Zen And The Art Of Faking It (2007)

I thought this was an excellent book. It moves along with likable characters. I liked the Thoreau and the Buddhism. Even the supporting cast of teachers and librarian add so much to the story. Honesty and identity. ( )

San Lee uses his moves to new cities as an opportunity to reinvent himself. Currently he is the resident expert on Zen Buddhism - but not really as his description of the local library and librarian are hysterical. A lot of laugh out loud moments in this one. ( )

Eighth-grader San Lee is pretty pessimistic about starting yet another new school but still invested enough in fitting in to be making lists of the pros and cons of various identities like jock, preppy, or goth when a social-studies teacher, with an “honest-to-God” twinkle in his eye treats San encouragingly, for perhaps the first time in his school experience, and thus starts San unwittingly down the path of Zen Buddhism — or at least the appearance of it. Surely, San has unique challenges; an Asian kid, he’s been adopted by Caucasian parents, and his dad’s in prison, to boot. Still, the way the book portrays the challenges of navigating the social world of middle school will ring true for almost all adolescent readers. In addition, the writing is cut-to-the bone funny. Consider, for example, San describing the animal-shaped targets of deer hunter as a “paper zoo of cruelty.” San delivers this description recalling hunting with his pre-prison father, whose sage wisdom was: when in Rome, do as the Romans do. But how will San distinguish himself from his dad, who, readers eventually learn, was convicted of fraud? A quick, engaging read, this book certainly has its place in a study of identity and coming of age in the middle-school classroom. ( )

Thirteen-year-old San Lee is always moving to a new town and having to go to a new school, so he is looking for a way to stand out when he moves this time. His knowledge of Zen Buddhism, which he picked up in one of the schools he attended, provides not only the answer to his popularity at his new school, but also the need to quickly become a convincing Zen master.

This is a funny book, but it's also frustrating because you never know when San is going to be outed as a fake. He spouts wisdom and advice that always seems just right for any situation in which he finds himself. I really enjoyed this novel. It was light and easy as well as entertaining. I liked the characters, which always helps me get into a book more easily. ( )

i didnt think that this book was going to be a good book. i gave this book a chance and i ended up liking it in the end. i give this book a four out of five stars ( )