Not Your All-American Girl (Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang)

Lauren and Tara aren't just besties: they're the Royal We, in sync and inseparable. That is, until Tara is handed the lead in a school musical despite having zero vocal skills. Lauren should have been a shoe-in for the part—her voice is angelic—but Mrs. Tyndall, the drama teacher, wants "an all-American girl" in the role. Sure, Lauren is American, but she's also Jewish and of Chinese descent. This, Tyndall insists, would take the audience out of the story. What's worse is that Tara doesn't disagree.

Not Your All-American Girl (by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang) isn't (primarily) about the overt and violent acts of prejudice that make the news, but everyday misconceptions and subtle, even misguided but well-intentioned, ways in which one might discriminate against another. Tyndall, for example, is surprised to discover that Lauren is Jewish. "Are you sure?" she asks. She doesn't intentionally insult Lauren's credibility, but that is the result of her incredulity. Unworldly, Tyndall has never before known a Chinese American Jew. Lauren is broadening her teacher's worldview, and the process is difficult for Tyndall. The teacher rejects personal accountability.

Later, Lauren is confronted with her own bias: a country music disc jockey whom Lauren assumed was white turns out to be Black. Unlike Tyndall, Lauren immediately acknowledges her error. She knows that to deny one's biases only adds insult to injury. She knows because she's often on the receiving end of both.

While the subject matter is heavy, particularly when Lauren discovers the infamous real-world murder of Vincent Chin, the tone never strays far from light. A diverse cast of secondary characters offers constant levity, The school auditorium may be haunted. The novel is as interested in self-assurance and forgiveness as it is in accountability and subversion. Humor and theatrics wrap important ideas.

• Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month

• Jewish American Heritage Month