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hillmert's review against another edition
5.0
This is the heartbreaking story of the murder of Vincent Chin back in 1982 in a Detroit suburb. The book is like one of the true crime podcasts that I like to listen too. You get to hear all the different version of events and go into the courtroom to hear testimony and jury instructions etc. It is a frustrating story from the standpoint of justice not being served, but hopefully the memory and legacy of Vincent Chin will inspire a re-dedication to anti-bigotry and the type of people of color/racist hate that has become too common again since 2016.
eunicek82's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
sad
5.0
This was excellent. It’s intended for a YA audience but I think anyone can pick this up and learn from it. The writing is clear without shying away from the complexity of this case. Highly recommend. I’ll be reading more Yoo for sure.
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
An informative account of the titular 1982 assault and how it led to more widespread recognition of racial discrimination against Asian Americans, as well as a greater sense of common identity among that diverse population. (The legal status of hate crimes in Michigan at the time was so weak that the police incident report marked the victim as white, with black as the sole other option available on the form.) This is not a case with which I was previously familiar, but author Paula Yoo has done a good job of presenting it in the 'true crime' fashion, drawing from old records and reinterviewing witnesses for her 2021 audience. Overall, it's an infuriating look at a modern lynching and the racist justice system that ultimately let his killer walk.
Less necessary is the writer's repeated framing device of Vincent Chin's fiancée's later son, who only learns about the killing and his mother's connection to it as an adult in his twenties. Similarly, the closing discussion on anti-Asian rhetoric and violence surrounding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, while clearly relevant, is not given the length for either adequate coverage or direct ties back to the main subject. These sections add little substance and don't build to much in their own right.
[Content warning for gore and racial slurs.]
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Less necessary is the writer's repeated framing device of Vincent Chin's fiancée's later son, who only learns about the killing and his mother's connection to it as an adult in his twenties. Similarly, the closing discussion on anti-Asian rhetoric and violence surrounding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, while clearly relevant, is not given the length for either adequate coverage or direct ties back to the main subject. These sections add little substance and don't build to much in their own right.
[Content warning for gore and racial slurs.]
-- Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next! Or click here to browse through all my previous reviews: https://lesserjoke.home.blog --
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
erine's review against another edition
5.0
I read this in two days. The short, snappy chapters helped keep my focus, and ever since I learned about Vincent Chin (just a few years ago) I have been interested in a more complete story of what happened.
Chin was attacked the day after I was born, not 40 miles away. He died four days later. The trial and appeals of his murderers did not end until I was almost five. I was (very) young when all this happened, but at no point did I hear about this case; it wasn’t until I was 37, and it was both striking and pure happenstance. This book came out not two years later, in time for the 40th anniversary of Chin’s death.
I was most impressed by how restrained Yoo was as she circled around and around this story. She relates a slew of details that are quite disturbing and upsetting, but at no point did I feel she was being either gratuitous or overly condemning. She begins with the attack, then the death, then the first trial, followed by the wave of outrage and activism, and then the two civil rights trials. Tucked in there are brief overviews of many of the people involved, including the son of Vincent’s fiancée, who had no idea that his mother was once engaged to a man who was brutally murdered.
The layers of this story continually unpeel, through the horrific actions of the core tragedy, through a clunky justice system, and explore Asian-American activism and the way our law has changed since this case was decided. It is clear, too, that (other that the extreme violence of Ron Ebens) there are a lot of people who were not necessarily good or bad. Just ordinary people inspired to speak up about a tragic situation, and some of them made mistakes. Or ordinary people trying to do their job within a flawed system. Yoo does not make a lot of judgements (however sorely she may have been tempted), and she doesn’t make Ebens out as a supervillain either. But she does highlight how cracks in the law of the time allowed Ebens to beat a man to death and never serve jail time, even though he fully expected to. She also connects the anti-Japanese sentiment of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s with continued bigotry today.
Both a dark chapter in Michigan history, and an inspiring look at people who tried to stand up for justice using the tools at their disposal.
Chin was attacked the day after I was born, not 40 miles away. He died four days later. The trial and appeals of his murderers did not end until I was almost five. I was (very) young when all this happened, but at no point did I hear about this case; it wasn’t until I was 37, and it was both striking and pure happenstance. This book came out not two years later, in time for the 40th anniversary of Chin’s death.
I was most impressed by how restrained Yoo was as she circled around and around this story. She relates a slew of details that are quite disturbing and upsetting, but at no point did I feel she was being either gratuitous or overly condemning. She begins with the attack, then the death, then the first trial, followed by the wave of outrage and activism, and then the two civil rights trials. Tucked in there are brief overviews of many of the people involved, including the son of Vincent’s fiancée, who had no idea that his mother was once engaged to a man who was brutally murdered.
The layers of this story continually unpeel, through the horrific actions of the core tragedy, through a clunky justice system, and explore Asian-American activism and the way our law has changed since this case was decided. It is clear, too, that (other that the extreme violence of Ron Ebens) there are a lot of people who were not necessarily good or bad. Just ordinary people inspired to speak up about a tragic situation, and some of them made mistakes. Or ordinary people trying to do their job within a flawed system. Yoo does not make a lot of judgements (however sorely she may have been tempted), and she doesn’t make Ebens out as a supervillain either. But she does highlight how cracks in the law of the time allowed Ebens to beat a man to death and never serve jail time, even though he fully expected to. She also connects the anti-Japanese sentiment of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s with continued bigotry today.
Both a dark chapter in Michigan history, and an inspiring look at people who tried to stand up for justice using the tools at their disposal.
abbycasey's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
kim_j_dare's review against another edition
4.0
This meticulously researched book shines a light on a little-known killing in the early 1980s in a Detroit suburb, and the impact that the case had on civil rights for Asian-Americans.
Yoo’s delivery is matter-of-fact, keeping readers at arm’s length. The density of the recounting may deter some teens, but those who persevere will appreciate how their views of this country’s history with race relations are broadened.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Thanks to Norton Young Readers and Edelweiss for the digital ARC.
Yoo’s delivery is matter-of-fact, keeping readers at arm’s length. The density of the recounting may deter some teens, but those who persevere will appreciate how their views of this country’s history with race relations are broadened.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Thanks to Norton Young Readers and Edelweiss for the digital ARC.
jenmangler's review
3.0
The story was compelling, the story-telling less so. Still, I'm glad I read it. I'm embarrassed to admit I knew nothing about the case prior to reading it his book.