My review of Eddie Huang's new book, Fresh Off the Boat.

    

     Just finnished reading a really funny book I'd like to recommend to all of you. It was written by a Chef named Eddie Huang, and is entitled Fresh Off the Boat. The book is a very funny, well written book about a loving and dysfunctional Chinese family trying to find their way in America.  Anyone who grew up in a third world home, and stepped out into first world America every morning, will appreciate this book - be they Chinese, Latino, Irish or Pakistani. His childhood is filled with love, confusion, sadness, irony and a lot of humor. This book clearly and lovingly conveys the struggles and hard earned successes of growing up in the states. It does a wonderful job at staying light and humorous with funny stories about his family. His Dad is hard working but mean. His mother is caring and strong but clueless. I loved the Chinese dialogue, and non-Chinese readers will appreciate his translations. The scenes with his parents are hilarious. Eddie and his family are both fascinated and appalled by America, especially the food. His descriptions of Asian and American food are delightful and it is obvious that food is a friend and refuge. Chief Huang’s love of the smells, textures and symbolism of food have even influenced his writing. He is also very adept at diving deeply and letting you see feel the pain and loneliness that permeated almost every day of his life, but he does not submerged for too long and laughs are frequent.

     The novel adroitly tells the story of the family’s immigration to Orlando Florida in the mid 1980’s. And while it may seem like a family’s story on the surface, it is really about a confused little boy who grows into a pissed off young man trying to survive in multiple worlds. I grew up in Bronx, New York. In our black and tan neighborhoods there were so many of us we were safe - we belonged - but that was not true for Asians. The book clearly relays the bigotry and prejudice Asians have endured in America, and it made me look at the immigrant experience through different eyes.

     Huang’s voice is casual and rough but capable of passionate and tight prose reminiscent of Junot Diaz, the Dominican-American writer. From their casual regional English to their mutual understanding of the hilarious irony of real life. Unfortunately, like Mr. Diaz, Mr. Huang uses street slang a little too often. Sometimes the vernacular language is unfamiliar and confusing. I would be happily reading and be jerked to a sudden stop by an awkward phrase. Luckily it did not happen often. I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it, and I will certainly be checking out this authors next book.

Writing Inspiration

I read this while traveling the Internet. I hope it inspires.

 

"I first began writing short essays in my journals as well as poetry. My first publications were in small literary magazines and campus publications. I have since gone on to publish 18 full length books in my lifetime, and my poetry, stories and articles have appeared in hundreds of magazines. My work has been translated into six languages. But I have written perhaps 3,000 poems over the past thirty years, over 500 articles and stories, and 36 full length manuscripts. So only about 15% of my writing has been published. That means that 85% of the work I sent out came back with rejection slips (or I received a notice of rejection by email). My conversations with other widely published writers suggest that 10%-15% of submitted work being published is about average. So, it is important to believe in yourself as a writer; to feel that you have something to say and to have the faith that sooner or later if you persist, an audience for your work will be found. In the meantime, you keep sharpening your skills, keep reading, and keep open to a wide range of interests.

And of course, keep writing. What I have found is that only a small part of the time do I feel inspired, or fired up with a genuine desire to communicate something. Many days I just show up at my desk and work away at a project with each word being drawn out with the same pain and difficultly as a reluctant tooth at the dentist’s office. However, even on those dull days I am learning discipline; I am practicing my craft, and I will be ready with the words and the style when the inspiration comes as it always does sooner or later. I should also note that for most of my writing career I also worked as a teacher. So that meant correcting papers long into the night. Most of my “real” writing took place on weekends, Christmas vacation, spring break, and in the early morning.

The best advice I ever had from a fellow writer was from the poet, William Stafford, and I will share that now. When I told him that sometimes I found it difficult to make time to write, that I was locked in by the demands of family and work, he said, “Get up when the house is quiet, before the day actually begins and do your work then. Most places you can still be free if you wake up before other people.”

So, in the early morning hours of each school day I would get up early, do a short meditation and then sketch out a few paragraphs in my journal, or a draft or a poem, or an idea for a story. This was my real freedom from the daily work or teaching and the other demands of the day as a parent. And, day by day, year by year, those pages added up to books. Now I have the time to work on my writing full time, thanks to William Stafford. “Most places you can still be free if you wake up before other people. “ How true, in so many ways.
Michael Hogan
Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico