4.5 star, adult, nonfiction

Review: Making a Scene by Constance Wu

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

A powerful and poignant new book by Crazy Rich Asians and Fresh Off the Boat star Constance Wu about family, romance, sex, shame, trauma, and how she found her voice on the stage. 

Growing up in the friendly suburbs of Richmond, Virginia, Constance Wu was often scolded for having big feelings or strong reactions. “Good girls don’t make scenes,” people warned her. And while she spent most of her childhood suppressing her bold, emotional nature, she found an early outlet in local community theater—it was the one place where big feelings were okay—were good, even. Acting became her refuge, her touchstone, and eventually her vocation. At eighteen she moved to New York, where she’d spend the next ten years of her life auditioning, waiting tables, and struggling to make rent before her two big breaks: the TV sitcom Fresh Off the Boat and the hit film Crazy Rich Asians.

Through raw and relatable essays, Constance shares private memories of childhood, young love and heartbreak, sexual assault and harassment, and how she “made it” in Hollywood. Her stories offer a behind-the-scenes look at being Asian American in the entertainment industry and the continuing evolution of her identity and influence in the public eye. Making a Scene is an intimate portrait of pressures and pleasures of existing in today’s world.

Overall Recommendation

A poignant collection of essays about different moments and time periods in Constance’s life, I thoroughly enjoyed the personal stories and lessons she drew from all these experiences she’s documented. Looking at both her childhood and the people/places that have shaped her into the woman she is, this isn’t just a book about being Asian in Hollywood but a well rounded story of the heart of Constance Wu and that makes it ever more so worth reading.

CW: sexual harassment, rape, suicide

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discussion

Let’s Talk Bookish – Problematic Inspiration

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Aria @ Book Nook Bits is the new host for Let’s Talk Bookish! If you aren’t following her yet, good check out her blog and give her a follow!

January 13: Problematic Inspiration (Ikwords @ Words on Key)

Prompts: Can inspiration for a book be problematic? What inspiration would you consider to be problematic? Should an author be canceled because of a perhaps controversial inspiration for their book? In other words, is any kind of inspiration “bad”?

Welcome to another week of LTB here at DTRH, everyone! Today’s topic is one that I’ve sometimes wondered, though not sure if I have ever openly complained about it. But I also wonder if problematic necessarily means bad. I’d love to hear what you all think on this!

I definitely think inspiration for a book can be problematic, but I’m not necessarily sure this is a problem in and of itself. If an inspiration for a book pre-supposes some sort of notion that is inappropriate/problematic, then I would call that a problematic inspiration, although it may not be the case that the book itself automatically becomes problematic. It could be a book that tries to combat the status quo or take a presupposition to take it down. In these cases I think it’s probably okay that there was a problematic inspiration.

I think something like a very racist sentiment being the underlying inspiration could be an example of something problematic. But again, I think it probably comes down more to how the book is executed that determines whether it is problematic or not. In addition, something having a problematic inspiration may not always necessarily be written out in a way that is problematic, so in a way it doesn’t matter what the inspiration was. That of course all changes if you announce your inspiration…but I hope authors would be smart enough to keep such sentiments to themselves if so.

Should an author be canceled for these inspirations…probably. If we accept and condone it, we are basically accepting their problematic viewpoints. One particularly famous author comes to mind. Although if the inspiration is just controversial and not actually wholly accepted as problematic, there’s no need to cancel them at that point. I think discussion is healthy and we should all be open-minded to both sides of a situation/perspective and to make judgments for ourselves.

I don’t think any kind of inspiration is “bad” in and of itself for a book. It really depends what stems from it and how the book is executed and written. For example, a book about all women being weak and needy stemming from the same inspiration is not likely something I would support. But if that initial thought made the author think to write about a protagonist combating that exact mentality…even if the inspiration was that they personally thought that all women were weak and needy…I think that we shouldn’t judge the book by its inspiration necessarily. Although if it is announced by the author themselves…then I think that should probably fall on the reflection of the book.

Hopefully that’s not too unfair. What do you all think about problematic inspirations in books? Is it the books themselves or the authors that are the problem…? Let me know in the comments below!

4 star

Review: Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Nine strangers receive a list with their names on it in the mail. Nothing else, just a list of names on a single sheet of paper. None of the nine people know or have ever met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke – until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. First, a well-liked old man is drowned on a beach in the small town of Kennewick, Maine. Then, a father is shot in the back while running through his quiet neighborhood in suburban Massachusetts. A frightening pattern is emerging, but what do these nine people have in common? Their professions range from oncology nurse to aspiring actor.

FBI agent Jessica Winslow, who is on the list herself, is determined to find out. Could there be some dark secret that binds them all together? Or is this the work of a murderous madman? As the mysterious sender stalks these nine strangers, they find themselves constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering who will be crossed off next….

This was another book suggested by a friend who shares the same taste, and so far, it’s another hit. I was originally going to give it a qualified 4.5 Drink Me Potions but I’ll explain why I just ended up erring on the side of caution. I had a good time reading this book, and it’s a fairly short one which is always appreciated, but you’ll come to see why I wasn’t entirely sure if how it panned out was good or bad. This author has great premises for thrillers though, and I have already started yet another book of his with an equally intriguing synopsis. We’ll see if Swanson can climb my list of favourites.

Nine Lives is the story of nine perfect strangers who are sent a list with their names on it. None of them have ever heard each other but all of them receive a cryptic note with just their names on it and nothing else. Slowly, one by one, they are picked off and killed. What is happening to these people and why? FBI agent Winslow is on the case, and also on the list herself, and why on earth has this madman targeted all of them? Is there something tying it together or just the workings of a deranged serial killer. Time quickly runs out as the investigation goes on.

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