Buddha Baby

If you're into chick lit and ESPECIALLY if you remember the 80s well, you'll love this book. Best way to describe it is the Chinese-American Bridget Jones. Absolutely adorable and just as good as her first book and the prequel to this one titled "The Dim Sum of All Things"

This is the story of Lindsey Owyang, the Chinese, San Franciscan heroine of Keltner's previous book, The Dim Sum of All Things. Lindsey has two jobs, one at a museum gift shop and the other at the Catholic school she attended as a child. She also has a loving boyfriend named Michael, who spends most of the book at a vegan retreat. He's doing an expose for the magazine he works for, called Vegan Warrior. While Michael is away, Lindsey finds herself drawn to Dustin Lee, one of the few other Chinese students at her Catholic elementary school. Dustin left the school after sixth grade (one of the nuns had a crush on him and kept pulling him onto her lap), and she hadn't seen him since. Now he's back in town and looking pretty hot, with a motorcycle. Lindsey's suddenly wondering why she's never dated an Asian guy. Dustin, in turn, has only dated white women. In another subplot, Lindsey starts to wonder about her cranky grandmother's past when she finds some photos in the basement at her school. After some visits with her grandfather and one of the current students at the school, she pieces together some answers. The first half of the book is a little disjointed. Before Dustin appears on the scene, and Lindsey starts investigating her grandmother's past, there is really no suspense or dramatic question to drive the plot forward, and readers may find themselves putting the book down. But the second half of the book moves right along, as the reader will want to find out whether Lindsey gives in to the temptation of Dustin. The book also has some interesting observations. Lindsey talks about "Angry Asian Men" who give her attitude because she dates white men (her boyfriend is a quarter Chinese, but no one can tell from his appearance). However, the book is a little heavy-handed in its treatment of Catholic school; one of the nuns tells Lindsey that the school is much improved, and "now only practices mild corporal punishment". Overall, this is a fun, interesting book that picks up considerably in the second half. If you enjoyed The Dim Sum of All Things, you will probably enjoy this book as well.

As a Chinese-American woman living in San Francisco, I could certainly relate to many of the experiences and relationships Lindsey Owyang has with other people and more precisely with her family. However, not being a native San Franciscan, I was constantly intrigued with the richness and depth the city life offers for a Chinese person (and even a non-Chinese person) who grew up here. San Francisco is intimately and lovingly described and it makes me grateful to live here. I also fondly appreciate Ms. Keltner's humor, especially when used to elaborate her insights about the complexities of being a hyphenated-American. i.e. being a minority in a predominantly white world, while still feeling like an outcast in Chinatown.

I have a confession to make. I am a forty year old Asian American man. I'm a guy's guy. I love sports. I love TV. Would never be caught dead reading anything with a cover that didn't have Sports Illustrated, Wall Street Journal or Tom Clancy emblazoned in bold letters. But I must admit, I LOVED reading this book! "Buddha Baby", Kim Wong Keltner's follow-up novel to her groundbreaking "Dim Sum of All Things" expands upon a very special, very sacred, and still very uniquely San Francisco universe. Readers of her first book will assuredly want to catch up on the goings-on of Lindsay Owyang. Like Michael Corleone in the Godfather, Lindsay's story continues as she aspires to go legit, but the trappings of her own heritage and upbringing keep pulling her back in. This time its not just her ethnicity, her love of all things Brady, no, this time it's Catholic School. Not sure what problem the previous reviewer (Julianne Be-yotch) had with Keltner's take on St. Marauders (freudian slip) Catholic School. I grew up in San Francisco. I went to Catholic school. And I have the scars to prove that everthing, well almost everything, Keltner expouses on is spot on. In fact, I have a brother that used to act the maggot! Anyways, without going Mick Lasalle and giving away the whole book, let's just say that "Buddha Baby" delivers - it's less Joy Luck Club with more thought-out representations of men (Dustin Rocks!), it's funnier (I think I actually dated a Virginia Poon-Tang), and it's even got 88 Lines about 44 Chinese Kids! So whatcha waiting for? Go out and buy this book! Even you non-chick lit fans will love it (that means you Shintaro, Nai-man, and Furi-mama).

As a 12-year beneficiary of a fine (read: scary) Catholic school education, I appreciate Kim Keltner's ability to go beyond the shallow (The Church is SO easy to make fun of there days!) to explore, in ways both funny and frightening, the life of a girl trapped in a world of cranky nuns and grotesque statuary. I'm older than Lindsay, and sometimes smarter about romance. Sometimes I want to shake her. Don't cheat on Michael! It's the sign of a good read when I start talking to a book. All in all, Wong Keltner has created a character I would want to spend time with; a real person, strong, girly, sexy, and funny as hell!