are urged to develop multicultural sensibilities.
In the meantime, it seems important at this
point to remain open-minded and not to dismiss
Asian-American or any multiethnic literature just
because it is different, hard to understand, or
seemingly irrelevant.
ABOUT THIS BOOK
This volume is designed for high school or col-
lege students who are beginning to read Asian-
American literature in the classroom and on their
own. Teachers select works that are aesthetically
valuable, historically significant, teachable, and
commercially available; I have therefore chosen
the authors and works that meet these qualifica-
tions. Nearly every author and literary work that
is likely to be taught in high school or college is
included in this volume. All the canonical authors,
such as Maxine Hong Kingston, Amy Tan, and
David Henry Hwang, are, of course, included.
Most of the authors who are frequently talked
about in academic circles are also included. I have
ventured to include several recent authors as well
whose works are not yet tested but who promise
to become prominent literary voices in the future.
Also included are authors of detective fiction
(Leonard Chang, Sujata Massey, and Laura Joh
Rowland, for example) and young-adult literature
(Linda Sue Park, Lawrence Yep, and Marie G.
Lee). These authors are marginalized and rarely
discussed in academic circles but nonetheless
enjoyed by many readers. Although fiction, poetry,
and drama make up the majority of the works
included, memoirs, screenwriting, nonfiction, and
experimental writings have also been included.
Space is allocated for individual authors and
major works according to their significance and
availability of critical material. Canonical authors
and their major works are treated at length; new
authors and minor works are introduced briefly.
This volume is the product of a truly inter-
national collaboration. Ninety-five specialists of
Asian-American literature based in the United
States, Asia, and Europe have generously donated
their expertise by writing entries that are uniform-
ly packed with well-informed and updated infor-
mation about each author and a brief synopsis and
critical analysis of each major work. Each entry is
designed to be as readable as possible and to offer
enough information to get a student started on his
or her own journey into the work or the author’s
world. To this end, lists of recommended further
readings are provided wherever appropriate.BIBLIOGRAPHY
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tion of Palestine, and Asian American Studies.”
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Cheung, King-kok, and Stan Yogi. Asian American
Literature: An Annotated Bibliography. New York:
MLA, 1988.
Chin, Frank. “Come All Ye Asian American Writ-
ers.” In The Big Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Chi-
nese American and Japanese American Literature,
edited by Jeffery Paul Chan, Frank Chin, Lawson
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Chin, Frank, Jeffery Chan, Lawson Inada, and Shawn
Wong, eds. Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-
American Writers. Washington: Howard Univer-
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Espiritu, Yen Le. “Asian American Studies and Ethnic
Studies: About Kin Disciplines,” Amerasia Journal
29, no. 2 (2003): 195–209.
Hsu, Kai-yu, and Helen Palubinskas. Asian-American
Authors. Boston: Houghton, 1972.
Kim, Elaine H. Asian American Literature: An Intro-
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Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1982.
———. Foreword. In Reading the Literatures of Asian
America, edited by Shirley Geok-lin Lim and Amy
Ling, xi–xvii. Philadelphia: Temple University
Press, 1992.
Leonard, George J. Introduction. In The Asian Pacific
American Heritage: A Companion to Literature
and Arts, edited by George J. Leonard, xxiii–xxix.
New York: Garland, 1999.
Ling, Amy. “Asian American Literature: A Brief Intro-
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