Fiction by Lan Samantha Chang
In the small town of Haven, Wisconsin, there is a family-owned restaurant called Fine Chao, run by Leo and Winnie Chao and their three sons. Leo and Winnie came from China to make their fortune in America, and to give their children a better life. On the surface they succeeded: their three sons seem successful, or at least on the the road to success. Dagou, the oldest son, is a manager and cook at the restaurant; Ming, the second brother, has a high-paying career in the city; and the youngest boy James is studying to be a doctor.
But the problem is, Leo Chao is a jerk. He is such a jerk that his own wife has literally entered a Buddhist convent to get away from him. Mostly just his own family know about Leo’s unpleasantness, but the small Chinese community in the area are also aware that he is far from a model minority.
The concept of “model minority” is important in this book. Although it’s not something I’ve thought about before, it’s true that we as Americans like to stereotype Asians as a “good” minority and other ethnicities as “bad” minorities. Asians are supposed to be hard working, high achieving, family oriented, and so on. But the whole idea is rather ridiculous when you look closely at it. Human beings are so much more complex than that! We are not socks to be sorted.
In this story, all three Chao sons feel the pressure to be “good” Asians, which is not necessarily the same as just being good people. But everything comes to a head at the Christmas party, and chaos ensues.
(Incidentally it took me halfway through the book to realize that the name Chao when pluralized spells Chaos. I’ve got to hand it to the author on that bit of cleverness!)
This was a good story with great characters. The surprise in the middle is really unexpected, and there was a lot to think about. I recommend this book!
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