Paper Teeth

by Lauralyn Chow

"Paper Teeth," through interconnected short stories, follows the lives of the Lees, a Canadian-Chinese family and their friends who reside in Edmonton, Alberta. While playing with time, from the 1960s and 70s up to the present, Paper Teeth creates a world of walking dolls, family car trips, fashion and frosty makeup, home renovations inspired by pop culture, and moving up to big, new houses. "Paper Teeth"'s stories are fun, funny, and heart-warming journeys about the pursuit of identity and the crafting of home.

With the domestic tomfoolery of David Sedaris' "Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim" and the humourous interplay of Thomas King's "Green Grass, Running Water" and Hiromi Goto's "Chorus of Mushrooms," through deft observation and prismatic-voiced humour, including ironic asides, Lauralyn Chow reveals how family nourishes hope.

Genres: Canada, Short Stories, Fiction

233 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2016

Reviews

[Laura Frey (Reading in Bed) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review to come, but I loved it. This is more of a novel to me than short stories. And so Edmonton specific!

[Kristine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't decide which story or chapter I enjoyed most. Chow writes with such beautiful and engaging prose. I fell in love with her characters from the beginning and only wish the book wasn't so short.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE. Tired and can't think of more to say just now. But... LOVE.

[Infinite Scythe · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really nice to read something about the Chinese community set in Edmonton and Calgary. Good collection of linked stories. Some great use of language.

[Kab]

No story of captivating power could ever be set in Edmonton. It is a city that inspires lists of things, at the edge of publishability.

[Ashley Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paper Teeth has the perfect amount of words. There is nothing to add, nothing to take. It is a Brilliant and refreshing collection of words, all in the right order.

[May · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maiku:

A feast of stories:
growing up in Edmonton -
funny, heartwarming.

[Margo Embury · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. A very good read AND it made me think, and remember. There are so many immigrant specific experiences, even though the children aren't immigrants they have the problem of not understanding the Chinese language - kind of reverse immigrants - very timely for today's refugees and immigrants and the Canadians teaching EAL sessions.

The children's thoughts were really intriguing, so beautifully expressed. They sparked childhood memories of the sometimes mysterious, supposedly normal, adults that inhabit our lives. Made me wonder what my children and grandchildren thought at times. Teacher friends read Jane's grade 1 experiences, starting on page 87 - they loved the descriptions.

I'm looking forward to her next book.

[Jaclyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book after reading the description - it seemed like a novel made of interconnected stories. While the stories were interconnected, it seemed very choppy. The author's notes written in brackets were distracting from the stories and seemed to be more off-topic than helpful to the reader. They took away from the momentum of the story.
*I received this copy from the publisher in return for an honest, unbiased review.*