Written by A.L.
Picture below: Cover of the book
Information
Author: Michelle Quach / Genre: Fiction / Published: 2021
Summary
Eliza, an ambitious teenager that works for the school’s newspaper, ends up losing the editor-in-chief role to a classmate named Len. Angered, she writes an essay on her laptop condemning sexism and misogyny, and the essay ends up being published. From there, Eliza faces backlash, forcing her to stand up for what she believes in.
Rating (Contains spoilers)
Despite containing the elements of a cheesy, YA rom-com, it is still an excellent representation for young, Asian American girls to see themselves in lighthearted teenage romance. While there’s been an increasing amount of media centering Asian Americans and their stories, most of them revolve around the characters solely grappling with their racial and cultural identity. While Not Here to Be Liked acknowledges Eliza’s identity as a Vietnamese-Chinese-American and her struggles as a child of immigrants, it is not used to overshadow the main plot. In fact, Eliza grows up in a predominantly Asian neighborhood, which is rare to see in novels featuring Asian Americans. As a result, there is more Asian American representation, and what’s even more important is that we see how Asian Americans are not a monolith and don’t simply all get along due to their shared race or ethnicity.
For example, Eliza is Southeast Asian in a school that is predominantly East Asian, and she points out the lifestyle differences she has between her upper-middle-class East Asian counterparts while she herself comes from a family that is financially struggling. In the process, the novel subtly highlights the dynamics between different ethnic groups within Asian American communities. In one of the scenes, Eliza feels uncomfortable sitting at Serena Hwangbo’s table, feeling isolated as the only Southeast Asian in an all-Korean friend group. Her best friend, Winona, who is Black, feels equal if not more out of place. However, the book isn’t trying to frame Serena’s friend group as racist or villainous, it’s simply trying to recognize the privilege they have. The characters acknowledge how Serena and Eliza face racism as Asians by mentioning the model minority myth. The bottom line is, while Serena may have the privilege of being an upper-class East Asian in a predominantly Asian community, she’s still a woman of color that faces oppression in society.
Although I don’t think the romance was as well developed as I’d like it to be, I still appreciated its presence. I wish we got more insight into Leon's (the male lead) life. The plot initially revolves around Eliza and allies becoming furious at Leon for “being a sexist”, but he automatically becomes a feminist himself at the end. The audience doesn’t get any information on his thought process or why he chose to support Eliza and her feminist movement, especially in the beginning when he seemed indifferent.
As an Asian American who grew up in a mainly Asian neighborhood/community myself, I found the setting incredibly relatable and appreciated how the author chose to tell a new narrative that was similar to my own. I appreciated the strong themes of feminism throughout, and I think there are definitely positive messages for teenage girls. At the end of the day, it’s hard to find a book with a good mix of feminism, romance, and a strong Asian-American female lead, and I hope this book inspires a new generation of diverse novels for girls of color.
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