Lion Boy and Drummer Girl

Leopop Series #1

by Pauline Loh

Lion Boy and Drummer Girl reimagines the traditional art of lion dance as a pop sensation that has taken Asia by storm. Lion dancers are the new idols, but none are as charismatic and handsome as US import Ricky Ang. Yet while other Leopop wannabes seek fame and fortune, Ricky dances to the beat of his own drum.

Though surrounded by athletic and good-looking young men, drummer girl Ong YingYing is, ironically, the greatest cynic of the Leopop wave. “Don’t fall for a Lion Dancer!” her mother always warned her. “He will just break your heart.”

Genres: Young Adult

176 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2018

About the author

Pauline Loh is an award-winning writer with 30 years of writing experience. She has published 11 adult non-fiction books, three youth books and seven children’s storybooks. She is a winner of the 2009 First Time Writers and Illustrators Publishing Initiative and first runner-up for the 2012 Scholastic Asian Book Award. Her books have been shortlisted for the Hedwig Anuar Book Award, Samsung KidsTime Author’s Award and Singapore Book Awards. She is also director of nonprofit organisation Women Empowered for Work and Mothering (WEWAM), and an ambassador of the Singapore Memory Project (SMP). She mentors book authors, conducts assembly talks and author visits in schools and is a Ministry of Education registered trainer.

Reviews

[Varsha · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Don't fall for a lion dancer," Her mother always warned her, "He will break your heart." Move over K-Pop! There's a new beat in town, Leo-Pop or Lion Dance performed by some of the cutest cubs and the latest idols around. None of them however, are as cute or charming as Hong Kong import, Ricky, who does his own thing.

While girls go ga-ga over these athletic boys, Ong Ying Ying, the only girl allowed to be close to them is the greatest cynic of them all. She also holds the key to Ricky's heart. However, do two opposites stand a chance?

My latest venture into #Singlit is also a YA novel and a breezy read. While the storyline certainly sounded interesting enough, the book proved to be a massive disappointment as it turned out to be a ball of pure, cringeworthy cheesiness and cliched fluff. The plot, not to mention, the characters were highly exaggerated and unimpressive.

Although, kudos to the author for giving us an insight into Lion Dance. I just wish it was under better circumstances.

Its great to see local authors venturing out to write for a younger audience, I just think there are so many things out there they ought to be working with like peer pressure, or secondary school boy-girl relationships, how about O/A-levels? Theres room for so much of potential.

[Ziqin Ng · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was still unbelievably cute the second time.

[chev ۫ ꣑ৎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Don't fall for a lion dancer- he will break your heart."

I was pleasantly pleased when I found out that this romance novel is written by a Singaporean author, and it was really relatable. Ironically, sometimes we need to follow our heart.


Recommended for: middle-school

Feedback:
♡character development
I think this can be worked on, as it is not clearly defined in the book.


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[Rachael ༊·˚ · Rating 1 out of 5]

...I feel this book was a major let-down, honestly. And this is coming from a Singaporean teen :" And said teen isn't exactly new to this genre (unfortunately) - kind of blaming myself for needing to study SingLit in secondary school. But yes, this felt sorely lacking, and a huge disappointment, especially given the premise, and the fact the author actually has the credentials (the education, the AWARDS) to back-up the fact she got this book published in the first place - for an award targetted at Singaporean fiction writers. It's just... God, I actually ranted about this for nearly 10 minutes straight at 9+ pm on the crowded MRT (apologies to any of the other commuters who heard me hehe...) because it was just that bad.

The characters fell so flat, and the plot just went... everywhere, that I half-thought it was written, at best, by her at 15 years. But no, apparently she has 30 years of writing experience, and it just never showed. I was honestly fine with the first 14 or so chapters, and then it felt as if she had writer's block or something (or maybe the book went untouched for a while) and... it just made me barf every single sentence. I couldn't root for Ying Ying at all unfortunately - it just felt very forced, her hatred towards Ricky and for anyone who opposed her supposed "family". The only reason I even made it to the end was because Orion appeared, and he salvaged it until I read more about Ricky. And because the chapters were short :) (maybe that's the reason behind it: motivation to the reader that you can live to the end of that chapter before thinking about dropping it altogether) ...I never even learned to like anyone else because there just wasn't a foundation for me to build upon a deeper connection with the character. (But yeah, what could I expect from a book that's less than 200 pages-)

But yeah, even the writing style confused the heck out of me: it ranged from a narrator from a 3rd person's POV to giving us insight in some of the character's thoughts and then it kept switching back. Like, what?? It wasn't consistent. At ALL. And let's not forget the fact the author can not do much but directly spoonfed us information on the situation (excluding the lion dance performances itself). I swear, I didn't even need to read between the lines for anything because nothing was THERE to read between the lines of. Ricky was jealous? She spelt it out for us. Ying Ying (somehow) felt bad for selling Ricky off? That too needed to be spelt in bolded letters for us to even register the characters felt anything but two-dimensional to us.

The only reason it was "salvageable", to be fair, was - take this with a huge tablespoon of salt, please - the fact I learned more stuff about lion dance haha. Like the history behind it really intrigued me. And that the idea of Leopop itself was really intriguing (although I am curious why the movement would start in Singapore first of all places-). I think that's the only redeeming part that even justified the one star I gave this (yes, huge shocker).

But yes, tl;dr this really isn't a prime example I would use to showcase our local talent in the slightest. Maybe only points for creativity, yes. But as an author? God no (I'm so sorry). I really wonder how the manuscripts are usually if this landed up the "best" that year...

[Please please I mean no hate to the author as an individual, this review is just me spiralling about her work, and I really wouldn't give this such a review if I could help it.]

[Fikri · Rating 1 out of 5]

See optional preamble here.

The lion dance-as-K-pop setting is cute, but this is otherwise an incredibly typical, clichéd heterosexual romance story. Boy likes girl. Girl rebuffs boy (but secretly likes him). Boy does rash, ridiculous thing to get girl. Girl does rash, ridiculous thing to get rid of boy. Everyone is terrible at communicating. Boy and girl face up to the consequences of their actions... and you can fill in the rest.

There’s even a bonus child sexual abuse subplot. The girl emerges independent and strong-willed (good for her), while the men and boys in her life essentially have a pissing match over protecting honour and (male) relationships instead of y’know, the actual vulnerable girl (fuck them all).

Idk, are there still teens who are into this kinda story? And if they were, would you want to encourage it? It might be fairer to describe it as typical of say, 10 years ago (or much longer tbh), because I think romance YA has made huge leaps since. A very quick read and mostly inoffensive, I suppose, but not something I’d wilfully put into the hands of a young person.

[Ashley Ann]

LMAO amusing read. Character development and story development...?? And also while yes it was inspired by kpop no reason to have their names be korean when they’re Chinese and to reference korean places with no link heehee. Amusing read and cute for preteens keke

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a stereotypical YA novel with a shallow plot line and minimal character development. The only reason I finished is because it took place in Singapore and I was hoping for some depth about the country and its traditions.

[Valcationvibes]

This #Singlit book is a cross between lion dance and kpop! The story revolves around the Lion Legend lion dance troupe boys - Zeus, Prome, Mercury, Apple, and their newest addition, Ricky. It's a simple story that gives a peek into the world of lion dance, the grit, training and risk that these boys are put through. I love that this tradition/practice teaches the importance of hard work, respect and discipline. There's also a cute love story weaves into the story! The book is a fun read that hopefully, helps to revive the lion dance industry, attracting more young people to join lion dance. May this tradition not disappear in our lifetime!

I read this book over the weekend in prep for Lunar New Year because Lion dance is such a fun part of the New year festivities! However, due to COVID restrictions, we've not had these outdoor performances in the last 2 years! These acrobatic, nail-biting lion dance performances always have me at the edge of my seat, holding my breath as these guys jump from high pole to high pole! Ahhh love it so much!

Besides lion dance performances, one of my other favourite part of the new year is when we gather as a family to have a reunion dinner on the eve of Lunar New Year. All the cousins gather and we feast together, chatting loudly or (when we were younger), playing games till late into the night. It's tradition for children to stay up late on the eve of new year as it is said to bring longevity to one's parents! I'm sad to say that as we are getting older, this tradition is slowly being lost in my family.

[bookierookie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually really enjoyed this book!

I thought the use of Leo-pop as a starting point was creative and believable, especially because it still aligned with the tongue-in-cheek Singaporean-ness of having to make good grades, amongst the other Idol criteria. I think Singaporeans have the tendency to feel very "cringe" about our own ways, especially when it comes to comparing YA romance, or cultural waves, so this book is best read as a slight parody of idol culture. It's a playful read, not meant to be taken too seriously at all and its humour is also a little about laughing at yourself.

The characters' desires are quite simple to follow, and the main squad's dynamics are quite charming in an adolescent way. Real life teens are never this palatable, so I enjoyed the characters' banter and brotherhood.

Overall, I had a fun time reading this (for reference, I am 26 and only follow 1 idol group), and I think it would come off well with a middle grade to young YA audience (maybe 10-14?).

[xy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw this book a long time ago on the library shelves but didn't bother picking it up, so when I finally saw it again a year later I settled down for some (spicy) singlit! But honestly was kind of disappointed with the language and overall plot... I may have picked up a YA/primary/lower sec level book on accident and safe to say I was not very impressed :( I mean... young girls stereotyped as obsessive fangirls? That trope is wayy outdated, sorry.

[Jie Yi Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the concept and idea of lion dance being reinvented into a pop culture phenomenon akin to the Hallyu wave. I sped through this book in a day or so while on a long commute. It was interesting, but I think it was a little light on the details. It was written like a junior novel but it's about characters who are in the young adult phase of life. Perhaps that was why I was a bit confused by it.

[mellamy · Rating 2 out of 5]

kinda annoyed that this was classified as YA when it is very much a children’s book, as in, kids under 12yo. other than that the story would’ve been much more solid if it had stayed with the lion dance setting and premise instead of trying to be about a bunch of other random things imo

[Celina Schubert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic. I loved seeing this new side of Asia. I listen to a lot of kpop and watch all sorts of asian dramas. This was a new kind of performance and i must admit I'm in love. After i read this, Lion dance popped up everywhere- I must admit, I'm not even a bit mad about it!!

[Quentin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really an easy to read book, and actually quite interesting!

[R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars*

[Jennysing · Rating 1 out of 5]

Some parts are well-written, but overall the storyline is cliched and not interesting ...

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. Nothing that stood out to me too much but it was a fun, quick read. Although it did take me a long time to finish.

[Alina · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was very boring

[summer win · Rating 3 out of 5]

not amazing, but adorable, especially because it’s a local scene.

[V · Rating 1 out of 5]

Painfully simple

[antonyo · Rating 3 out of 5]

god i miss fanfictions sooooooo much

[novemberninth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Love the concept of lion dancers as idols. Don't like the writing. There's too much telling and not showing.

[Mirabelle Alkkor · Rating 1 out of 5]

2.5

[twkwayne · Rating 2 out of 5]

☆2 Stars☆