Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings By and About Asian American Women [Paperback]

Asian Women United of California (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This potent, fertile collection of fiction, poetry and essays by 53 Asian-American women challenges stereotypes of female docility and subservience that stigmatize those whose roots are in China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam, India, Korea, etc. Only a few of the startlingly forthright voices are well-known outside the Asian-American literary and scholarly milieus: Cathy Song, for example, won the 1983 Yale Series of Younger Poets award and Kitty Tsui is a widely read poet in feminist circles. Yet all have messages to convey, and do so in the incandescent language of those struggling for survival in a hostile environment. Contributors here discuss the realities of immigrating to an alien land; the history of Asian-American women's work in the trades and professions; anger at injustices they confront as women and as Asians; and the activism that has helped them to discover their identities. South Asia Bulletin co-publisher Sucheta Mazumdar's introduction, "A Woman-Centered Perspective on Asian American History," provides valuable context for the kaleidoscopic views expressed in this remarkable volume. Asian Women United of California, whose members edited and contributed to Making Waves , is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 to promote the social, economic and general welfare of Asian-American women. Illustrations not seen by PW.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Presented here are historical and sociological essays giving information about Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Indian women, but it is the addition of poems and short stories that brings this information to life. All by Asian American women, these 57 works inevitably overlap but cover immigration, war, work, generations, identity, injustice, and activism. This is a fine companion to The Forbidden Stitch ( LJ 5/1/89); only one story by Valerie Matsumoto is repeated. Nellie Wong has works in both, but several authors have works in one and are reviewed in the other. A good choice for libraries interested in contemporary Asian issues and literature.
- Kitty Chen Dean, Nassau Coll., Garden City, N.Y.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 481 pages
• Publisher: Beacon Press; 1st edition (June 28, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807059056
• ISBN-13: 978-0807059050
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,560,165 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Collection of Nom-Fiction from Asian American Ladies, March 14, 2003

By 

Pastor Roger "Roger R." (Chicago, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings By and About Asian American Women (Paperback)

Let me first qualify myself in saying that I'm not Asian nor am I female. I'm a Caucasian male who is also a pastor. Most of the people that I worship with and minister to are Asian Americans. I became fascinated with it when I read about it on Amazon a few years back. Not Long later I read about "Making More Waves," a follow-up book with many of the same ladies from the first book.

This book details the struggles that Asian ladies go through. Some of the things covered are immigration, tension w/parents, growing up in 2 cultures (Asian & American), sexism, racism, interracial marriages, among the many. It really is thorough from start to finish. One of the best parts about it is that it's written by several ladies, not just one. So in the end, you hear many voices instead of just one.

This book has been an immense help to me, both personally and professionally. It was both an eye-opener and a life changer. I'd recommend this book to all Asians and those who are friends with, dating, or married to an Asian.

Kudos to Elaine Kim and the other ladies that wrote this book!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another anthology?, August 13, 2007

By 

Post-teen queen "Melanie" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings By and About Asian American Women (Paperback)

Another anthology - but it's OK, because "Making More Waves" is a follow-up on the 1989 anthology "Making Waves." These two books should be read together to show how the editors' definition of Asian American women and decision about what to emphasize and focus on changed between the late 1980's and the late 1990's. "Making Waves" contained a lot of historical introductory material, especially on Chinese and Japanese Americans. "Making More Waves" stretched itself to deal more with Indian, Cambodian, Laotian, and Filipino Americans, with some similar topics but many new ones, like Susan Ito's essay on mixed race identity, Dana Takagi's piece on sexual orientation, Lisa Park's thoughts on race and suicide, and Anuradha Advani's piece on organizing South Asian taxi drivers in New York City. Writers and thinkers like Helen Zia and Lisa Lowe contributed great essays to this new volume. There are a lot of published writers of poetry and novels as well. An excerpt from a Lisa See novel is included, as well as work by Kimiko Hahn, Mitsuye Yamada, Chitra Divakaruni, Marie G. Lee, Nora Okja Keller, Carolyn Leilani-Lau, Marilyn Chin, Myung Mi Kim, and Mong Lan. But what I like best is that first-time writers of really good stuff are sprinkled in among the veterans. A great collection.

0 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book, June 14, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings by and about Asian American Women (Hardcover)

Parts of it were good. The plot thickened in the midlle but faded nearer the end. An OK read for passing time.