10 Pages of "The Dim Sum of All Things"

I think I'm very sensitive when I read books regarding fictitious Chinese Americans and their experiences because it's a part of who I am. This all began in my Ethnic Lit class in high school when our teacher made us read Amy Tan's "The Joy Luck Club". (or what I would call nowadays, as My Joy Luck Snub) and it really set the standard for my tolerance of books regarding the Chinese American experience, especially in the feminist light. Turns out this book (as of the first 10 pages) is really no different.

With no offense to writers that create feminist characters in their books (I loved Ailin from Lindsey Namioka's Ties That Bind), it's seemingly the same formula for a Chinese-American (yes, hyphen included for this book) fiction book about girls. The negative aspects of the Chinese traditions as well as the negative habits of elder Chinese are reinforced as backdrops for character development. (geez, my grandma doesn't even play mahjong despite living in Chinatown). I guess what I don't like about most characters in these sort of books are they're negativity towards their heritage. This Lindsey shows no positive sign about her cultural identity and culture to be exact. It is almost as though the author enjoys exploiting all the negative aspects of Chinese Americans and what Americans would find as odd about them. (glorifying the white America?)

There wasn't really anything entirely new that I havn't seen in another Chinese-American book if not worse. "There was no opium, and no doped up nubile Chinese beauties". Don't know if that was flattery or yet ANOTHER re-visit of our historic flaws.

To be quite honest, I opened this book and forced myself to stay objective and give it a shot. I guess after reaching page 10, I'll need to force myself to digest more of this "creative" piece of work.

(..30 pages later)..book sucks, without furthering the plot, it just bashed all things Chinese (and Chinese American)...oh yea, the weak (if not all) cheap-date, spikey-haired/rice-bowled cut hair, Star Wars loving, traffic-impaired, Honda Civic-rice-rocket driving, feministic, sweaty, grandma-listening, Chinese men of the world...I tink. (all can be found on page 42-43)

...in some ways, i'm deeply offended.