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Title details for How to American by Jimmy O. Yang - Available

How to American

An Immigrant's Guide to Disappointing Your Parents

by Jimmy O. Yang
Mike Judge
Audiobook (Includes supplementary content)
2 of 2 copies available
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2 of 2 copies available
Standup comic, actor and fan favorite from HBO's Silicon Valley and the film Crazy Rich Asians shares his memoir of growing up as a Chinese immigrant in California and making it in Hollywood.
"I turned down a job in finance to pursue a career in stand-up comedy. My dad thought I was crazy. But I figured it was better to disappoint my parents for a few years than to disappoint myself for the rest of my life. I had to disappoint them in order to pursue what I loved. That was the only way to have my Chinese turnip cake and eat an American apple pie too."
Jimmy O. Yang is a standup comedian, film and TV actor and fan favorite as the character Jian Yang from the popular HBO series Silicon Valley. In How to American, he shares his story of growing up as a Chinese immigrant who pursued a Hollywood career against the wishes of his parents: Yang arrived in Los Angeles from Hong Kong at age 13, learned English by watching BET RapCity for three hours a day, and worked as a strip club DJ while pursuing his comedy career. He chronicles a near deportation episode during a college trip Tijuana to finally becoming a proud US citizen ten years later. Featuring those and many other hilarious stories, while sharing some hard-earned lessons, How to American mocks stereotypes while offering tongue in cheek advice on pursuing the American dreams of fame, fortune, and strippers.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    March 13, 2018

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781478998969
      • File size: 175460 KB
      • Duration: 06:05:32

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Comic and actor Jimmy O. Yang (CRAZY RICH ASIANS) will keep listeners giggling with his perspective on growing up in Hong Kong and then in America. He contrasts images of high-rise apartments with life as an immigrant teenager in California. Yang is earnest, bringing a smoothness to his delivery that will make listeners feel as though they're listening to a friend and not a Hollywood actor. He uses an accent to represent his Asian parents that is politically incorrect yet provides a sense of their hilarious personalities. From childhood pets that ended up on the dinner table to his struggles to make sense of American high school, Yang's anecdotes make for enjoyable listening. His stand-up comedy background is put to excellent use as an audiobook narrator. M.R. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
    • Booklist

      February 1, 2018
      Comedian and actor Yang, a Chinese American Hong Kong-born immigrant who learned English from BET, grew up hearing from his dad that following his dreams would be the fastest way to end up homeless. And yet he'd later turn down a job in finance, his college major, after realizing he'd rather take a shot at a creative career and fail than never try at all. Yang's funny and breezy memoir details years spent paying his dues at open mics and fumbling through auditions (he includes a list of all 101 that preceded his breakthrough role as Jian Yang, on Silicon Valley). He considers how portraying immigrantsJian, or real-life hero Danny Meng, in Patriots Dayconnected Yang more deeply to his own experience, while acting as a member of the fully Asian cast of Crazy Rich Asians lifted the weight of otherness to a freeing effect. Embracing his multifaceted heritage while believing in America's boundless opportunities, Yang inspires with his hard work and assertion that the American dream is real, and he's a product of it.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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