Fire Horse Girl

Honeyman, Kay. Fire Horse Girl. Arthur A. Levine Books, 2013.

Jade Moon is a Fire Horse, which is an unlucky sign for a Chinese girl. She's stubborn, she's opinionated, and her family hasn't been able to find her a husband. When her father connives with Sterling Promise to travel to America, bringing Jade Moon with him, she is excited at the opportunity. But her family gets stuck on Angel Island for months, and Jade Moon soon learns that her father never meant for her to set foot in America at all. She is able to escape by pulling off a Mulan-esque ruse that brings her into San Francisco but complicates her life.

I enjoyed this story - the history involved in Angel Island and the racism against the Chinese, the way Jade Moon is able to use her Fire Horse stubbornness to help herself and others, and the San Francisco setting. It took a while to get into this story, but it was well worth the read.