Title: Crazy Rich Asian
Author: Kevin Kwan
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
What it’s about: Nick Young invites his girlfriend, Rachel Chu, to go home with him to Singapore for his best friend’s wedding. Little does Rachel know that Nick’s family is a lot different than anything she’s ever expected. Petty fights and scheming family members try to separate Nick from Rachel, while Nick’s cousin, Astrid, fights demons of her own that may mean the end of her marriage. In the end, Nick walks away from his mom, Eleanor, because he’s tired of the scheming.
My Verdict: HILARIOUS! I was laughing the entire time while reading this book, and I couldn’t put it down! So a little disclaimer–I actually watched the movie before I read the book. Technically, that’s what motivated me to read this book, but honestly, the details and the stories in this book are WAY better than the movie. They are more rich in information, which, as usual, the book leaves out.
For a lot of people, this book may be over-dramatic, leaving many of you wondering if people do act like this in real life. Let me tell you, I may not be from Singapore, but this book hit home on so many levels, with regards to how backstabby and gossipy people can be. There were moments in this book that reminded me of real-life situations I have seen–such as the part in which one of Eleanor’s friends make these untrue comments to her about Rachel, just for the sake of seeing Eleanor get worked up. Or the time that one of Eleanor’s friends was happy that there may be a scandal finally in the Young family to “knock them down a peg.” Or how Philip, Nick’s father, decides to live in Sydney most of the time to “get away from it all.”
Overall, I loved this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and their development. I loved the plot of the book, and seeing how each of the characters faced the central dilemma: Nick Young, a rich Singaporean Chinese guy, going out with Rachel Chu, a Chinese born American who is an economics professor.
I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
The Girl with The Red Backpack 