Synopses & Reviews
Iris Chang made headlines in 1997 with the publication of
The Rape of Nanking-a meticulously researched and brilliantly rendered examination of the sacking of that great city by the Japanese during World War II. Many readers of
The Rape of Nanking responded to its themes of the fight for justice and the assertion of cultural identity-themes Chang expands upon in her new book.
Chang, the daughter of second-wave Chinese immigrants, has written an extraordinary narrative that encompasses the entire history of one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the United States, an epic story that spans 150 years and continues to the present day. Chang takes a fresh look at what it means to be an American and draws a complex portrait of the many accomplishments of the Chinese in their adopted country, from building the transcontinental railroad to major scientific and technological advances. A sensitive, deeply moving story of individuals whose lives have shaped and been shaped by this history, The Chinese in America is a saga of raw human tenacity and a testament to the determination of a people to forge an identity and destiny in a strange land.
Review
"...a solid addition in a far-from-exhausted field. " Kirkus Reviews
Review
"If you are hungry for the history of the American experience, The Chinese in America is a must read. " James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers
Review
Iris Chang skillfully weaves together the broad historical panorama of Chinese migration with fascinating case studies of individual Chinese immigrants... "Jonathan Spence, author of The Search for Modern China
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. 405-475) and index.
Synopsis
In an epic story that spans 150 years and continues to the present day, Iris Chang tells of a people’s search for a better life—the determination of the Chinese to forge an identity and a destiny in a strange land and, often against great obstacles, to find success. She chronicles the many accomplishments in America of Chinese immigrants and their descendents: building the infrastructure of their adopted country, fighting racist and exclusionary laws, walking the racial tightrope between black and white, contributing to major scientific and technological advances, expanding the literary canon, and influencing the way we think about racial and ethnic groups. Interweaving political, social, economic, and cultural history, as well as the stories of individuals, Chang offers a bracing view not only of what it means to be Chinese American, but also of what it is to be American.
About the Author
Iris Chang’s numerous honors include the John T. and Catherine D. MacArthur Foundation’s Program on Peace and International Cooperation Award. Her work has appeared in many publications, including the New York Times, Newsweek, and the Los Angeles Times. She is also the author of the bestselling The Rape of Nanking, available from Penguin.
Table of Contents
Introduction vii
- The Old Country: Imperial China in the Nineteenth Century 1
- America: A New Hope 20
- "Never Fear, and You Will Be Lucky": Journey and Arrival in San Francisco 29
- Gold Rushers on Gold Mountain 38
- Building the Transcontinental Railroad 53
- Life on the Western Frontier 65
- Spreading Across America 93
- Rumblings of Hatred 116
- The Chinese Exclusion Act 130
- Work and Survival in the Twentieth Century 157
- A New Generation is Born 173
- Chinese America During the Great Depression 199
- "The Most Important Historical Event of Our Times": World War II 215
- "A Mass Inquisition": The Cold War, the Chinese Civil War, and McCarthyism 236
- New Arrivals, New Lives: The Chaotic 1960s 261
- The Taiwanese Americans 283
- The Bamboo Curtain Rises: Mainlanders and Model Minorities 312
- Decade of Fear: The 1990s 334
- High Tech vs. Low Tech 348
- A Uncertain Future 389
Notes 405
Acknowledgements 477
Index 481