This book was such a good read. Taking a popular TV topic like food competition and mixing it in with teenage stresses, Asian hate, high school friendships, and strict parenting takes you on a journey that is real and raw.

Jackie Oh is one of my favorite teen characters now. Being true to herself and pursuing what she wants and not just going with the expected journey. School is hard, life is hard, but if you can find something you love, it brings a light to the darkness.

If you have ever watched the show, “Kim’s Convenience” there are a lot of parallels between Jackie’s family and the family on that show.

I also love the education on the different cuisines, New York Style, Korean, and all the other gastro menu items.

If you are hungry for a light read and need inspiration for your next kitchen experiment, add this book to your reading list.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, truly enjoyed it.

I was not able to finish this book. I gave it to 30% read before putting it down. I wasn't able to get into the story and the characters weren't endearing to me.

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4.25 | 🤬=2 | ⚔️=1.5 | 12+

summary: after flopping out of world history, 15yo Jackie Oh competes on a cooking show for teens

thoughts: I requested this ARC out of nowhere and wasn’t expecting much—a cheesy YA book, probably—but this was incredible?? so emotional and heartstrings-tugging with incredibly stressful tension during the cooking competition scenes. I loved it.

I will say that the romance felt unnecessary and last minute, and there was one little unresolved bit, but sans that this was genuinely and surprisingly great.

content note(s): anti-Asian racism, mild fatphobia

Jackie Oh is second generation Korean living in New York. She can never please her parents because her grades aren't the greatest, she doesn't study hard enough, she spends too much time watching cooking shows, and what she wants to do (help in her grandparents' small restaurant, Melty's) doesn't meet her high-powered parents' expectations. Her brother, Justin, is serving a prison sentence so he is rarely mentioned by the parents. After all, they see him as a failure. What Jackie truly wants to do is be on a TV food show, Burnout, and she makes it happen, much to her parents' dismay.

Once on the show, Jackie resolves to win it, not with Korean cooking but by excelling at French cooking. The food show makes her realize a number of things not only about her cooking but about herself, her family and her grandparents. Not every contestant is an enemy, not every contestant is a friend. It's up to Jackie to determine which way she wants her life to go.

"What's Eating Jackie Oh?" was like hitting up a secret, five-star underground restaurant where every dish is a surprise. Jackie's dream of becoming a chef leads to her landing a spot in Burn Off! This was something she was dreaming about forever and she doesn;'t hesitate to jump on the opportunity. I loved the drama, lowkey loved the angst, and it was overall a hilarious read. I loved the take on the familial Korean pressure, I feel like a lot of people are going to relate to this. This is a chefs kiss of a book!

What's Eating Jackie Oh? by Patricia Park

The fun of cooking competition contrasted powerfully with discrimination against Asians, including the expectation of academic excellence, being “the best” because good isn’t good enough. I liked Jackie more and more as she learned to like herself more, stand up for herself, expect more for herself, and open herself to friendship, joy, and success on her own terms, which includes cooking the best food she can, combining many influences and using what’s available — recipes included, though I’d prefer a real restaurant. ;-)
Communication with family and friends is so crucial.
The reminder of incidents of violent attacks on Asians during COVID highlight a real problem and a need for more protection for all vulnerable people. We all need and deserve security.

This book is a very engaging story of both the complexities of being a teen and an Asian American through the COVID era. It speaks of the strict standards set upon them and the otherness they have felt, even in an urban melting pot like NYC. Confronting generational trauma is evident throughout the book, right up there with the food. Jackie's love of food is both a blessing and a curse in her life and reading about her navigating it to tackle a once in a lifetime opportunity to compete on TV made it hard for me to put down.
I did feel like the ending could have given a glimpse into what happened to her after the competition once she was done, but I love that it ended with a message. It was more real and true to life and showed that Jackie's story isn't over and we as readers get to imagine where she is now.

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Jackie Oh is a Korean American teen whose passion is cooking. Every Friday she watches Burn Off! with her grandparents and the three of them recreate the challenges every week. When the producers of Burn Off! decide to make a teen version of the show, Jackie can’t resist skipping school and auditioning for the show. Even though her parents don’t know or understand her passion for cooking.
I really enjoyed this book! I loved the Burn Off kitchens and the descriptions of challenges and chats between producers.
I also enjoyed how the ending was written, I feel that most books similar to this go a certain direction and this one didn’t, which was a breath of fresh air.
My only complaint was that the book always made me hungry because the food descriptions were just that good.
Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Books for Young Readers for an eARC of this book.

This is an endearing middle grade novel which explores the struggles of finding one’s own voice while navigating through societal as well as family expectations. High schooler Jackie Oh comes from a family (and culture) where the only goal in life is to get good grades, attend an Ivy League university, and rise to the top of one’s chosen profession. There is only one problem. Jackie’s true passion is cooking and she has a “C” in history class, which in her family is akin to failing. When she receives an invitation to audition for a teen version of a popular cooking show, Jackie is finally able to pursue her passion. Along the way she shows her family that following one’s passion is a much better definition of success than a six figure income. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is about Jackie Oh who dreamed of becoming a chef. She works at her grandparents’ deli after school and practices. Jackie’s parents want her to go to an ivy league college. Her brother is in prison, and Jackie and her parents haven’t heard from him. She only writes letters to him. Jackie became a teen contestant in her favorite cooking show.

The book so far is good. I like how the way Jackie wants to pursue her dreams. Also, how her grandparents teach her how to cook and worked at the deli.

Thanks to the publishers at Random House Children’s and NetGalley for giving me an opportunity to read this book and do a review.

I LOVED this book! I'd previously read other novels but Patricia Park that I also had loved so am not surprised at how good this was. I loved Jackie's journey from questioning herself and her place in the world to knowing who she is and embracing her roots and culture. I would have loved to see what Jackie does after Burn Off beyond where this book left off but am thrilled with Jackie's evolution throughout. Read this if you are a huge fan of cooking competitions, food, AAPI, or all of the above! 1000/10!!!!

What’s eating Jackie Oh? By Patricia Park

Jackie is the sometimes-rebellious daughter of two high powered Korean American New York City parents – one a lawyer vying for partnership (her mom), and her dad who works in business and finance. Secretly her dream is to pursue her own path where she would use her mad kitchen skills to win a national competition and go on to a rewarding culinary career - most definitely not the type of career her parents have in mind for her.

The tensions arising from this clash of opinions is eased somewhat by her loving grandparents who run a very busy Korean American restaurant where Jackie often is found helping out, and her off and on again friend KT, who has her own issues that complicate matters.
Running like a dark river underneath all of this is what her older brother is going through. Well before the events of the book, Justin had made some bad life choices that left a major scar on his relationship with the parents. And then there’s that cute boy who is taking over deliveries of produce to the grandparents’ restaurant. Does he dislike her? Like her?

It all adds up to an escalating series of opportunities for Jackie when she is chosen to compete in a national teen chef contest. I was flying through the pages, really enjoying the expertly crafted mounting tension leavened by humor and (of course) some mouth watering descriptions of the dishes Jackie and her fellow competitors whip up.

And then… sadly… it failed to stick the landing. A major plot twist is produced at the 11th hour, but there is no personal engagement by Jackie and her family – no face to face discussion with friends, no internal soul searching, no hint of how this is going to affect Jackie. I was truly sorry that it ended so abruptly and at such a remove, choosing to lean on the device of a series of electronic messages by friends and strangers to essentially end the book.

Overall I give it a 4 out of 5 stars because of that disappointment – otherwise it would have been 5 stars all the way.

Jackie Oh is a fifteen-year-old Korean-American girl with a passion for cooking and problems with her perfectionist parents.

I really enjoyed seeing her cook at her grandparents' restaurant, and how they watched their favorite cooking show together.

When Jackie gets a chance to try out for a junior version of the show, I felt excited and tense for her. I loved watching her discoveries, mistakes, and the new understandings she came to. This book kept me up late at night. I had to finish it before I could sleep.

There are a lot of interesting formatting choices in the book. My one quibble was with the final chapter.

Over all, I had a great time reading this book.

Jackie has been told all her life that she's got to try harder. That her best isn't good enough. And she's cracking under the pressure. School just doesn't come as easy as her parents want it to. But cooking along side her grandparents at their restaurant has always relaxed her. So when she gets the chance to participate in a real life cooking competition and be judged by real, celebrity chefs... well, it's a no brainer.

Now she just has to prove it. To the world. To her friends and family. Mostly, she has to prove it to herself.

This book is about more than cooking. It's about appreciating food, tradition, family, and following your dreams when no one else believes in you. How sometimes you get so caught up in yourself you forget to look around you. But by opening up, you can learn and grow in so many ways.

I really, really enjoyed this book. And not just because of the depictions of food/cooking! (But, yum!) It was my first time reading the author, but after this I will definitely be checking out what else they have out there!

One of the meatiest (and most unapologetically fresh) young adult novels I've read in ages. As much a love letter to the NYC food scene as it a brutally honest look at the pressures of being a 'model minority.' Stories like Jackie's are the ones I wish society had back when I was 15. But god, how fortunate we are to have them now.

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

When I started reading this I saw the teen age mentioned on the first page I worried I shouldn’t have requested it. Then I was blown away. It’s amazing and I fell in love with the characters and storyline. So glad I came across it!

All Jackie Oh wants to do is cook, all day every day, but her parents are pushing her to get into an Ivy League college and become a doctor or attorney. When she meets the producer of a cooking show she loves and gets invited to audition for it, everything else goes out the window. She ignores being grounded and skips a final to make the audition. Her parents are not amused, but they finally allow her to complete the audition and if she lands a spot, she still has to convince them to let her take the next step. It was a great read for all ages from teens to seniors. It has something for everyone and reminded me that everyone has to take a stand for what they really want at some point in their lives. Can she really win? It's stiff competition, and she learns things she never knew about cooking, and she knows a lot after working in her uncle's restaurant. She's all in and in it to win it, but so are the other contestants. Loved it.

A powerful and moving exploration of Korean American culture. Character driven and food-centric. The casual, carefree tone creates an instant camaraderie between the main character and the reader. I was thoroughly engaged throughout and so invested in Jackie Oh's story that I couldn't put this book down.

Filled with so much relevant subtext. This book is a reminder of the inaccuracy of stereotypes. It is a plea to stop AAPI hate crimes. It is a lesson on our prison systems. And it is also a celebration of cultural diversity, a reminder to follow your passions, and a nod towards the bravery of letting your walls down—letting people see the real you, letting them help when you're in need of help.

A beautiful and educational exploration of self and community. Enlightening, up-lifting, and a real tear-jerker of a read.

Very cute book with a real, great message and I found the main character delightfully real. Strong family values and good, healthy friendship dynamics.

If you love watching cooking competition shows, you'll love What's Eating Jackie Oh. It has the excitement and all kinds of nods to the shenanigans that happen in these shows.

It also has so much depth. I really loved Jackie and her family. All of the dynamics and conflicts and growth felt very believable. I also enjoyed how the novel tackled the issue of racism in a way that didn't feel preachy. It was part of the story because it would be part of Jackie's experience.

This is labeled as a YA book but I'd recommend it to students as young as sixth grade.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Children's for this ARC.