Beijing Bastard: Coming of Age in a Changing China

(Paperback)

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Description

Raised in a strict Chinese American household in the suburbs, Val Wang flees to Beijing in 1998 expecting to find freedom. Instead, she lives with her traditional relatives, who wake her at dawn with a state-run television program, make a running joke of how much she eats, and monitor her every move. But outside, she soon discovers a city rebelling against its roots just as she is, and a thriving subculture making art out of chaos. Brilliantly observed, Beijing Bastard is a compelling story of a young woman finding her place in the world.

Reviews

"Damn, that Val Wang can write real good. I couldn't get enough of her Beijing Bastard. This is the kinda book that makes you want to pack an extra lung and move to China."
--Gary Shteyngart, author of "Absurdistan"

"Val Wang has given us a memoir perfectly suited to the Beijing that she brings to life so well: heedless, pungent, and proudly insubordinate. She is both American and Chinese, fascinated by her ancestors' history and desperate to escape it. Like contemporary China itself, Wang is torn between the aspirations for success, idiosyncrasy, and belonging. A vivid and evocative read."
--Evan Osnos, author of "Age of Ambition"
"Val Wang spins a rollicking tale of misadventure in Beijing, wonderfully engaging, filled with astute observations of modern China, and edged by a sharp wit that left me laughing out loud on the subway even as I concealed a tear at the last page."
--Ann Mah, author of "Kitchen Chinese" and "Mastering the Art of French Eating"
"A spectacular debut by a writer with the most enviable gift a storyteller can have: timing. Like Arthur Phillips' "Prague" and other generation-defining works that capture a fleeting, golden moment in both the lives of a group of expatriates and a larger-than-life place, Val Wang's memoir of Beijing is shot through with insight, beauty, humor and sadness."
--Ben Ryder Howe, author of "My Korean Deli"
"Takes readers effortlessly through the seemingly disparate worlds of a family divided across distance and generations. Wang's Beijing is gritty and bleak but also hopeful and exciting, and her affection for the city is palpable.... A deftly written and entertaining memoir that offers a fresh perspective on contemporary China and the people caught in its rapid transformation."
--"Kirkus Reviews"

Advance Praise for "Beijing Bastard"
"Val Wang has given us a memoir perfectly suited to the Beijing that she brings to life so well: heedless, pungent, and proudly insubordinate. She is both American and Chinese, fascinated by her ancestors' history and desperate to escape it. Like contemporary China itself, Wang is torn between the aspirations for success, idiosyncrasy, and belonging. A vivid and evocative read."
--Evan Osnos, author of "Age of Ambition"
"Val Wang spins a rollicking tale of misadventure in Beijing, wonderfully engaging, filled with astute observations of modern China, and edged by a sharp wit that left me laughing out loud on the subway even as I concealed a tear at the last page."
--Ann Mah, author of "Kitchen Chinese" and "Mastering the Art of French Eating"
"A spectacular debut by a writer with the most enviable gift a storyteller can have: timing. Like Arthur Phillips' "Prague" and other generation-defining works that capture a fleeting, golden moment in both the lives of a group of expatriates and a larger-than-life place, Val Wang's memoir of Beijing is shot through with insight, beauty, humor and sadness."
--Ben Ryder Howe, author of "My Korean Deli"
"Takes readers effortlessly through the seemingly disparate worlds of a family divided across distance and generations. Wang's Beijing is gritty and bleak but also hopeful and exciting, and her affection for the city is palpable.... A deftly written and entertaining memoir that offers a fresh perspective on contemporary China and the people caught in its rapid transformation."
--"Kirkus Reviews"

Advance Praise for "Beijing Bastard"

"Val Wang has given us a memoir perfectly suited to the Beijing that she brings to life so well: heedless, pungent, and proudly insubordinate. She is both American and Chinese, fascinated by her ancestors' history and desperate to escape it. Like contemporary China itself, Wang is torn between the aspirations for success, idiosyncrasy, and belonging. A vivid and evocative read."
--Evan Osnos, author of "Age of Ambition"

"Val Wang spins a rollicking tale of misadventure in Beijing, wonderfully engaging, filled with astute observations of modern China, and edged by a sharp wit that left me laughing out loud on the subway even as I concealed a tear at the last page."
--Ann Mah, author of "Kitchen Chinese" and "Mastering the Art of French Eating"

"A spectacular debut by a writer with the most enviable gift a storyteller can have: timing. Like Arthur Phillips' "Prague" and other generation-defining works that capture a fleeting, golden moment in both the lives of a group of expatriates and a larger-than-life place, Val Wang's memoir of Beijing is shot through with insight, beauty, humor and sadness."
--Ben Ryder Howe, author of "My Korean Deli"

"Takes readers effortlessly through the seemingly disparate worlds of a family divided across distance and generations. Wang's Beijing is gritty and bleak but also hopeful and exciting, and her affection for the city is palpable.... A deftly written and entertaining memoir that offers a fresh perspective on contemporary China and the people caught in its rapid transformation."
--"Kirkus Reviews"

Author Bio

Val Wang is a writer and multimedia documentarian who has lived in Beijing, Baltimore, and Brooklyn. She now lives in Boston.