Mika in Real Life
Mika in Real Life ~ Emiko Jean
35 year old Mika feels like a failure. She’s recently been fired from a dead-end job, her most recent relationship ended badly, and she doesn’t know what to do with her life. When she receives a phone call from Penny, the daughter she gave up for adoption 16 years ago, she very much wants to have a relationship with her, but doesn’t want to admit her life has turned out this way. She wants to appear successful to Penny. So she makes up a more glamorous life, with a career as an artist and a hot boyfriend. All is well so long as they communicate via phone and text, but when Penny says she wants to come visit, Mika has to figure out how to convince Penny that who she is in real life is someone worth knowing.
I really liked this book. The author handles heavy topics like interracial adoption and cultural identity (Mika is Japanese American, Penny’s parents are Caucasian), reproductive choice, even sexual assault, in such a way that it is not a slog. It is a fun read, and a pleasure to get to know Mika and see her open up and allow herself some happiness. Highly Recommended.
26 Comments
AC
As I have previously said, I tend not to read book reports, but you have a way of making the story seem real and interesting and not like a traditional book report.
J
Thank you for that!
Kyria @ Travel Spot
I have read this one! I did find the adoption part of it interesting and I liked Penny, but I could not get on board with Mika. She seemed kind of flakey and I don’t know, I just didn’t really like her!
Also, side note PS, even if I check the box that says notify me via email, I am not getting your replies via email. It’s probably me, but I thought you may want to know. Sorry.
J
Blerg, this is a new plugin that I added, and it appeared to be working when I first did it. Why no longer? FRUSTRATING. Perhaps this weekend I will dig in.
I’m glad we found a book in common! I know there are more coming.
Jenny
This sounds good! I agree with your first commenter- you do have a way of making all these books sound good! So far I want to read almost every one.
J
Thanks Jenny!
Ally Bean
This looks like a book I’d enjoy, a positive story to focus on. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
[Like Kyria, I get no indication of your replies but for me it is within the WP system. No big deal, I come back later to see what you said but it is odd.]
J
I’m annoyed about the whole comment thing. Especially with NaBloPoMo, people have so many blogs to read, it would be nice for the comment notification to work. 🙁
Alexandra
Oh, I am so delighted to discovered your blog and, by the looks of it, a new place to find book recommendations. I’m adding this one to my library list to ceck out!
J
Thanks, and welcome! My blog isn’t usually about books so much, that’s just my NaBloPoMo theme. 🙂
Alexandra
Well, lucky me then that I found you while you are in a sharing mood to talk books. I never thought about doing a theme for NaBloPoMo, maybe next year. I did wonder how you were “reading” so many books in such a short time. Doh! Alex, engage brain …
J
Nah, if you weren’t here before NaBloPoMo when I explained it, how would you know?
NGS
I’m finding myself more and more frustrated with flighty women books. GET IT TOGETHER. This might be a me problem rather than a book problem.
J
Don’t read this one Engie, she’s definitely problematic.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
Another one I have seen somewhere but knew nothing about. This sounds like another audio book for me. Off to the library app I go.
Thank.you.
J
I hope you like it! I read a physical copy, so don’t know how the narration is.
Margaret
All these books sound so good and thought-provoking. I got addicted to both the American and British versions of “Long Lost Family” and they specialize in this kind of story.
J
I haven’t heard of that, thank you!
Karen Gow
This looks like a great reco, Julie! Will log it into Goodreads!
J
If you read it, I hope you like it!
Meike
This is how most people will write my name if they don’t ask how it is written.
My to read list is getting longer.
J
I will admit that I thought of you!
Ernie
Do you have a secret for finding books that you like, because you seem to review good books most of the time? This sounds good but the main character might frustrate me. 😉
J
I think maybe I’m just easy to please, not terribly discriminating. I was thinking about my 30 days of books, and there are zero that I did not finish.
Allison McCaskill
This sounds really interesting! I so understand that impulse to over-justify your life – I often think about it in relation to things like high school reunions (which I have never attended). I do appreciate books that touch on heavy subjects lightly – it’s difficult to get that balance right.
J
Thanks Allison!