Stream thousands of fine art and hand-crafting classes with Creativebug. Check it out here!

Eleanor Ellis Public Library - Phelps

We were dreamers: an immigrant superhero origin story

Book Cover
Average Rating
Author:
Liu, Simu, 1989-
Publisher:
Varies, see individual formats and editions
Pub. Date:
2022
Language:
English
Choose a Format
Book
      Show Edition
Available from another library
  Quick Copy View
Place Hold
OverDrive eAudiobook
      Show Edition
Available Online
7 copies, 3 people are on the wait list.
Online OverDrive Collection
Online OverDrive Collection has 7
  Quick Copy View
Check Out OverDrive
OverDrive eBook
      Show Edition
Available Online
Online OverDrive Collection
Online OverDrive Collection has 2
Check Out OverDrive
Description

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The star of Marvel’s first Asian superhero film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, tells his own origin story of being a Chinese immigrant, his battles with cultural stereotypes and his own identity, becoming a TV star, and landing the role of a lifetime.

In this honest, inspiring and relatable memoir, newly-minted superhero Simu Liu chronicles his family's journey from China to the bright lights of Hollywood with razor-sharp wit and humor.

Simu's parents left him in the care of his grandparents, then brought him to Canada when he was four. Life as a Canuck, however, is not all that it was cracked up to be; Simu's new guardians lack the gentle touch of his grandparents, resulting in harsh words and hurt feelings. His parents, on the other hand, find their new son emotionally distant and difficult to relate to - although they are related by blood, they are separated by culture, language, and values. 

As Simu grows up, he plays the part of the pious child flawlessly - he gets straight A's, crushes national math competitions and makes his parents proud. But as time passes, he grows increasingly disillusioned with the path that has been laid out for him. Less than a year out of college, at the tender age of 22, his life hits rock bottom when he is laid off from his first job as an accountant. Left to his own devices, and with nothing left to lose, Simu embarks on a journey that will take him far outside of his comfort zone into the world of show business. 

Through a swath of rejection and comical mishaps, Simu's determination to carve out a path for himself leads him to not only succeed as an actor, but also to open the door to reconciling with his parents.

We Were Dreamers is more than a celebrity memoir - it's a story about growing up between cultures, finding your family, and becoming the master of your own extraordinary circumstance.

Also in This Series
More Like This
Subjects
Subjects
Autobiographies
Biography & Autobiography
Childhood and youth
Children of immigrants
Children of immigrants -- Canada -- Biography
Family
Immigrants
Immigrants -- Canada -- Biography
Liu, Simu
Liu, Simu, -- 1989-
Liu, Simu, -- 1989- -- Childhood and youth
Liu, Simu, -- 1989- -- Family
Motion picture actors and actresses
Motion picture actors and actresses -- Canada -- Biography
Nonfiction
Parent and child
Parent and child -- Canada -- Biography
Performing Arts
More Details
ISBN:
9780063046498
9780063046528
9780063046511
Librarian Reviews
Published Reviews
Staff View

Grouping Information

Grouped Work IDbd155dce-1af1-1a7d-9943-3fe63e75f450
Grouping Titlewe were dreamers
Grouping Authorsimu liu
Grouping Categorybook
Grouping LanguageEnglish (eng)
Last Grouping Update2024-04-26 16:31:58PM
Last Indexed2024-04-26 16:32:54PM

Solr Fields

accelerated_reader_point_value
0
accelerated_reader_reading_level
0
author
Liu, Simu, 1989-
author_display
Liu, Simu
available_at_phelps
Online OverDrive Collection
detailed_location_phelps
Online OverDrive Collection
display_description
"We Were Dreamers is the superhero origin story of Simu Liu, Marvel Cinematic Universe's first leading Asian superhero, who grew up torn between China and Canada, until he found the courage to dream like his parents before him. Witty, honest, inspiring and relatable, We Were Dreamers weaves together the narratives of two generations in a Chinese immigrant family who are inextricably tied to one another even as they are torn apart by deep cultural misunderstanding. Let's just say, it's really hard to be seen as cool amongst your peers when your parents assign you hours of extra homework every night. And it's similarly hard to admit to those parents, years later, not only that you've lost your respectable accounting job--the one they invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in to prepare you for--but also that you kinda want to be an actor. Going beyond his own experiences, Simu tells the story of his parents' decision to leave him behind to be raised by his grandparents while they sought a future in North America, and of the shock and loss he experienced when the father he hardly even remembered showed up one day to take him away from the only home he had ever known. He offers a no-holds-barred look at the struggles he and his parents experienced as they tried to become a family while dealing with culture gaps, racism and wildly conflicting definitions of success. And he shares many entertaining stories of his own incredible path to success, from the acting gigs he landed through Craigslist ads to dressing up as Spider-Man at kids' birthday parties and serving as Pete Wentz's stunt double on a Fall Out Boy music video. Ultimately, it is Simu's singular determination to make his dreams come true that not only leads him to succeed as an actor but also opens the door to reconciliation with his parents. For by the time he is thirty--the same age his parents were when they immigrated--he recognizes that he and his parents have much in common, most notably their courage to dream, and to dream big. We Were Dreamers is a story about growing up as a third-culture kid, about losing and finding family, and about making your own luck. More than one family's story, it is part of a larger narrative about Asian Canadian culture--a colorful and nuanced tale that is worthy of being told and deserving of a wide readership." --Provided by publisher.
format_category_phelps
Audio Books
Books
eBook
format_phelps
Book
eAudiobook
eBook
id
bd155dce-1af1-1a7d-9943-3fe63e75f450
isbn
9780063046498
9780063046511
9780063046528
itype_phelps
BOOK - HARDCOVER
last_indexed
2024-04-26T21:32:54.846Z
lexile_score
-1
literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
local_callnumber_phelps
Online OverDrive
owning_library_phelps
Phelps Public Library Online
owning_location_phelps
Online OverDrive Collection
primary_isbn
9780063046498
publishDate
2022
publisher
HarperAudio
HarperCollins
William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Autobiographies
Children of immigrants -- Canada -- Biography
Immigrants -- Canada -- Biography
Liu, Simu, -- 1989-
Liu, Simu, -- 1989- -- Childhood and youth
Liu, Simu, -- 1989- -- Family
Motion picture actors and actresses -- Canada -- Biography
Parent and child -- Canada -- Biography
title_display
We were dreamers : an immigrant superhero origin story
title_full
We Were Dreamers An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story
We were dreamers : an immigrant superhero origin story / Simu Liu
title_short
We were dreamers
title_sub
an immigrant superhero origin story
topic_facet
Biography & Autobiography
Childhood and youth
Children of immigrants
Family
Immigrants
Liu, Simu
Motion picture actors and actresses
Nonfiction
Parent and child
Performing Arts

Solr Details Tables

item_details

Bib IdItem IdShelf LocCall NumFormatFormat CategoryNum CopiesIs Order ItemIs eContenteContent SourceeContent URLDetailed StatusLast CheckinLocation
ils:.b21077307.i34752110Spooner Adult Nonfiction921 LIU1falsefalseAvailableNov 09, 2022spanf
overdrive:874a9728-a25e-46ed-88a7-bc4a69e5198e1Online OverDrive CollectionOnline OverDriveeBookeBook0falsetrueOverDriveAvailable Online
overdrive:874a9728-a25e-46ed-88a7-bc4a69e5198e-1Online OverDrive CollectionOnline OverDriveeBookeBook2falsetrueOverDriveAvailable Online
overdrive:84179b96-af84-4c6b-9129-8517a0ba61ec-1Online OverDrive CollectionOnline OverDriveeAudiobookAudio Books7falsetrueOverDriveAvailable Online
overdrive:84179b96-af84-4c6b-9129-8517a0ba61ec1Online OverDrive CollectionOnline OverDriveeAudiobookAudio Books0falsetrueOverDriveAvailable Online

record_details

Bib IdFormatFormat CategoryEditionLanguagePublisherPublication DatePhysical DescriptionAbridged
ils:.b21077307BookBooksFirst editionEnglishWilliam Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers2022289 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (chiefly color) ; 24 cm
overdrive:874a9728-a25e-46ed-88a7-bc4a69e5198eeBookeBookEnglishHarperCollins2022
overdrive:84179b96-af84-4c6b-9129-8517a0ba61eceAudiobookAudio BooksEnglishHarperAudio2022

scoping_details_phelps

Bib IdItem IdGrouped StatusStatusLocally OwnedAvailableHoldableBookableIn Library Use OnlyLibrary OwnedHoldable PTypesBookable PTypesLocal Url
ils:.b21077307.i34752110On ShelfAvailablefalsetruetruefalsefalsefalse9999
overdrive:874a9728-a25e-46ed-88a7-bc4a69e5198e1Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruetruefalsefalsetrue
overdrive:874a9728-a25e-46ed-88a7-bc4a69e5198e-1Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruetruefalsefalsefalse
overdrive:84179b96-af84-4c6b-9129-8517a0ba61ec-1Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruetruefalsefalsefalse
overdrive:84179b96-af84-4c6b-9129-8517a0ba61ec1Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruetruefalsefalsetrue