Winnie Zeng Unleashes a Legend

english language

Published by Random House.

No rating (1 review)

Winnie Zeng has two goals: survive her first year of middle school and outdo her stuck-up archnemesis, David Zuo. It won’t be easy, since, according to her older sister, middle school is the pits. Luckily, Winnie studied middle school survival tactics in comic books and anime, and nothing will stop her from being the very best student.

But none of Winnie’s research has prepared her to face the mother of all hurdles: evil spirits. When she makes mooncakes for a class bake sale, she awakens the stuff of legends from her grandmother’s old cookbook, spilling otherworldly chaos into her sleepy town.

Suddenly Winnie finds herself in a race against time, vanquishing demons instead of group projects. Armed with a magic cookbook and a talking white rabbit, she must embrace her new powers and legacy of her ancestors. Because if she doesn’t, her town—and rest of the world—may fall to chaos …

Winnie Zeng has two goals: survive her first year of middle school and outdo her stuck-up archnemesis, David Zuo. It won’t be easy, since, according to her older sister, middle school is the pits. Luckily, Winnie studied middle school survival tactics in comic books and anime, and nothing will stop her from being the very best student.

But none of Winnie’s research has prepared her to face the mother of all hurdles: evil spirits. When she makes mooncakes for a class bake sale, she awakens the stuff of legends from her grandmother’s old cookbook, spilling otherworldly chaos into her sleepy town.

Suddenly Winnie finds herself in a race against time, vanquishing demons instead of group projects. Armed with a magic cookbook and a talking white rabbit, she must embrace her new powers and legacy of her ancestors. Because if she doesn’t, her town—and rest of the world—may fall to chaos forever.

1 edition

lastblossom reviewed Winnie Zeng Unleashes a Legend by Katie Zhao (Winnie Zeng, #1)

Devastatingly accurate reflection of the diaspora experience, and the trials and tribulations of middle school.

No rating

Just the other day, my mom called to inform me that the guy who beat me in every piano competition of my childhood (over ten years ago) has now released his own album. So what I am saying is, 100 points for accuracy here. Thanks for all the flashbacks. Winnie certainly got into baking sooner than I did, though. Mooncakes are not easy to make! My journey through middle grade mythology novels continues with Winnie Zeng, a modern adventure based on Chinese folklore and starring a pop culture-loving girl who is just trying to make it through middle school. Middle school heroes seem to be spending less and less time in school these days (when the world needs saving, who has time for algebra?), so it was an interesting twist to see Winnie doing her best to maintain her grades alongside the world saving. She's a complicated and flawed hero …

Just the other day, my mom called to inform me that the guy who beat me in every piano competition of my childhood (over ten years ago) has now released his own album. So what I am saying is, 100 points for accuracy here. Thanks for all the flashbacks. Winnie certainly got into baking sooner than I did, though. Mooncakes are not easy to make! My journey through middle grade mythology novels continues with Winnie Zeng, a modern adventure based on Chinese folklore and starring a pop culture-loving girl who is just trying to make it through middle school. Middle school heroes seem to be spending less and less time in school these days (when the world needs saving, who has time for algebra?), so it was an interesting twist to see Winnie doing her best to maintain her grades alongside the world saving. She's a complicated and flawed hero with a lot of internal struggles, and I appreciated the very human aspect to her character. I also appreciated the time spent on the complexities of her relationship with her sister. Food descriptions abound, with recipes in the back for people to try. (If you've never had a red bean brownie, you should.) I think the only thing that I wish I could have more of is the shaman side of things. Very little is explained about her powers, and as a fellow anime fan, I don't actually mind a training arc. As a quick read, it's a fun start to what looks to be a fun series.

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