Published: 2022
Author: Kelly Yang
Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Childrens, Family, Contemporary, Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Juvenile
Audience (Grade Levels): Middle Grade; Grades 4-7
Number of Stars: 4-Stars
Goodreads Link: New From Here
Triggers: Racism, microaggressions, xenophobia, family separation, pandemic-related anxiety, job loss / loss of health insurance
Review By: Allison Earl
Publisher’s Summary
An Asian American boy fights to keep his family together and stand up to racism during the initial outbreak of the coronavirus.
When the coronavirus hits Hong Kong, ten-year-old Knox Wei-Evans’s mom makes the last-minute decision to move him and his siblings back to California, where they think they will be safe. Suddenly, Knox has two days to prepare for an international move—and for leaving his dad, who has to stay for work.
At his new school in California, Knox struggles with being the new kid. His classmates think that because he’s from Asia, he must have brought over the virus. At home, Mom just got fired and is panicking over the loss of health insurance, and Dad doesn’t even know when he’ll see them again, since the flights have been cancelled. And everyone struggles with Knox’s blurting-things-out problem.
As racism skyrockets during COVID-19, Knox tries to stand up to hate, while finding his place in his new country. Can you belong if you’re feared; can you protect if you’re new? And how do you keep a family together when you’re oceans apart? Sometimes when the world is spinning out of control, the best way to get through it is to embrace our own lovable uniqueness.
Review
When the cornonvirus breaks out in China, Knox, along with his two siblings and mother, leave Hong Kong for America. Though Knox’s father must stay back in Hong Kong for work, America is safe. There is no way that the coronavirus will ever reach America, right? Knox and his siblings must learn to navigate a new school and become acclimated to a new community, while his mother looks for a remote job. Soccer-loving Knox has ADHD, and tries his best to do well in school and get along with his siblings, but he begins to worry about his father as the coronavirus makes its way to Hong Kong. To bring their father to America, Knox and his siblings hatch a plan to raise money for a plane ticket by having a garage sale and delivering takeout food orders from a local Chinese restaurant. When the coronavirus finally reaches America, school shuts down, people wear masks everywhere, and fear rises within the community. When Knox and his family are the victims of racism and microagresions due to peoples’ prejudices against the coronavirus, the family stands strong together and does not let hate win, but love.
Author Kelly Yang incorporates her family’s personal experiences of living with the coronavirus in this novel, and this book takes place right before the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in America. Knox constantly finds himself in trouble in this book, but he learns how to grow as an individual and think before he acts. Readers will love and connect with Knox and his relationships with his siblings as they come to realize they might not always get along, but their love and support for each other can be a beacon of light in difficult times. If students enjoyed The Front Desk series, I highly recommend sharing this newest installment of Kelly Yang’s with them. Check out this! Kelly Yang Introduces New From Here
Classroom & Curricular Connections
- Social Studies / Contemporary Historical Fiction: This book provides an invaluable primary-adjacent perspective on the initial domestic and international impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, rendering it ideal for discussions regarding the sudden societal shifts, closures, and the real-world rise of anti-Asian xenophobia and microaggressions in early 2020.
- ELA / Own Voices & Character Growth: This text offers a phenomenal mentor study for examining contemporary multi-dimensional protagonists. Students can track how Knox navigates his learning differences (ADHD) and personal impulses, analyzing how his relationship with his family develops through adversity.
- Social-Emotional Learning (SEL): Highly relevant for classroom lessons addressing resilience, managing sudden life changes, combating community biases, and utilizing mutual sibling support as a source of emotional strength during crises.
Diversity & Representation
New From Here delivers essential and deeply moving representation by portraying the intersectional realities of an Asian American family facing immediate racial prejudice, scapegoating, and microaggressions during a public health crisis. Furthermore, it provides strong, positive neurodivergent representation through Knox, highlighting his unique way of processing the world and showcasing how his neurodiversity contributes to his family’s resilience.
Readalikes
- Front Desk by Kelly Yang
- Three Keys by Kelly Yang
- Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh
