Fourteen-year-old Joseph Calderaro is having an identity crisis thanks to a school assignment to write about his ancestors. Adopted as a baby from Korea, Joseph is interested in writing about his Korean ancestors, even though he worries about hurting his Italian American parents’ feelings. A growing friendship with a Korean student at his school gives Joseph the opportunity to learn about Korean traditions and customs but also reminds him how little he knows about his background and culture. After a promising lead from an online inquiry leaves Joseph certain he’s tracked down at least one member of his birth family, he discovers that both family and heritage are things that cannot be defined by blood alone. Rose Kent’s story is one with substance but refreshingly buoyant at the same time. Joseph is able to explore big questions about who he is from a place of security in the midst of a realistic (and therefore not perfect), loving family. (Ages 10–13)

Kimchi and calamari. It sounds like a quirky food fusion of Korean and Italian cuisine, and it's exactly how Joseph Calderaro feels about himself. Why wouldn't an adopted Korean drummer—comic book junkie feel like a combo platter given:

(1) his face in the mirror

(2) his proud Italian family.

And now Joseph has to write an essay about his ancestors for social studies. All he knows is that his birth family shipped his diapered butt on a plane to the USA. End of story. But what he writes leads to a catastrophe messier than a table of shattered dishes—and self-discovery that Joseph never could have imagined.