We were dreamers: an immigrant superhero origin story
(Book)
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.
Notes
Liu, S. (2022). We were dreamers: an immigrant superhero origin story. First edition. New York, NY, William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)Liu, Simu, 1989-. 2022. We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story. New York, NY, William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)Liu, Simu, 1989-, We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story. New York, NY, William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2022.
MLA Citation (style guide)Liu, Simu. We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story. First edition. New York, NY, William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2022.
Record Information
| Last Sierra Extract Time | Apr 22, 2024 07:28:17 PM |
|---|---|
| Last File Modification Time | Apr 22, 2024 07:29:16 PM |
| Last Grouped Work Modification Time | Apr 24, 2024 06:45:23 PM |
MARC Record
| LEADER | 04411cam 2200373 i 4500 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 001 | 1309764731 | ||
| 008 | 220406t20222022nyuaf e 000 0aeng d | ||
| 020 | |a 9780063046498|q (hardcover) | ||
| 020 | |a 0063046490|q (hardcover) | ||
| 040 | |a Z#6|b eng|e rda|c Z#6|d YDX|d BDX|d Y$5|d GK8|d PX0|d OCLCO|d IP6|d ABJ | ||
| 100 | 1 | |a Liu, Simu,|d 1989-|e author. | |
| 245 | 1 | 0 | |a We were dreamers :|b an immigrant superhero origin story /|c Simu Liu. |
| 246 | 3 | 0 | |a Immigrant superhero origin story. |
| 250 | |a First edition. | ||
| 264 | 1 | |a New York, NY :|b William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers,|c 2022. | |
| 264 | 4 | |c ©2022 | |
| 300 | |a 289 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates :|b illustrations (chiefly color) ;|c 24 cm | ||
| 336 | |a text|b txt|2 rdacontent | ||
| 337 | |a unmediated|b n|2 rdamedia | ||
| 338 | |a volume|b nc|2 rdacarrier | ||
| 505 | 0 | |a Act One. Made In China -- Back In Time -- The Frog And The Swan -- An Impossible Dream -- Welcome To America, Jerry Lewis -- Oh, Canada? -- Zhenning's Homecoming -- Act Two. Life In The Land Of Poutine -- Simu The Genius -- Simu The Rebel -- Eye For An Eye -- The Astronaut -- Simu The Superfrosh -- Abercrowannabe -- Simu The Fraud -- Everything Is Lost -- Act Three. Dark Night Of The Soul -- Professional Craigslist Actor -- Simu The Starving Artist -- Back To Corporate -- Blood And Water -- An Inconvenient Summer -- City Of Shattered Dreams -- Big Asian Energy -- A Date With Destiny. | |
| 520 | |a "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. | ||
| 600 | 1 | 0 | |a Liu, Simu,|d 1989- |
| 600 | 1 | 0 | |a Liu, Simu,|d 1989-|x Childhood and youth. |
| 600 | 1 | 0 | |a Liu, Simu,|d 1989-|x Family. |
| 650 | 0 | |a Motion picture actors and actresses|z Canada|v Biography. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Immigrants|z Canada|v Biography. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Children of immigrants|z Canada|v Biography. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Parent and child|z Canada|v Biography. | |
| 655 | 7 | |a Autobiographies.|2 lcgft | |
| 907 | |a .b21077307 | ||
| 940 | |a MARCIVE 07/2022 | ||
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