, but as an examination of parental expectations and cultural norms.

(Reviewed from an e-audiobook borrowed through my library system.)