Book: Stand Up, Yumi Chung! (2020)
Author: Jessica Kim
Genre: MG, Contemporary
Basic plot: Yumi Chung’s dream is to be a stand-up comedian, but her parents have other ideas. Plus, she’s kind of shy. When she accidentally gets mistaken for another girl named Kay at a comedy camp, at first she doesn’t know what to do. She ends up becoming Kay and secretly attends the comedy camp! But she can’t tell her parents who are dealing with their own issues as their restaurant might be closed forever…
Opening lines from the book …
I should have known better than to think anyone would listen to me at the Korean beauty salon.
WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THIS BOOK…
1) Yumi is such a fun character. I completely understand the shy part of her. So, I know what it’s like when you get caught unaware when somebody calls you the wrong name. (Although, I never pretended to BE somebody else, Yumi!)
2) Loved all the humour in the book. The funny situations are nicely surrounded by Yumi’s efforts to create comedic gold. It was fun to see how she and her friends fail but then go on to create a successful sketch.
3) I loved the relationship between Yumi and her older (very smart) sister Yuri. There’s a little secret involving the sister, and it’s going to affect the family. One of my favourite sister-scene is when Yuri tries to go to bat for Yumi to be allowed to go to the comedy camp and frames it in a way that just might convince their parents (who want Yumi to be a doctor or something like that.)
4) I liked how Yumi interacts with the teacher of her special hagwon classes. Yumi is able to actually raise her GPA and still do the secret comedy camp, but only because she works really hard.
5) The plot and subplots of this book are wonderfully connected. I love how the parents’ restaurant and stand up and karaoke all fit in by the climax of the story.
THINGS THAT BOTHERED ME…
1) Something small, but I felt Yuri and Yumi’s names were are little too close in spelling. I know this happens in real life, but that one letter difference can be hard to spot sometimes!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Books with a comedic theme can be a hard sell for me. But I felt like this one hit all the right beats. I really enjoyed spending time with Yumi and her family and friends!
YOUR TURN…
Have you read this book? What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
Note: I’m posting this for Greg Pattridge’s Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday…
I agree with you that comedy is hard to do, but this author got it right. I really liked Yumi too.
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Yes, she did get it right and I’m glad she did!
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Thanks for your review, you really make this sound like a good book. I’ve had Stand Up, Yumi Chung on a pile of TBR books for ages and now I feel inspired to make time to read it.
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I hope you enjoy it!
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I’ve heard about this book, and you make it sound like a great read! I haven’t read that many books with comedy as the focus, but considering I actually enjoy things like stand-up comedy specials, I imagine I’d enjoy this book! Yumi sounds like a compelling protagonist, and the subplots sound interesting as well. Thanks so much for the great review!
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I’ve seen a few that didn’t do it quite as well as this one. I enjoyed it, anyway.
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Great review! Your thoughts have me wanting to read this ASAP. The characters and story are a strong draw. Thanks for featuring on MMGM.
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Yes, definitely a fun read! Yet also hits some good emotional beats.
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Haven’t read this story. But what an interesting way to overcome stage fright than by pretending you’re someone else. Your review makes me want to read Yumi story. Sounds like a light and fun read. Thanks for sharing!
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It was definitely a fun part of the book. And you know she’s going to get caught at some point!
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I didn’t even know there were comedy camps for kids. I like funny books and this one sounds like it would fit that bill. I’ll try to check it out. Thanks for the review.
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I haven’t read this one- but I have been curious about it. Sometimes humor books are tough for me- but this sounds like it hits the marks. I have this in my school library and will hopefully get to check it out this year and then promote it more to students! Thanks for the great review.
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