Through the good, the bad and the ugly about being a Cheng, probably the worst thing is being thought of as a Golden Child. Just because famous father, Ethan Cheng is a billionaire, and the family has a jet, several houses and more toys than anyone doesn’t mean that all is well in Syrah Cheng’s life.
Her older brother and sister from her Dad’s first marriage hate her. They think she and her tiny, perfect mother have just swooped in to reap the benefits of their Dad’s hard work, and their putting up with his hardnosed style of parenting. Her mother is just NOT there for her — seeming only to see her when she’s not dressed right or looks to thin — (at 110~!), otherwise leaving all of the parenting to her Bao-mu, her “nanny” — which she’s way too old for, but longs to keep close anyway. Her Dad only sees her in terms of what she brings to the family “business.” Kids her age only see her as a route to her Dad. Her best friend — whom she’s more than halfway in love with — is avoiding her — so his relationship with his girlfriend has “time to work.” Clearly, things suck. Syrah is a Girl Overboard.
If this sounds like a lot of whining, it is.
Syrah’s lucky. Really lucky. For one thing, she has her health. For another, her mother really does love her — no matter how much she seems to ignore her. When reaching out to a new friend allows Syrah to discover just how much she has to give — she learns to receive with her whole heart — and finds out that the girl behind the name is worth more than she imagined.
As always, author Justina Chen Headley has an amazing ability to make a difference with her books. From her Amazon blog:
Burton Snowboards and Little, Brown Books are putting me on tour with Olympic Gold Medalist, Hannah Teter, for my new novel, Girl Overboard! Hannah and I are hitting the X-Games in Aspen and other cities to talk about the Go Overboard Challenge Grant. Along with Burton Snowboard and Youth Venture, I’m co-sponsoring this Challenge Grant to fund the best youth-led ideas that will change the world.
For more information, make sure to check out www.burton.com/GoOverboardGrant . And if you want to follow the book tour, you can read all about it here on the Girl Overboard Tour MySpace page.
