Continental Drifter - by Kathy MacLeod (Paperback)

About the Book

"With a Thai mother and an American father, Kathy lives in two different worlds. She spends most of the year in Bangkok, where she's secretly counting the days till summer vacation. That's when her family travels for twenty-four hours straight to finally arrive in a tiny seaside town in Maine. Kathy loves Maine's idyllic beauty and all the exotic delicacies she can't get back home, like clam chowder and blueberry pie. But no matter how hard she tries, she struggles to fit in. She doesn't look like the other kids in this rural New England town. Kathy just wants to find a place where she truly belongs, but she's not sure if it's in America, Thailand... or anywhere"--

Book Synopsis

Winner of the American Library Association's Asian/Pacific American Award for Children's Literature

With a Thai mother and an American father, Kathy lives in two different worlds. She spends most of the year in Bangkok, where she's secretly counting the days till summer vacation. That's when her family travels for twenty-four hours straight to finally arrive in a tiny seaside town in Maine.

Kathy loves Maine's idyllic beauty and all the exotic delicacies she can't get back home, like clam chowder and blueberry pie. But no matter how hard she tries, she struggles to fit in. She doesn't look like the other kids in this rural New England town. Kathy just wants to find a place where she truly belongs, but she's not sure if it's in America, Thailand . . . or anywhere.

Review Quotes

Winner of the ALA Asian/Pacific American Award for Children's Literature
An ALA Best Graphic Novel for Children
A Kids' Indie Next selection
A Junior Library Guild selection
A TLA Maverick List selection

"The simple yet expressive art style is charming and at times poignant, showing the family dynamics and the secrets locked within people's hearts... A heartfelt story honestly and evocatively told." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Readers will be heartened by the message that, while some families don't always seem like they make sense, they still have a lot of love for one another." -Booklist

"Continental Drifter offers honest, sometimes painful, insight into growing up as part of two cultures and will help anyone who has ever felt lonely in their own family, or even with friends, process the emotions that come with trying to fit in." -School Library Journal

"This introspective graphic memoir explores bicultural identity and the path toward self-acceptance... Sprinkled throughout are elements of Thai culture and Thai language, depicted in Thai text with English translation, adding depth and cultural context." -Horn Book Magazine

"A fantastic story about the awkward feelings of being from neither here nor there, which will speak to all immigrant kids and their families." --Dan Santat, National Book Award winner and author of A First Time for Everything

"Heartfelt and honest, this book will have you rooting for little Kathy in her search for belonging."
--Remy Lai, author of Pie in the Sky and Pawcasso

About the Author

Kathy MacLeod is an illustrator and cartoonist whose work has appeared in The Believer, Catapult, The Hairpin,
and Lucky Peach. After spending most of her life in Bangkok, Thailand (with a four-year interlude at Wesleyan University), she is currently living in Berlin, Germany. Continental Drifter is her first graphic novel.