The Dim Sum of All Things

by Kim Wong Keltner

Book Overview

Have you ever wondered:

Why Asians love "Hello Kitty"?

What the tattooed Chinese characters really say?

How to achieve feng shui for optimum make-out sessions?

Where Asian cuties meet the white guys who love them?

Then you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll realize this book is better than a Broadway production of Cats when you read scenes that include:

twenty-something Lindsey Owyang mastering...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060560754
• ISBN13: 9780060560751
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: Avon Books
• Length: 344 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.4" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Absolutely an enjoyable read!!

Just finished this book and found it thoroughly refreshing and hard to put down. She does shed some more light on the chinese- american culture in a fun filled way. The ending is very introspective and informative about her Chinese roots. Can not wait to read more from this delightful author. I have her book I Want Candy now and am eager to be fascinated by her unique and delightful writing.

An absolute delight

The Dim Sum of All Things is narrated through third person, telling the story of Lindsey Owyang, an American Born Chinese who is trying to discover herself. While she adores Hello Kitty and enjoys the traditional Chinese food that her grandmother makes at home, she is still mired and a bit confused when it comes to the clashing of two cultures -her Chinese ancestry and the American culture she was brought up in. Accused of being a banana (Chinese on the outside, white on the inside), Lindsey appears uncertain of what to make of her roots. While she enjoys certain aspects of being Chinese, she also feels as if being Chinese instantly has connotations and brings to mind degrading stereotypes. Despite this, Lindsey's theory of the Hoarders of All Things Asian (white males abnormally obsessed with Asian girls) is hilarious and amusing to read about. Things become complicated when a white guy at work, Michael, starts to show interest in her. His feelings are not unrequited, and Lindsey soon becomes smitten and obsessed with him. While she adores Michael, Lindsey cannot help but think what her family (and especially her traditional grandmother) might say if they discovered that she was dating a "foreign devil." Wong Keltner has done an excellent job chronicling the life of funny and likeable Lindsey Owyang. The jokes, while some of them might be considered facetious, fit in well with the light, humorous tone of the book and some of them are also quite funny. It is also necessary to note that Wong Keltner is clearly a talented writer with some of the most original phrases and literary devices. Kim Wong Keltner is a writer to watch for, and her magnificient effort of a book should be commended. This book would be enjoyed by Asian (especially Chinese) women who enjoy reading Asian chick lit. The Dim Sum of All Things is the perfect book to read when you have a free afternoon; it is a quick read and the intrigue of the plot will keep you turning the pages.

Delightful and Refreshing!!!

A casual carpooler mentioned the author and the book about a year ago and i was dying to read it .. but work and life got in the way .. until a really good friend of mine recalled that i had asked if i could borrow the book .. i started reading and i couldn't put it down .. i loved how easy it was to relate to the character Lindsey .. her geographical accuracy of San Francisco (especially Chinatown) was awesome .. i could trace her footsteps with my eyes closed .. her feelings and experiences about stereotypes and righteously assimilated dual-identities are ironically similar to mine .. her book makes me proud to be an American Born Chinese who secretly loves homecooked Chinese food and craves for family history and heirlooms .. i can't wait to read Buddha Baby next .. This is a MUST READ for all ABCs in the Bay Area and beyond ..

Really funny read

Having grown up in San Francisco, one of the things I appreciated was the author's total feel of the city. Reading this brought me back to my Russian Hill apartment days, strolling on Polk street, and rekindled my love of and fascination for Chinatown. I don't usually laugh out loud while reading--but the descriptions of the funkiness of riding Muni, and some of the deft characterizations in the book--especially Lindsay's new-agey aunt-- made me seriously bust a gut. At one point, I put the book down laughing and started clapping my hands as if I was at a hilarious stand-up comedy show. I felt a little strange realizing I was clapping for a book in an empty apartment. This is a great, fun read--especially if you love San Francisco.

Dim Sum of My Best Friends...

Ai-ya! Some of the comments here about The Dim Sum of All Things are truly...well, dim. "Manages to be dull and angry simultaneously." You could say that about me, but this book is anything but dull, and only sporadically mad -- and in several shades of that word, at that. Sure, Kim Wong Keltner, the author, goes after those Hoarders of All Things Asian, but she does it with keen, all-too-accurate descriptions of how Hoarders act and talk. I've known a few hoarders in my time, and she's got them down pat. Read the lovely passages about Lindsey's discoveries of her roots in China, and of her rediscovery of a male friend. Where's the anger? The same, one-star reader/reviewer called the book "one-note." Hardly. It's absolutely musical, and I'm not talking karaoke. It's Keltner's writing that sings. She goes from punky and spunky to rhapsodic, romantic, and even touching. Yes, sometimes she gets carried away with details and similes, and yes, she, too, can be stereotypical, as with one of her aunts. But she is simply not guilty, as she's been charged, with concocting a "trite" story that's been heard a zillion times before. Hers is a refreshingly contemporary take on what it's like to be a young Asian-American woman dealing with everyday life while she's tugged and pulled every which way by friends, family, co-workers, strangers, cultural conflicts and obligations, memories, fantasies, and the occasional hilarious daydream/brainstorm. Lindsey conjures a transvestite who writes a film called Slouching Tiger, Hidden Dragqueen. I don't remember anything like that in The Joy Luck Club!