I started skeptical about the book and disliked it in the middle part but ended up actually like it towards the end. It was an intriguing book about Asian immigrants and their interesting dynamic. It was a bit cliché to start with but it grows on you. I was actually moved almost to tears at the end. The characters became much more likable by that end, even Barbara. Overall, it’s fun reading it. ( )

I know The Wangs vs The World by Jade Chang will sell well. I know this because it has early hype, I have seen ads for it already, it is well written, and it has a The Nest vibe. Even knowing all of this, I really struggled with the book, but I am going to make a promise to myself.

The book is about a very rich family- The Wangs, who's father Charles, made all of their money through women's cosmetics, but then lost all of it when the market crashed after some bad investments.

Charles is going to gather his kids up one by one and go on a cross country trip to see his daughter Saina who is a successful artist and is hiding out in Upstate NY. Each child now has to not only deal with the fact that they were once rich and are now poor, but also have do deal with each other throughout this trip. Hilarity ensues.

The book itself is extremely well written and very funny. There are lots of comedic scenes that hit the mark and some that I will simply not forget. The writing itself is so good and the Chang's sentences move the story along well.

It took me a long time to get to the point when the book became enjoyable though, which is why I struggled. I almost quit reading it several times because of the way The Wangs are portrayed in the beginning chapters. I just did not like them and didn't really connect with them, but that is not the author's fault. I have been becoming weary of the dysfunctional family genre recently and I believe that is why I struggled. From TV shows to several recently published books, the only family seems to be the dysfunctional one, which makes for good comedy, but also over saturation. I think this was my problem with the book, hence the promise to myself.

When the book comes out officially, I am going to read it again. I now know the characters and know their quirks. I am no longer looking for story, but rather how the family interacts with one another. I want to give The Wangs another shot because I know this is such a good book. I see it in there, but where I am right now, I just couldn't connect with The Wangs, so it seemed to drag until about New Orleans, which is pretty far in the book. I am going to give it another shot though when it isn't a galley and I can read it strictly for fun.

Even with everything, I am going to give the book 4 stars. I know it is good, but I had a hard time.

*I wish to thank NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the opportunity to read the book. I received it for free in exchange for an honest review. ( )

That certainly felt much longer than 350 pages! I know this was supposed to be funny but I just found it really irritating and annoying. I did not like any of the characters so I'm sure that effected the "humor" and speaking of "humor," if I had to listen to one more awful stand-up routine, I was going to lose my mind. Ugh...that was slog. ( )

I had this book on my to read for a while and when it showed up in my Little Free Library I was happy.

That said, it wasn't what I wanted it to be. It started out good and then got long and tedious. I dropped the book for the first time to read another one, then picked it up again and decided at page 100, to drop it once and for all. ( )

384 pages of some hilarity, but not as much as the description will have you thinking. More delight than I was expecting considering Charles Wangs situation... and as should be expected...a little heartbreak. The writing was wonderful, and it was an intriguing perspective on that time in our nation’s history told through the story of immigrants Charles and Barbra and three adults or nearly-adult children who grew up here and had never wanted for anything...they have no idea how to budget...or how to do with less... because they never had to. For the most part, this is a fun and compelling read. ( )