58 pages • 1 hour read
Ellen OhFinding Junie Kim
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Book 5Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Book 5: “Junie”
Book 5, Chapter 38 Summary
Junie thanks her grandmother for telling her story. She remarks that if it were anyone else, she would not have believed how they found their parents. Grandma remarks that they were very lucky, and many children were orphaned and lost while people were displaced because of the invasion and bombings. Junie restates her amazement and disbelief, and Grandma laughs, exclaiming that miracles do happen.
Book 5, Chapter 39 Summary
Junie describes thinking of Grandpa at random times and remaining strong for him. She reminds herself that Grandma needs her. Rachel tells her this is a positive coping mechanism.
Junie bumps into Esther at school, who offers Junie her sympathies about her grandfather.
She shows her Diverse Voices video to her friends, who praise the amazing quality. Junie is nervous when they ask her to introduce the video at the assembly. She speaks with Rachel, who advises her to speak up. Her friends easily agree when Junie says the video really does not need any introduction.
Book 5, Chapter 40 Summary
The school has the assembly and shows the video; they are a success. People talk about the video and the assembly all week when Esther approaches Junie. She shows Junie a video posted by Stu Papadopolis on his private social media app. It is a video of Stu defacing the Diverse Voices flyers.
Junie thanks Esther and promises to protect her anonymity. Esther admits that she has anxiety and stomach problems from listening to the racist remarks.
The next day at school, Esther sits with new friends, and Stu has been expelled.
Book 5, Chapter 41 Summary
Junie must ride the bus once again. Tobias insults her once again. This time, Junie stands up to Tobias. She says that he can insult her, but he should not use racist language and racial slurs. That is not okay.
Another student stands up to Tobias alongside Junie. Tobias becomes confused and then angry when the other children stand up for Junie as well. Junie lectures Tobias about the damage that racism causes.
Book 5, Epilogue Summary
Book 5 Analysis
Book 5 begins with an emphasis on Junie’s amazement at the reunion between Jinjoo and her parents. The emphasis on Junie’s disbelieving response is a direct allusion to the authorial context that appears in the Author’s Note at the end of the novel.
Book 5 also presents multiple personal triumphs for the protagonist. These episodes represent the climax and resolution of the conflicts regarding voice and mental health.
The success of the school assembly and Diverse Voices video create a positive change in the atmosphere of the school. Junie’s participation in this change empowers the protagonist, while Chapter 39 demonstrates her attempts at navigating issues of power and voice in a healthy manner. Junie’s decision to speak up about her discomfort over introducing the video demonstrates the impact of Grandpa’s advice that Junie should choose the best way to advocate for herself based on her comfort. These are key elements of the Voice and Agency in Conflict and Mental Health and Positive Attitude themes.
Esther’s revelation that Stu is responsible for defacing the school shows continuing development in the relationship between the two Korean American students while resolving the remaining conflicts at school.
Junie’s final confrontation with Tobias is further reinforcement of the success of the educational assembly when the students at the bus stop stand up alongside Junie in her confrontation with the bully.
Junie stands up to Tobias and lectures him on the impact of racism. This episode resolves the final issues with racism in the novel and addresses the long-term problems with bullying that cause Junie’s mental health crisis in Book 1. These are the final elements in the Voice and Agency in Conflict and Mental Health and Positive Attitude themes.
Finally, the Epilogue is a demonstration of the resolution of Junie’s identity crisis from earlier in the novel. She and her family visit South Korea just as her grandfather had always wished they would, and Junie hears Grandpa’s voice in final affirmation of her growth and development.
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