Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story by Simu Liu

16 reviews

readandfindout's review against another edition

emotional inspiring medium-paced

3.75

Style/writing: 3.5 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Perspective: 4 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Xenophobia and Racism

Minor: Racial slurs and Suicidal thoughts

ernis's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Really well-written memoir by Simu. While some parts were hilarious, there was also a lot of sobering trauma that was discussed. Overall an honest, often humorous account of his and his family's experience in moving to Canada and of the realities facing Asian communities and individuals in North America today.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

qrschulte's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Incredibly vulnerable and heartfelt, this memoir is highly relatable to anyone who’s ever felt the weight of familial and societal expectations. The audiobook is incredible, and you can really feel how much the decisions his family made affect him. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Body shaming, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Racism, Classism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Infertility, Racial slurs, and Pregnancy

Minor: Medical content, Animal death, Alcohol, and Death

katetravelsinbooks's review

adventurous challenging emotional fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Child abuse

Minor: Racial slurs and Cultural appropriation

felofhe's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Drug use, Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

mxbenjaminrose's review

funny lighthearted medium-paced

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs

btwnprintedpgs's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Classism and Sexism

TW: mentions HP multiple times

kelly_e's review

funny hopeful fast-paced

3.25

Title: We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story
Author: Simu Liu
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: May 16, 2022

T H R E E • W O R D S

Quick • Entertaining • Repetitive

📖 S Y N O P S I S

We Were Dreamers details Canadian actor Simu Liu's journey from China to Canada and the bright lights of Hollywood.

Beginning in China, where Simu was left in the care of his grandparents as his parents forged a future in Canada. It is out of the blue that Simu's father shows up, whisking him away from the only home he'd ever known. Life in Canada was a difficult transition for Simu, as he was separated from those around him by culture, language and values.

Growing up, he did everything to appease his parents, but over time it became harder and harder to keep up the charade. When as a young adult, he find himself unemployed and ashamed, it is an ad on Craigslist that will change everything for him.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I will admit to falling victim to the hype when it comes to We Were Dreamers, as I had no clue who Simu Liu was before listening to his memoir, but when it became available from my library as an express loan I decided to give it a try.

I definitely think that because I didn't know who he was, my experience definitely wasn't the same as other readers have had. Divided into three acts, I enjoyed the first section about his childhood, but found myself caring less and less as it progressed.

What I did appreciate is the exploration of parental expectations and cultural stereotypes. Parts were certainly hard to read, but I also had to remind myself that this was Simu's side of the story. I also think the reconciliation between himself and his parents definitely could have been explored more to make for a more seamless transition from one act to the next.

Overall, this memoir was culturally informative and entertaining to listen to, but I'd also have been completely okay having skipped it. If you're a Simu Liu fan you'll probably enjoy it a lot more than I did, and in my opinion this is a book made for audio as opposed to print form, as his expressive voice adds to the story.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• celebrity memoir enthusiasts
• Marvel fans

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Whether you like it or not, you're getting better at something every day." 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, Classism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Cursing and Suicidal thoughts

madisonfrank's review

emotional funny informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Classism, Cursing, Child abuse, and Grief

_inge's review

medium-paced

4.0

Everything about this felt so genuine. Simu was so open about everything (with thanks to his parents for giving permission too), and in the audiobook expressed emotions through his voice in a really authentic way. He’s a good actor of course, but he couldn’t have faked laughing at some of his childhood memories or his voice shaking when expressing gratitude for those who are no longer with us. Usually if I read a celebrity memoire I just want them to give details about a film and spill the tea, but Simu made me genuinely interested in his personal life. This book taught me a lot about the immigrant experience and about the Chinese one in general, for which I’m very grateful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Abandonment