Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 03/01/2024 In the first book in a new series, seventh-grader Gigi Shin hopes to attend Starscape, a prestigious art camp, over the summer. Her parents run a Korean grocery store and can’t afford the tuition cost, but they also don’t think that being an artist is a practical career. They encourage Gigi’s younger brother, though, in his interests in planes and trains. When Gigi and her best friends come up with a way to pay for the camp’s tuition by starting a tutoring service called the Ace Squad, Gigi hides it from her parents, afraid they won’t approve. The tutoring sessions get off the ground and help her raise money for Starscape, but a cute boy causes some snags and tension among the tutors. Similar to the Baby-sitter’s Club series, with a strong representation of Asian American characters, Lee’s story focuses on themes of friendship and teamwork and the academic pressures that immigrant parents can place on their children to excel in math and science versus art. A promising start to a new series. - Copyright 2024 Booklist.