Review:
Title: Crazy Rich Asians | Goodreads
Author: Kevin Kwan
Series: Crazy Rich Asians #1
Barnes and Noble | Book Depository | Amazon
Publishing: 2013 by Penguin Random House
Format: Paperback
Source: The Novel Neighbor
Genre: Fiction; Contemporary
Date Read: March 2018
When New Yorker Rachel Chu agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, she envisions a humble family home and quality time with the man she hopes to marry. But Nick has failed to give his girlfriend a few key details. One, that his childhood home looks like a palace; two, that he grew up riding in more private planes than cars; and three, that he just happens to be the country’s most eligible bachelor.
On Nick’s arm, Rachel may as well have a target on her back the second she steps off the plane, and soon, her relaxed vacation turns into an obstacle course of old money, new money, nosy relatives, and scheming social climbers.
Thoughts:
I’ve had quite the journey with Crazy Rich Asians–more than I do with most books. It all began a couple years ago when I heard author Kevin Kwan interviewed on NPR regarding this book and the series. The details are fuzzy, but I was intrigued by the premise and the title stayed put in my head. Flash forward to me, on one of many college visits last summer, stopping at the local independent bookstore because–well–that’s what you do when you’re deciding if this is a town you can live in. Anyways, I found a copy of Crazy Rich Asians while browsing their notable fiction section, remembered the NPR thing, and purchased the book! However, this story is FAR more dramatic. Later while flipping through my copy, I realized that the book had suffered some sort of printing/binding error and a significant portion of the book was unreadable. Luckily, my local independent bookstore was able to hook me up with a new copy, which I brought with me THIS year on my spring break.
Let me first just say–Crazy Rich Asians is ridiculously addictive. It’s addictive in the way that people “accidentally binge all of Gossip Girl in one weekend” addictive, and it took my a measly two days of lazy vacation to speed through it! From the get-go, I was very impressed by how human Kwan wrote his characters to be. Of course, everyone was shaded with a little Hollywood glamour, but for the most part, the sweet protagonist Rachel, her hunky and intelligent boyfriend Nick, his conniving and villainous mother Eleanor, and so forth didn’t feel like characters in a soap opera–they felt like real people. Kwan was clever in that he showed multiple sides of all of his characters, allowing you to seethe with anger when Nick’s mother does something ridiculous to Rachel, but also to gain insight on her perspective and why she does what she does. Crazy Rich Asians does have protagonists, but I would describe it as more of a cast like set of characters. While this was a little confusing at first, there was a list of characters and their relationships at the front of the book that helped keep everything straight. Very quickly, I appreciated the large cast for the more complicated and rich plot line it created, as well as more intricate layers of motivations, wants, desires, etc.
The plot of Crazy Rich Asians felt a little like a rom-com, but I didn’t even care! The content was so detailed oriented and immersive, it really did feel like I was watching a movie (which is funny, because the trailer JUST came out). There was no doubt that I was SUPER invested in the characters (I will admit it, I cried on the beach), but this was a fast paced read. Luckily, Kwan’s frequent footnotes to explain a phrase in Mandarin or the contents of a food dish helped not only to break up the movement but also to create an even more authentic read.
Crazy Rich Asians kicks off a series that you do not want to miss. This novel is not only ridiculously hilarious, but also detailed, specific, and full of drama! I am certain that anyone who wants to get a glimpse into the lives of Asia’s most elite will devour this one, not only for the cast of heartfelt characters, but also for the fascinating descriptions of opulence…and food as well. Your mouth will be watering… I promise.
