Overall, the author did a good job with this. I had seen it quoted somewhere, and thought it was an actual diary, but it turned out to be a fictionalized account as someone's master thesis. Some parts seemed to ring true (from my limited knowledge), but other parts seemed hollow. The main character's voice seemed like it was in middle school- 5th-7th grade, not a young adult in 10th grade. The slang was a little distracting--do teens really describe their friends as "homeboys," their clothes as "stylin'" ? Maybe, but it seemed forced coming from sweet Choua Vang. Parts also seem a little stereotypical in the worst sense--especially coming from someone who is not a part of the culture. Seems like the author is judging the culture, although the main character is not. But it is almost 20 years old, and has some value as an ESL text, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.