Wang's anecdotes about her childhood in Inner Mongolia were eye-opening. I can see this book as a great read-aloud in the classroom for kids learning about the lives of other children around the world. While I'm sure the lives of children in Inner Mongolia has changed sing Wang was young, these stories are still a great tool to build empathy in young readers and to understand that children around the world share commonalities (like being a bit naughty).

"Born Naughty" is a joyful retelling of the author's childhood growing up in Inner Mongolia, China in the 1980s. Thinking about the audience I serve at a U.S. public library, the author's story will open up a world that is unknown to most children in the US and depicts a life of finding joy in the little things. The story is told entirely from the child-like perspective of the author's past self, and I do wish that there was a bit more in the way of reflection or introspection from her contemporary adult perspective. However, I thought this was a great slice-of-life story that will provide a window and sliding glass door for many kids. I also appreciate that this was written in an easily digestible chapter book format which will be engaging for younger elementary students.

Told as a series of short stories, Born Naughty focuses on snippets of life that the author remembers as a child growing up in rural Inner Mongolia. The humor of the story told through a young child's point of view is refreshing and really helps to show the innocence of a child. This is a great book for young readers that can help transport them to a far away place in the not so distant past and show how we are often more alike than different. Highly recommend this book to show kids that there is more than one way to live.

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

My kiddo (10) lost interest in this partway through, but I really enjoyed it. It doesn't really have an overarching storyline; it's more a series of anecdotes from the main character's childhood in rural China in the 1980s. It was fascinating seeing how very different her childhood was than mine. It's clear that her family lived in poverty and life was very difficult; it's also clear that she had a lot of fun even in such difficult circumstances. It's very well written. The characters and events really came to life and were fascinating to read about.

I'm not sure about the title; I would probably have chosen a different one. But that's really my only quibble with it.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Anne Schwartz Books for providing an early copy for review.

Read Around the World: <b>Inner Mongolia</b>

This is just magnificent!!

If you are wanting to encourage your young people to read books about different cultures and life in other countries, <u>THIS</u> is a great place to start.

In an easy to read [and understand] style, the author [Jin] tells the story of her childhood in very rural Inner Mongolia with clarity and honesty; she never tries to sugar coat now life was never easy, but that there was always love and caring in their tiny home [she talks more about this in the notes at the end of the book, which are both lovely and helpful as well].

The delightful pen and ink style illustrations really add to the story and help bring Jin's story [along with her family] to life, and really show-off Jin's mischievous side.

This was just fantastic and I highly recommend it to anyone!

Thank you to NetGalley, Jin Wang, Tony Johnston, Anisi Baigude - Illustrator, and Random House Children's/Anne Schwartz Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a lovely hidden gem! An extremely charming and funny account of growing up in an area of the world that so many in the US know so little about. (Where the wind can blow away lambs!) With its classic feel, this one will appeal to fans of the earlier Little House on the Prairie. I do worry that kids will be bored/unwilling to pick it up, though. Ages 6 to 10. 4.5 stars.

Growing up in Inner Mongolia, Jin has never fit into what society expected of her. Living in a one room mud house with her parents and two brothers, water was scarce, she was always hungry, and windstorms regularly ripped through the village. In each chapter, she recounts her childhood experiences climbing trees, going with her father to fetch water, and enjoying the popcorn man’s visit.

The illustrations are cut pencil sketches that are detailed and beautifully illustrate the story. The stories are full of whimsy and capture the point of view of a child. It is well written and bring to life Jin’s world. Readers who like stories from other countries, autobiographies, and joyful shenanigans will want to pick this one up. Recommended for library collections where autobiographies and non-fiction books are popular. Gr 2 to 4, 4 stars.

Please note: This was a review copy given to us by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book.

I have a number of students who will love this book. Her childhood in Mongolia is a great one, and one where she never feels the poverty that plagues her family.

More than anyone else, city kids will greatly benefit from learning firsthand about not merely the struggles of village poverty but the joys that sometimes emerge with so little to distract from family, friends, nature, and humbler material gifts. The prose is quite beautiful but also quite simple and very accessible to young readers. The only disappointment was that I sorely wish we could have seen that family photograph!

Jin Wang entertains the reader with tales from her childhood in a tiny mud hut village in Mongolia in the 1980's. Jin never realized that she lived in poverty. She only knew that she had fun. From prepping for the lunar new year, to making a journey to the next "town's" well to fill their family water truck with her father, to starting school in a one-room schoolhouse heated by straw and dung, Jin lives to the fullest. The illustrations have the same whimsey as the author's characters.

This was a very sweet memoir of a simple childhood in rural Mongolia and while it seemed like it would have taken place long ago, this was author Jin Wang's experience in the '80s. Another reviewer likened her story to Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie and I really see so many similarities of making the best of what you have and family closeness.

The story was sweet, and it was interesting to see what Jin Wang's culture would consider naughty vs. what children in the US would think of as naughty. It would be a great compare and contrast to go along with Little House on the Prairie. I really liked this book!

The title is misleading for the subject matter. This is a children's book based on the author's life growing up in Inner Mongolia. I don't find her that naughty at all, but things are different on this side of the spectrum.

This reminds me of the early books of Laura Ingles Wilder, the Little House in the Big Woods, where childhood memories see only the fun that happened in their lives, and not the poverty and hard work of their parents. In this story, which is the story of Jin Wang when she was young, as helped by Tony Johnston to write, we learn that as a young girl, she lived in a mud hut, and sometimes they had to take in the baby farm animals in the winter when it was cold.

Jin talks about climbing trees, even though she wasn’t supposed to because she was a girl, and going with her father to the well in the further village to draw water. She talks about when the photographer came to take their family pictures, and when the popcorn man came to make the village popcorn.

They are all quick small chapters, filled with what live was like in inner Mongolia in the 1980s. It is sweet, and it opens up a world of rural China.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is coming out the 7th of May 2024

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read Born Naughty: My Childhood in China by Jin Wang and Tony Johnston. This book shares wonderful stories of Jin's childhood. They allow others to glimpse what it was like to grow up in Mongolia. Through the stories, we learn that even though we may be different we have a lot in common.

This was a perfect book for middle grade, an easy-to-read chapter book with really beautiful and engaging illustrations. I love the author's notes at the end and feel this would give great context to younger readers about the author's childhood

This was a very cute book. You find out all about someone growing up in Mongolia. This would be a good book for middle schoolers.