When
You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller follows a young girl named Lily who is
moving from California with her mom and older sister, Sam, to live with her
ailing halmoni. Lily’s grandmother always warned
her to never make a deal with a tiger. However, when Halmoni becomes sick, a magical
tiger makes Lily an offer: find the stories that Halmoni stole years ago, or
lose her forever. She must learn to be brave, face the scary stories
head-on, and shake the Quiet Asian Girl stereotype that she’s always felt she’s
represented. Along the way, Lily learns important family history, makes
friends, and finds out that she’s capable of more than she initially believed.
This
book was my choice for the Newbery Medal. I picked this one because it has
Korean folktale elements. I have become interested in Korean culture in the
past couple of years, but I have never looked into any of their folktales, so I
thought this book would be the perfect introduction for that. Also, when I’ve
looked at lists of quality children’s or middle grade fantasy, this title is
always included.
Something that I really loved about this book was the
growth of the main character, Lily. The reader watches her (or in my case,
listens to her) grow into a stronger, more confident person as she navigates
through the various conflicts throughout the story. There are moments where she
learns to face fears and stand up for herself. She also learns how to repair
relationships that she felt were strained, like the one with her older sister.
The story takes place the summer before Lily begins middle school, and it’s
cool to see her gain maturity and insight before she embarks on a new chapter
of her life.
Another great aspect of this book is the Korean
folklore and culture elements. Before listening to the audiobook, I was not
familiar with any of the stories. I loved the way Keller wrote them, they
sounded whimsical and other-worldly. It was fun to pick out the parallels
between the folklore stories and the plot of the novel. Descriptions of Korean
food were also presented in a way that made me crave kimchi whenever the
characters were eating it in the story.
While I thought Lily and her halmoni were very strong and
loveable characters, I also felt that the background characters fell a little
flat. Sam, the older sister, seemed like any other moody teenager that was
unhappy because of uncontrollable change. The mother was constantly busy
because of the move and taking care of her sick mother. The new friend Lily
made, Ricky, felt like a character who was only present for comic relief or to
move important plot points along. I still enjoyed these characters, but I think
they could’ve had a little more personality.
Overall, I really
enjoyed this story. I think it’s perfect for any kid in the middle grade age
range, especially ones who enjoy different cultures and fantasy. Keller’s
writing is descriptive and easy to read. The growth of Lily throughout the
story will make the reader feel proud and may even inspire them to tackle some
of their own fears. I give this book four out of five stars.
Keller, T. (2020, January 28). When You Trap a Tiger.
Random House Books for Young Readers.
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