Shana's Reviews > Little Soldiers: An American Boy, a Chinese School, and the Global Race to Achieve

***I received an ARC of this book through a GoodReads giveaway***

Approaching this book from the perspective of someone with some pre-existing understandings of the educational styles in East Asia, I found Little Soldiers to be both readable and relatable. Although the Japanese schooling system is not identical in all manners, there were certainly concepts that were familiar to me and that I could easily imagine. I would bet that those unfamiliar with the Chinese educational system would still find this book readable because Chu does a thorough job breaking down cultural values into understandable tidbits. As a woman raised by strict Chinese parents, but within the American school system, Chu is in a unique position to both criticize and defend aspects of each. Likewise, as a parent sending her child to Chinese school, she has the experience from the parental perspective as well, and I liked reading about her reflections on how it feels to have gone through something versus watching her child go through it. I appreciated the fact that Chu acknowledges some of the privileges afforded to her family because they are foreigners, living in Shanghai, and were financially comfortable. She does not treat the Chinese educational system as a monolith, but explains how economically and geographically disadvantaged students and their families have distinctly different experiences. There are so many layers to it, and Chu does a wonderful job breaking it down into understandable bits. All in all, a good read and it certainly has me thinking about my own approach when it comes to educating my son!