Katie and Kevin Tsang met in in 2008 while studying at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Since then they have lived on three different continents and travelled to over 40 countries together. In 2015 they got married in Palm Springs, California. Kevin was born in Copenhagen and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. Some of Sam Wu's experiences are based on Kevin's childhood. He currently works as a healthcare technology consultant. The thing is, I can see being influenced and inspired by Alvin Ho. He's pretty cool, and his adventures, which continue into other books are pretty awesome, so I can see other authors wanting to write their own version of Alvin Ho. But I would have liked to have seen something that stood in aside on its own, rather than being a not-so-good version of a better book. It also makes me feel a little funny to think that Katie and Kevin Tsang wrote SUCH a similar character in a similar situations, with a pants wetting episode, and a smart little sister. I wonder what Leonore Look thinks about it. Sam Wu has the perfect plan to prove that he's brave: embark on a bold adventure, get a "trusty companion," and defeat the ghost in his home!

Sam, Zoe and Bernard--with some help from Sam's little sister, Lucy--set out to do just that. What follows is a rambunctious story of trial and error before they are able to solve both problems. Both problems (Fang and the ghost) are resolved in absolutely believable ways, when applying the logic of 8-10 year-olds. Ghostly silliness mixes with middle school adventure to make an exciting read which even reluctant readers are sure to enjoy.Branar’s signature storytelling creates a show which reminds us all to follow our dreams. Seamlessly blending puppetry from Suse Reibisch with a magical original score by Colm Mac Con Iomaire and directed by Marc Mac Lochlainn, How to Catch a Star is a non-verbal show aimed at 3 – 5 year olds, and is kindly supported by Culture Ireland. Kevin was born in Copenhagen and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. Some of Sam Wu’s experiences are based on Kevin’s childhood (he’s feeling much more confident now). Katie was born and raised in Southern California. She has previously worked at Booktrust, the UK’s largest children’s reading charity, and also writes YA fiction as Katherine Webber. Sam Wu has the perfect plan to prove that he’s brave: embark on a bold adventure, get a “trusty companion,” and defeat the ghost in his home! The book starts to tell us what happened that was so horrible. Well, it is pretty horrible, and tons of embarrassing. I can imagine that he doesn't want to go to school any more, I know I wouldn't have gone either. :( Then again, he did go into that machine, so in a way that was brave of him. It is just a shame his body betrayed him, otherwise he would have come out a hero.

Ingenious retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s story with a lot of emphasis on kindness, decency and redemption" Sam Wu authors Kevin and Katie Tsang said, “We are so thrilled that Polka Theatre is adapting Sam Wu Is NOT Afraid of Ghosts for the stage! Polka Theatre creates incredible shows for children and young people - and we love their commitment to making theatre accessible for all children. It is a privilege to be working with such a wonderful theatre, and to have such a fantastic creative team behind the adaptation. We often take our own children to shows at Polka - and we can't wait to see Sam Wu on stage!”Sam Wu is NOT a scaredy-cat (except he is). When a trip to the Space Museum goes terrifyingly wrong, Sam begins a mission to prove to the school bully, and all of his friends, that he is a fearless space adventurer.

My Experience: I started reading Sam Wu is Not Afraid of Ghosts on the morning of 8/15/18 and finished it before midnight. My first one day read! Woot!! A fantastic read! I think my son will enjoy this book a lot too because he’s able to relate to Sam riding the Astro Blast Simulator since we also ride on one when we went to a Space Center in Huntsville, Tennessee a few months ago. I like Sam. He’s pretty brave for a scaredy-cat because he buys a pet that he’s actually scared of! I like his clever thinking and reasoning about going straight to grandma for permissions because even his mom has to listen to grandma since grandma is his mom’s mom. A truly laugh-out-loud, voice-led and madcap story of ghost hunting, snakes and mischievous pet cats called Butterbutt, perfect for fans of Tom Gates, Wilf the Mighty Worrier and Barry Loser, and readers aged six plus. I just adored Sam's friends, especially Zoe. They are the very best friends one can have. They are there for him when he needs it. They try to help out with the ghost and the snake. They like to try out new things (like the food, though I didn't like how rude they were about it at first).Helen Matravers continues, “Polka’s relationship with Irish theatre makers, Branar, also has a rich history, so it is a joy to have them with us all summer with Oliver Jeffers’ mesmerising story, so carefully told through beautiful puppetry. It’s a gorgeous piece for little ones and their adults alike!” Um . . . OK, I'm not sure where to start with this review, but when I first got this ARC in my mailbox, the first thing I thought was, "Hasn't this book already been published, like, 10 years ago?" Then my husband, always eager to find new Asian authors, who write about Asian characters, skimmed the book, and said, "I swear to god that I've already read this book, but I liked it better the first time." I dug around in my files and found a book I had almost forgotten about called Alvin Ho Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look.