NOW AND ZEN by Linda Gerber

I rarely read contemporary fiction. I never read it as a teenager. I like to escape reality when I read. If it doesn't have warp drive or ringwraiths, I'm just not interested. Usually. There are two things which can get me to read contemporary fiction - excellent storytelling and a multi-cultural theme. NOW AND ZEN is all that.
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Nori is a Japanese American teen on the fast track to college. But, that's not why she's padding her resume with a student exchange program. She wants to spend time away from her parents in the hope they'll spend more time together. She isn't particularly interested in Japan.
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Nori lands in Japan with her student group and finds all the non-Japanese people expecting her to know everything from the language to the customs. Of course, she doesn't. She has to contend with a couple of Barbie Dolls, one mean as a snake and another so sweet she could just gag. On the hottie front there's Atsushi, the Japanese boy whom she assumes is just being polite. And there's Erik Sussmann who looks like a Viking prince. He's from Germany. Oooh-la-la. Guten tag, eich libe dich. (That means, "Good day, I love you." I think.) I'm not sure if I was meant to, but I was cheering for Atsushi. He's adorable. And poor Nori doesn't have a clue.
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Besides that, Nori's parents show no sign of getting their act together and Mom decides Nori needs to spend time with their long-lost Japanese relatives. And she doesn't take Nori's opinion into the decision-making either. No wonder Mom's not getting along with Dad these days. She's not the best listener.
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So, everyone's thinking Nori's Japanese, except the real Japanese. That really annoys her, but then Erik finally notices her BECAUSE he thinks she's Japanese! Oh, dear. Before you can shout, "Danger, Nori! Danger!" she's letting him think that.
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You know I love culture-shock-fish-out-of-water stories anyway, but the other great thing about NOW AND ZEN is that it captures all the normal adolescent angst. Without slipping into cliche. I hate how my fellow adults tend to stereotype teenagers into self-absorbed parent-haters who only care about shoes and boys. Or girls. All the ones I know are intelligent, considerate and on their way to greatness. Anyway, get NOW AND ZEN for an escape from reality which will bring you all the way home.
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NOW AND ZEN is a book in the S.A.S.S series by Linda Gerb. S.A.S.S. stands for Students Across the Seven Seas, a student exchange program. The other book in the series, THE FINNISH LINE, is set in - you guessed it - Finland. I'm hoping there will be many more in this series. It's a gem.