The Secret Battle of Evan Pao

Middle school can be a battlefield… From award-winning author Wendy Wan-Long Shang comes a poignant and timely take on prejudice,bullyingand claiming our own historiesperfect for fans of Front Desk. A fresh start. That’s all Evan Pao wants as healong with his mother and sisterflee from California to HaddingtonVirginiahoping to keep his father’s notoriety a secret. But Haddington is a southern town steeped in traditionand moving to a town immersed in the past has its own price. Although Evan quickly makes friendsone boyBrady Griggsseems determined to make sure that as a Chinese AmericanEvan feels that he does not belong. When Evan finds a unique way to make himself part of the school’s annual Civil War celebrationthe reaction is swift and violent. As all of his choices at home and at school collideEvan must decide whether he will react with the same cruelty shown to himor choose a different path. Wendy Wan-Long Shangthe critically acclaimed author of Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association Award for Children’s Literature winner The Great Wall of Lucy Wuweaves a timely and deeply moving portrait of all the secret battles Evan Pao must fight as he struggles to figure out how he fits into this country’s past and how he will shape its future.