Mission Statement
Highlighting literature and media featuring Asian representation to construct a more holistic and authentic understanding of Asian identities and experiences.
About Us:
I remember when I was about eight years old, I watched Sixteen Candles with my parents. Obviously, it is an American classic––an iconic coming-of-age film starring Molly Ringwald and teenage drama. I love the movie, for the most par, except when I was introduced to the character Long Duck Dong, a Chinese foreign exchange student played by Japanese actor Gedde Watanabe. It was shocking, honestly, to see someone who supposedly resembled my family yet looked nothing like my parents beside me. I was too in-shock to say anything, and my parents were quiet too–– not because they were as appalled as I was but because they were too unfazed to speak.
As the film and book industry have grown, I witnessed Asian representation grow over the years. For example, I witnessed films starting to include characters who actually looked like me, and not some slant-eyed woman with a crazy accent. TV shows also started to have a cast list that expanded beyond the one token Asian (typically East-Asian at that) actor. I remember when I begged my cousins and siblings to watch Crazy Rich Asians and Shang-Chi: The Legend of the Ten Rings in theaters the day after the release.
Although I have exposed myself to numerous amazing stories of coming together through Asian stories, there is still a lot of work to do. And that’s where this book club comes into play!
Through this book club, participants can explore their own identity by exposing themselves to Asian representation in books, films, shows. Whether this exploration means relating to typical Asian hardships––such as xenophobia or discrimination––or simply being happy to see your culture displayed on the big screen in ways that are not stereotyped, I want this book club to be for everyone. With discussions, talks, and recommendations from all over the world, I want people to feel represented and able to reflect on their experiences from multiple perspectives––regardless of age, demographic, Asian ethnicity, or genre of media. At the end of the day, this book club is for everyone connect with each other through Asian media.
