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Hey, Hmong Girl, Whassup?: The Journal of Choua Vang
A journal of Choua Vang. This novel in journal form conveys the thoughts and feelings of a Hmong girl growing up in Minnesota.
138 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
October 10, 2017
I read a book called “HEY, HMONG GIRL, WHASSUP?” It a book about choua( Hong girl) didn't want to be like Hong girl anymore. Her sister and her brother are in gangs and cause so much trouble. They wanted to act like white kids but their father still wanted them to act Hong even though they lived in America.
Things that I like about this book was it tell about how Hmong people live in America. And their parents are wanted their children to keep their culture, not become too American. I can relate to this because my family always want me to keep my culture and know how to read and writes my language,also still know how to speak my Language.The most thing I like about this book was choua was telling about her falling in love with Ku( her boyfriend). And also what are they doing doing while she was dating with Ku.
Things that I don't like about this book was choua bigger sister and brother were in gangs and causing trouble. And their parents won’t let them going out with their friends or someone that their parents don't know. I know a lot of Karen are like this too. They parents alway worry about their children because they saw many kids act different in America and they want to be like them too. I saw many kids in America are act different from Thailand. This happens to most boys. They alway use drug, stole people car, come home late. In the ends of story, choua and Ku was breaked up. And their parents didn't want them to wore thing that are not good or proper. They already in America and they want to live like American, but their parents don't like it. I don't like this because I feel like Hmong don't give their children a lot of freedom.
In this book, Hmong parents didn't give a lot freedom to their kids. And then their kids stress and causing trouble. I know this is not fair because not every Hong parents are like that. Some Hmong still want them to keep their culture because their kid were in gangs and they act too America.
I recommend this book because u can learn about how Hmong people life in America and what their parents want them, also how most of Hmong kids act or feel about living in America. And how it can be related to you life.
Things that I like about this book was it tell about how Hmong people live in America. And their parents are wanted their children to keep their culture, not become too American. I can relate to this because my family always want me to keep my culture and know how to read and writes my language,also still know how to speak my Language.The most thing I like about this book was choua was telling about her falling in love with Ku( her boyfriend). And also what are they doing doing while she was dating with Ku.
Things that I don't like about this book was choua bigger sister and brother were in gangs and causing trouble. And their parents won’t let them going out with their friends or someone that their parents don't know. I know a lot of Karen are like this too. They parents alway worry about their children because they saw many kids act different in America and they want to be like them too. I saw many kids in America are act different from Thailand. This happens to most boys. They alway use drug, stole people car, come home late. In the ends of story, choua and Ku was breaked up. And their parents didn't want them to wore thing that are not good or proper. They already in America and they want to live like American, but their parents don't like it. I don't like this because I feel like Hmong don't give their children a lot of freedom.
In this book, Hmong parents didn't give a lot freedom to their kids. And then their kids stress and causing trouble. I know this is not fair because not every Hong parents are like that. Some Hmong still want them to keep their culture because their kid were in gangs and they act too America.
I recommend this book because u can learn about how Hmong people life in America and what their parents want them, also how most of Hmong kids act or feel about living in America. And how it can be related to you life.
February 10, 2009
There should be more books with Hmong teens as the intended audience. I think Leah Rempel did a very good job of portraying the difficult position many Hmong youth face. It is interesting to read it told as a journal and not just as a third person narrative. My students who are Hmong who have read this story agree with its accuracy and read it very, very quickly. They loved it. There's even a reference to Liberian students which is also quite uncommon. While I wouldn't complain the author is not Hmong (because as I've said my students verify the validity of the main character's struggles) I would still like to read more stories written by Hmong people for Hmong teens. Choua Vang (the main character) is great and well-developed and very relateable. A good read!
April 26, 2017
This book is call “Hey, Hmong Girl, Whassup?”. This book is about a Hmong girl's life name Chou Vang, who lives in Minnesota that writes diary in her journal. She talks about her thoughts and feelings, coping with her family’s strict old world traditions and her friends and classmates, yearning to be grown-up and independent and American. Chou has 2 older siblings name Mai and Ger, her two older siblings both joined in a gang when they both were young. As for Chou, she wants to become a good and intelligent Hmong daughter to her family but being Hmong for her is not that easy. Her sister Mai doesn't want to be Hmong because she doesn't want to get married to someone at a very young age and how her dad picks the guy for her to get marry and not the love of her life. Choua's father respect his own Hmong culture and tradition even though he lives in the USA, he doesn’t truly respect American culture. Chou’s brother Ger once use to be a good kid and use to go to school everyday but because he is Hmong he wants to change and become a bad boy who is in a gang and skips school. Choua fell in love with a Hmong boy name Ku, who she finds Ku very handsome. Chou finds her life very difficult because of her being Hmong and her dad being very strict about their traditions. Overall I find this book very interesting because it’s telling about a young age girl who had experience many bad things that happened in her life, but life is never going to be perfect, but it’s what you make of it. If you like reading about someone’s mistakes, their life story and how you can learn from their mistakes, then you will definitely enjoy reading this book.
November 17, 2011
1 of tha most interesting books i eva read even tho im hmong
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June 17, 2020This is a journal written by the fictional Choua Vang. This novel by Leah Rempel in journal form conveys the thoughts and feelings of a Hmong girl growing up in St. Paul, MN. It describes Choua's struggle to live between two cultures. Her family follows traditional Hmong traditions, whilst the public school she goes to is very diverse and Choua desperately wants to fit in with typical, modern high school life and its preoccupations such as rap music and dating. It is one of the first young adult fiction books directly concerning the Hmong community's issues of race, acculturation, and family. The author is an ESL teacher who worked with high school and middle school students, parents and Hmong elders to review and generate input at every stage of her writing, in order to make sure it was as realistic as possible.
This book is relevant to my AmeriCorps service because I work with and live among a very diverse population, including a high percentage of Hmong Americans. Before moving to St Paul I knew very little about their rich and fascinating culture. Reading 'Hey Hmong Girl' gave me a new perspective on the challenges young Hmong people are facing in the United States, and why there is sometimes conflict and misunderstanding between groups of young Asians and other groups such as African American and Latino youth. It taught me a lot about their family and marriage traditions, which is important to know about when working with adults. The novel also touches on the controversial topic of gangs, and does not shy away from the rape and sexual assault which is part of some gang culture in St. Paul.
I would recommend the book to all CTEP members working in diverse communities. The book is very readable and enjoyable. It is not long, or dry in any way. In fact, you could recommend it to young adults at your sites too, as it can be read by anyone at advanced ELL or GED level. I hope that other similar books will be written by young Hmong adults so people can gain an even more authentic perspective on their lives.
This book is relevant to my AmeriCorps service because I work with and live among a very diverse population, including a high percentage of Hmong Americans. Before moving to St Paul I knew very little about their rich and fascinating culture. Reading 'Hey Hmong Girl' gave me a new perspective on the challenges young Hmong people are facing in the United States, and why there is sometimes conflict and misunderstanding between groups of young Asians and other groups such as African American and Latino youth. It taught me a lot about their family and marriage traditions, which is important to know about when working with adults. The novel also touches on the controversial topic of gangs, and does not shy away from the rape and sexual assault which is part of some gang culture in St. Paul.
I would recommend the book to all CTEP members working in diverse communities. The book is very readable and enjoyable. It is not long, or dry in any way. In fact, you could recommend it to young adults at your sites too, as it can be read by anyone at advanced ELL or GED level. I hope that other similar books will be written by young Hmong adults so people can gain an even more authentic perspective on their lives.
July 6, 2017
Overall, the author did a good job with this. I had seen it quoted somewhere, and thought it was an actual diary, but it turned out to be a fictionalized account as someone's master thesis. Some parts seemed to ring true (from my limited knowledge), but other parts seemed hollow. The main character's voice seemed like it was in middle school- 5th-7th grade, not a young adult in 10th grade. The slang was a little distracting--do teens really describe their friends as "homeboys," their clothes as "stylin'" ? Maybe, but it seemed forced coming from sweet Choua Vang. Parts also seem a little stereotypical in the worst sense--especially coming from someone who is not a part of the culture. Seems like the author is judging the culture, although the main character is not. But it is almost 20 years old, and has some value as an ESL text, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.
December 20, 2019
2006
The last novel I read about a Hmong character (Tangled Threads: A Hmong Girl's Story) was quite good, so when I saw this at the library I thought I'd give it a try too. This book, however, is literally nothing but a master's thesis, and that does not translate well to the real world. It appears to be written by someone who wants to pat themselves on the back because of their "extensive research" and feedback workshops, which didn't go over so well with me. I've got to split my reaction into two separate parts to deal:
Review, Part 1: Preface
For starters, everything about the preface seems incredibly pretentious - this is what academia sounds like, to be sure, but that's also why we try to confine that nonsense to college campuses for the sole purpose of achieving degrees. To quote:
I believe that this is the first novel ever written specifically for Hmong teenagers, addressing issues that are unique to them. It is written at a reading level appropriate for ESL high school students yet it doesn't talk down to them - it uses language that is familiar to their lexicon.
[Wait. Who is your target audience here? You've taken careful pains to point out your target group, and yet you're writing this preface to a different audience entirely, as if expecting that your target group will just skip the preface altogether. Well, maybe they will. I am guessing that "lexicon" is not in their lexicon. Also, I am not wired to adjust my judgment for things deliberately written at low reading levels. Not when this book is at a public library with all the regular YA novels.]
Hey, Hmong Girl, Whassup? is a product of my master's thesis at Hamline University Graduate School of Education. Part of my research was to determine whether it was appropriate for a person to write fiction about a culture other than his or her own.
[You mean like people have been doing since forever? Say, when writing historical novels? Or basically anything that isn't based on their own life? Quite a few authors do research on topics they are interested in but not intimately unfamiliar with. Once in a while they'll mention their research process in an author's note at the end, if it was particularly involved, but I've never heard one of them wring their hands over how they studied the ethical dilemma of whether or not they should write about this at all. I feel like maybe you are creating politically correct problems to solve just because upper education has conditioned you to think you should.]
In the end, my research concluded that only under circumstances where a writer has close contact with the community/culture, does extensive research, and interviews, workshops, and edits the book with members of that community is it appropriate.
[I see. So no stories set in ancient Egypt, then. Oh, that's not quite what you meant? Did you mean something more like, I'd better not write a novel about a French girl unless I actually move to France and workshop all my drafts with French students? Or is that close enough as long as the French girl is white? Hmmm. Well, thanks anyway for your groundbreaking efforts to determine what is and is not appropriate to write about. The literary world was pretty lost until you came along.]
Review, Part 2: Story
I don't know what a typical Hmong voice would sound like, which is part of what I thought I was going to discover, but the voice sounded like the diary of any average 7th grader. Maybe the parts specific to Hmong culture were where the father is slapping around his disobedient wife and kids for talking back to him, or where her older siblings are running in gangs with their "homeboys"?
Her sister starts out as the only one who has enough backbone to stand up to their father's disturbing obsession with tradition ("girls are worthless! No talking back! Marry at 16 to the man I choose!"), but she immediately turns out to be heavily involved in drugs and alcohol, promiscuous, in a gang, and arrested for driving a stolen car, so the only thing I can conclude here is that marriage might help rein her in, actually. Her brother is also in a gang, and even though he claims all they do is drink beer/smoke pot/occasionally steal stuff from rich people, halfway through the book he .
The author keeps making the point about how this is the first novel dealing with the "current issues" of "race, acculturation, and family among the Hmong in America." So judging by the above paragraphs...these are the main issues that all/most of them deal with? Abuse and gangs and crime and whatnot?
Because...if I were to make a generalization about Hmong people in America based solely on this book - which seems to be what the author wants - it would be, "I had no idea it was such a messed-up culture." I think maybe the author's goal is backfiring a little, in the sense that it seems to be encouraging me to write off an entire ethnicity based on a small group of not-terrifically-bright representatives making exceptionally terrible choices.
I guess I am just not culturally advanced enough to appreciate this profound product of painstaking research.
The last novel I read about a Hmong character (Tangled Threads: A Hmong Girl's Story) was quite good, so when I saw this at the library I thought I'd give it a try too. This book, however, is literally nothing but a master's thesis, and that does not translate well to the real world. It appears to be written by someone who wants to pat themselves on the back because of their "extensive research" and feedback workshops, which didn't go over so well with me. I've got to split my reaction into two separate parts to deal:
Review, Part 1: Preface
For starters, everything about the preface seems incredibly pretentious - this is what academia sounds like, to be sure, but that's also why we try to confine that nonsense to college campuses for the sole purpose of achieving degrees. To quote:
I believe that this is the first novel ever written specifically for Hmong teenagers, addressing issues that are unique to them. It is written at a reading level appropriate for ESL high school students yet it doesn't talk down to them - it uses language that is familiar to their lexicon.
[Wait. Who is your target audience here? You've taken careful pains to point out your target group, and yet you're writing this preface to a different audience entirely, as if expecting that your target group will just skip the preface altogether. Well, maybe they will. I am guessing that "lexicon" is not in their lexicon. Also, I am not wired to adjust my judgment for things deliberately written at low reading levels. Not when this book is at a public library with all the regular YA novels.]
Hey, Hmong Girl, Whassup? is a product of my master's thesis at Hamline University Graduate School of Education. Part of my research was to determine whether it was appropriate for a person to write fiction about a culture other than his or her own.
[You mean like people have been doing since forever? Say, when writing historical novels? Or basically anything that isn't based on their own life? Quite a few authors do research on topics they are interested in but not intimately unfamiliar with. Once in a while they'll mention their research process in an author's note at the end, if it was particularly involved, but I've never heard one of them wring their hands over how they studied the ethical dilemma of whether or not they should write about this at all. I feel like maybe you are creating politically correct problems to solve just because upper education has conditioned you to think you should.]
In the end, my research concluded that only under circumstances where a writer has close contact with the community/culture, does extensive research, and interviews, workshops, and edits the book with members of that community is it appropriate.
[I see. So no stories set in ancient Egypt, then. Oh, that's not quite what you meant? Did you mean something more like, I'd better not write a novel about a French girl unless I actually move to France and workshop all my drafts with French students? Or is that close enough as long as the French girl is white? Hmmm. Well, thanks anyway for your groundbreaking efforts to determine what is and is not appropriate to write about. The literary world was pretty lost until you came along.]
Review, Part 2: Story
I don't know what a typical Hmong voice would sound like, which is part of what I thought I was going to discover, but the voice sounded like the diary of any average 7th grader. Maybe the parts specific to Hmong culture were where the father is slapping around his disobedient wife and kids for talking back to him, or where her older siblings are running in gangs with their "homeboys"?
Her sister starts out as the only one who has enough backbone to stand up to their father's disturbing obsession with tradition ("girls are worthless! No talking back! Marry at 16 to the man I choose!"), but she immediately turns out to be heavily involved in drugs and alcohol, promiscuous, in a gang, and arrested for driving a stolen car, so the only thing I can conclude here is that marriage might help rein her in, actually. Her brother is also in a gang, and even though he claims all they do is drink beer/smoke pot/occasionally steal stuff from rich people, halfway through the book he .
The author keeps making the point about how this is the first novel dealing with the "current issues" of "race, acculturation, and family among the Hmong in America." So judging by the above paragraphs...these are the main issues that all/most of them deal with? Abuse and gangs and crime and whatnot?
Because...if I were to make a generalization about Hmong people in America based solely on this book - which seems to be what the author wants - it would be, "I had no idea it was such a messed-up culture." I think maybe the author's goal is backfiring a little, in the sense that it seems to be encouraging me to write off an entire ethnicity based on a small group of not-terrifically-bright representatives making exceptionally terrible choices.
I guess I am just not culturally advanced enough to appreciate this profound product of painstaking research.
September 16, 2018
Really good read and a number of my Hmong students really like this book (they'll be discussing it for the next couple weeks). I'm just a little bit torn about the author not being Hmong herself... she's an ESL teacher who works really closely with the Hmong community, but despite her research, I don't know if it makes it right for her to write a book like this. Thoughts?
November 25, 2018
A good *introductory* book for those teaching in Minnesota schools where we have a large Hmong population. Good insight on family culture and gang activity. However, this is a book by a white woman writing the perspective of a Hmong girl, so I'd encourage you to read instead "Claiming Place" by Chia Youyee Vang or "The Latehomecomer" by Kao Kalia Yang.
November 25, 2021
There was a lot that I liked about this book. I am a teacher who lives in St. Paul and so much of the setting and characters was familiar and seemed real. Without giving plot points away, my biggest problem with the book was the seemingly abrupt changes that occurred in the last third of the book.
July 29, 2020
Excellent portrayal of cultural dissonance and challenges in Americanization for the Hmong teenager.
June 1, 2023
This was the only book I enjoyed reading in class it was so entertaining and interesting
March 20, 2015
I really like this book because it's about the struggle about her going through real problems. One her of her problem was being apart of hmong. I think it's a different know from now. Choua dad is a hard headed person and he doesn't want to leave the hmong culture down. Her mom is different she is a calm person and lovely person, she doesn't get mad at Choua at all. The second reason is that her bother and sister is in a gang and they're never home. Choua is the only one that they look up to know because Mai and Ger made them upset and lost hope. I'm glad that Choua understand them and I know she love her parents.
March 26, 2015
This book is about a Hmong girl's life in the USA. She has 2 older siblings that both joined gangs she want to be a good Hmong girl but being Hmong isn't easy at all. Her sister Mai doesn't want to be Hmong because she doesn't want to get married to someone from the clan. Choua's father respect his Hmong culture and tradition. Her brother Ger once was a good kid but because of being Hmong he wants to change. Choua fell in love with a boy name Ku he is so cute. All her life she has been beaten by black peoples. She thinks her life is really bad because she is Hmong. If you read this book I hope you guys will like it.
March 25, 2015
I love reading this book. I can even read this book over. It was so interesting when I first started reading it. It's interesting how we didn't know that her brother Ger was in a gang then got out later on. But the part I didn't like was when Choua and her sister ran away from home for 3 days and didn't come home. It's also weird how Mai got pregnant and had to leave her family. But I loved the part when Choua stood up for herself and told her feelings out to her bully Latrica. But I always wondered why Lateica would bully her.. I also didn't like it when Latrica and Choua fought. But I recommend this book is good and you guys should read it.
March 4, 2019
This book is a narrative written for the purpose of a graduate school thesis. The author did extensive research and involved Hmong students and their community in providing insight and critique on the final project. At the time of the writing, there were very few, if any, books discussing the Hmong immigrant/refugee experience. The book is helpful for students and educators to understand challenges of the community. In recent years, more titles have been written by Hmong authors. One stellar example is The Latehomecomer by Kao Kalia Yang.
January 18, 2015
It is an interesting premise. I loved reading about Minnesota, especially since I could relate to some of the venues mentioned. Some of the events that the main character has to deal with seemed to be a bit much, but then again, real life has a tendency to be stranger than fiction. (This book was a fictional book based on composite experiences of the author's students.) I read the book for a Graduate class at Hamline University. I would have my students read this book.
October 2, 2015
I had a hard time with the believability of this book. I grew up where this book occurred, and there was no bike riding to Como in February. I find it interesting that the author's class agreed that all of the things in the story were real. I was hoping that this book would bring more light on the Hmong community, but I leave the book confused.
November 2, 2014
This book is awesome for giving the English Learners in my class something to read and discuss. However, for me, the book came off as way too clumsy and heavy-handed and I was not pleased with that. Also, it's written by someone who's not Hmong. :(
March 13, 2015
I think this book is very good because her family is like mine....it's a good thing that her family finally back together at the end. I wish my parents were like that but it not gonna happen because my parents are divorce sad but yea things happen
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July 28, 2011A great book telling us what life for a Hmong girl in the US is like. Helped me identify more with the refugee kid experience in public school. Great work Leah!
May 11, 2012
The book was okay it pretty like my family something... by the way I'm Hmong
August 17, 2015
A great, and much needed, depiction of life as a first generation Hmong American.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews