A really great middle grade novel that has fun summer camp vibes and important messages to share! I think anyone between 5th-8th grade would enjoy this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

This book was so cute! It reminded me of Loveboat, Taipei but for middle-grade. I loved the cultural references, the acknowledgement of different experiences in a culture, and the age-appropriate romance. Very fun overall.

Phee and her friends are looking forward to their last summer at SQUEE, a Chinese cultural emersion camp. What she's not counting on is the squad being split up to accommodate new campers, who are not so excited about camp. When the camp's social media page is stalked by trolls, the campers are on the alert for threats. The new campers brig their own perspective to being Chinses American and tensions between new and old campers begin to rise until everyone shares some of their feelings and experiences. They learn there is no right way to be Chinese American and that they are learning how to be themselves in a safe environment. And could Phee be falling for new CIT Harrison?

I found this to be a much better example of a summer camp novel than Camp Famous which I read for my SCASL project. Wang explores a lot of common life issues faced by those on the precipice between middle school and high school as well as cultural exploration with the addition of new campers with different life experiences but shared ethnic heritage. I appreciate the care that Wang demonstrated towards those characters as well as how she demonstrated the growth and maturation in the main character.

Andrea Wang's SUMMER AT SQUEE is a funny, heartwarming take on summer camp stories, complete with friendship drama, crushes, first kisses, and mean girls. What makes this story unique is that the camp is that it's called Summertime Chinese Culture, Wellness, and Enrichment Experience (SQUEE to campers) and is designed to connect Chinese-American kids to their Chinese culture. Run by Phee's mom and Lyrica's mom, the BFFs have big plans with their Squad to make their "senior camper" year extra-special. This summer, though, new campers arrive and the Squad is split up. The new campers also don't seem to appreciate all of the cultural activities that Phee and her friends love so much. As Phee's view of what it means to be Chinese expands, new friendships are formed and perspectives gained.
I thought it was very eye-opening to get a glimpse into Chinese culture within the familiar camp setting. I loved the way the girls came together and broadened their views, while still celebrating their culture, and setting a great example for readers. This feels like a middle-grade romcom, and I'm here for it!

Summer camp vibes are all over this one...with a BIG dash of cultural understanding from a unique perspective . I loved this and have recommended to many middle grade readers!

In SUMMER AT SQUEE Phoenny is excited about her last summer as a camper with her “squad” at a Chinese culture sleepaway camp, but soon finds that things aren’t going to work out exactly as she had planned. She arrives at camp and learns that she and her friends will be split between two different groups—and that her group will be joined by some newcomers to camp, who are nowhere near as excited about camp as Phoenny is. She clashes with the newcomers right away, but as the time at camp goes on, Phoenny learns more about the new campers and this helps her to change her views.

With its setting at a Chinese culture themed camp, identity and culture are at the center of the story. As the perspectives of the different campers emerge, readers will see Phoenny become more aware and understanding of the views of those around her. The focus on friendships, exploration of the Chinese culture, and the typical tween/teen summer camp hi-jinks and crushes make SUMMER AT SQUEE a fun summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of the book to read and review.

Really nice book about camp that does encompass how many things can happen in only 2 weeks when you’re at camp. It takes awhile for the reader to figure out this is a Chinese heritage camp but all the Chinese heritage moments are the main part of the story. Plus, it’s supposed to be inclusive for all Chinese American kids—but is it? Everything is challenged when a group of adoptees joins and some new immigrants.

Lots of really important cultural ideas here, and some growing up happens for all of the characters.

The only thing you can be sure of is that everything is going to change. Phoenny is going back to summer camp thinking that she will be able to hang out with her friends, but the new campers cause all kinds of chaos. There are misunderstandings and new relationships, and of course Phoenny learns a lot about herself. This is more fun because I got to learn something about Chinese American culture. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

Perfect for the true middle grade set, Wang's second middle grade novel is a shining example of finding communities and how they can change as we grow. Phoenny has spent every summer at Summertime Chinese Culture, Wellness, and Enrichment Experience (SCCWEE, stylized as Squee) with her best friends learning more about their Chinese culture and forming community. During her last summer as a camper, she's looking to have the best summer ever, by keeping everything that same as it's always been. When a new group of adoptee campers join for the first time, all her plans are upended and she struggles to cope with the changes while also dealing with growing threats to the Asian community outside of camp. Wang expertly looks at how different people can have different experiences with culture despite having the same ethnic make-up while also allowing her characters to navigate typical tween struggles like first crushes, shifting friendships, and personal identity. Definitely a first purchase for all libraries and perfect for tweens looking for books that have some romance, but not ready for a full young adult summer romance. Pair with Lamotte's Unhappy Camper (2024) to explore different experiences with cultural camps.

Thank you publisher and NetGalley for access to an ARC.

Every year, Phoenny Fang looks forward to her time at Summertime Chinese Culture Wellness and Enrichment Experience (SQUEE). Phoenny’s squad gets spit in half. Her new roommates are unfamiliar with Chinese culture and start to bully Phoenny. When they learn their new roomates are adopted, their perspectives start to change. Will Phoenny find a way to get along with her group mates?

Definitely recommend for middle grade libraries!

Things won’t always stay the same, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Phoenny has to learn the her summer camp might be different this year, but that just might make it the best year yet.

Another wonderful book from Andrea Wang, featuring thoughtful themes and welcoming representation. I would gladly teach this book and add it to my classroom shelf.

Andrea Wang reaches into her own experiences attending a Chinese culture camp and interviews of others who have attended similar camps or are simply connected to Chinese heritage in some way to write a book about the same. Main character and rising 8th grader Phee/Phoenny has attended the same camp for years, has a close knit group of friends who are also repeat participants and their group, The Squad, has been looking forward to being the most senior campers and all the extra privileges that go with that status. But attendance is up, new groups are formed and Phee and her best friend Lyr are not only separated from their friends, they are forced to contend with a group of first timers who absolutely do not want to be there. As all good middle grade lit does, the girls begin to compare experiences and appreciate not only their similarities, but their differences and find that they all have something to offer as each girl connects with her heritage in some way. Wang throws in some expected drama in the who likes who department and some talk of dating and Phee develops strong feelings for a slightly older counselor in training. All is kept very low key in the physical expressions of affections but there is plenty of flirting, gift giving and almost kisses. Camp activities are typical in the sense that they attend craft and sporty classes but unique in that all of them reflect Chinese culture-calligraphy, martial arts, the playing of instruments common in Asian-Pacific parts of the world, ribbon dancing, etc. The camp does experience some bigoted remarks and racial slurs on its social media page and the senior campers and some of the counselor crew come up with a creative way to shut it down. There is something for everyone in this summer camp book and is highly recommended for grades 4-7. Text is free of profanity, sexual content and violence. Representation: Chinese heritage for sure, but in a variety of ways-through adoption, recent immigration, being American-born Chinese and more; descriptions of campers reveal diversity in body types, hair styles, and special interests; one camper has come out as homosexual and her crush on another girl at camp is known to those in her group but is an almost incidental part of the book.

Thanks to Kokila and NetGalley for this ARC. I really enjoyed reading about the summer camp experience at a Chinese Cultural day and sleepover camp. The relationships between the campers were natural and realistic. Learning about the different arts, crafts and sports was fun. The inclusion of depictions of hatred that has been directed towards the Asian community in recent years was enlightening. The descriptions of mental health issues were also informative. I will be purchasing this for my middle school library. This book has a lot of fun and interesting content that will appeal to a range of readers.

Every year, Phoenny Fang looks forward to her time at Summertime Chinese Culture Wellness and Enrichment Experience (SQUEE). This year, her brother, Emerson is a counselor in training and she’s a senior camper. With her squad, they should have the most influence this year. Hopes and dreams, however, are dashed when Phoenny’s squad gets spit in half. Her new roommates are unfamiliar with Chinese culture, they don’t take to martial arts, learning the language, or other activities. They are surly and bully Phoenny and the squad members she is with. The squad’s perspectives change, however, when they learn their new roommates are adopted. Amid first crushes and experiencing camp, can Phoenny find a way to get along with her group mates?

The plot is engaging and enjoyable. The characters are realistic, relatable, authentic, and humorous. Themes of acceptance, identity, and belonging are theming all kids can relate to. Readers who like realistic fiction, friendship stories, self-identity, and summer camp stories will want to pick this one up. Recommended for most library collections. Gr 3-7

*Thank you to Penguin Young Readers Group for letting me read an ARC of this book through NetGalley! *

Summer at Squee
Overall Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (3/5) or 6.28/10 overall

Characters - 6
Since this book had a large cast, many of the characters felt more one-note and less relatable as a result. However, having so many characters made it more interesting to see the different experiences that they had and how people can reflect on and embrace their Chinese heritage in various ways.

Atmosphere - 7
The atmosphere in this book was fine. I think it could have been enhanced if the pacing was better, but you have that trade off of the more rushed feel at the end coinciding with the nerves and panic that Phee felt as she raced to put together the final Showcase event.

Writing - 6
The writing in this book was decent. I don't have much to say about it otherwise because nothing particularly amazing or terrible stood out to me.

Plot - 6
I have a few gripes with the plot (see final thoughts below), but mainly this had a unique premise/background with the rest of the story being rather simplistic and predictable.

Intrigue - 7
Despite some of the parts that irritated me, I found myself enjoying the majority of the story and intrigued as to how it would end.

Logic - 6
This book was reasonably logical. Nothing really struck me as wrong with it, but the logic did seem a bit flawed at points.

Enjoyment - 6
I enjoyed aspects of this book. I particularly liked the way that Group 13 tied everything they learned into their final Showcase performance. The chats they had about fitting in and finding their place in the world were enjoyable as well.

Final Thoughts:
My biggest gripe with this book is that the main character, Phee, could have cleared up a lot of confusion earlier if she just communicated with the other characters more. She build up this crazy love triangle in her head based on very little evidence, which was easily solved when she just had one conversation with McKenna. Otherwise, I found a lot of the plot predictable and fairly unoriginal. Aside from the reveal of the what their performance would be and a few conversations between characters, most of the storyline was easily predicted and that made it much less intriguing overall.

Where were authors like Andrea Wang when I was growing up?? Where were these incredible identity-affirming books when I could have really used them to navigate my identity as a first generation Chinese-Canadian?

SUMMER AT SQUEE (written by Andrea Wang, published by Kokila) is a middle-grade novel about Phoenny Fang, a second-generation Chinese-American tween. Phoenny is excited about returning to Summertime Chinese Culture, Wellness and Enrichment Experience (SCCWEE, affectionately nicknamed “Squee”) to reunite with The Squad, a group of her closest camp friends. Phoenny and The Squad are determined to have the best camp experience as this summer would be their last as senior campers. However, Phoenny quickly realizes that things were not going to go the way she had anticipated with lots of changes at Squee, including an influx of new campers (some not so friendly!), The Squad being split up into different groups, the threat of online anti-Asian trolls, and… a new crush?

I LOVE THIS BOOK. I often use “identity-affirming” to describe the books I share on here— in fact, it is a criteria in which I choose books to review and recommend. But what is “identity-affirming” exactly?? Well, SUMMER AT SQUEE is that for me and other readers who are Asian-American/Canadian. Andrea Wang manages to capture the complexity and diversity of Asian-Americans in this one book. In this story, Phoenny learns to expand her definition of Chinese-American and to respect that not all Chinese-Americans experience their identities the same way she does. I really appreciate that Andrea Wang includes the experiences of Chinese adoptees, queer and questioning Chinese-Americans, new immigrants, as well as the differences between Cantonese and Mandarin. A favourite part is when Phoenny contemplates whether some of the campers are either not Chinese enough or too Chinese to be at the camp. This idea of being “Chinese enough” has personally been a part of my identity struggle growing up as a “CBC” (Canadian-born Chinese), and so I particularly appreciated how the author addresses this in the book!

Please get this book. Please include this on your inclusive bookshelves, especially if you have young people in your life! This book is definitely a mirror, window, and a sliding door!

A very sweet coming of age story, Summer at Squee accurately navigates some of the different facets and experiences that come from being Chinese diaspora. The plot is engaging and characters likable (if plentiful) and as someone with a similar heritage to the characters, the discussions the on their personal feelings and relationships with their cultural heritage are accurate. Growing up I had an imposter syndrome like relationship with my identity, and it wasn’t until college that I was able to meet other people with similar backgrounds to have the conversations that helped. I imagine Summer at Squee will be enjoyable for kids who are interested in hearing about cultural experiences different from their own and very validating for those who share similar experiences to the characters. I hope Phoenny and her friends return as CITs so we can visit them again for future adventures!