About this Event
Join Johnson County Library and Rainy Day Books for Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant: A Memoir with author Curtis Chin and Liz Cook.
This event includes a conversation between Curtis and Liz at Johnson County Library's Central Resource branch, along with an opportunity to get your book signed.
For inquiries about accessibility and accommodations, please contact us at [email protected] or 913-826-4600 at least two weeks before the event.
The Book
Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant
This poignant memoir tells the story of Curtis Chin’s time growing up as a gay Chinese American kid in 1980’s Detroit.
“Vivid, moving, funny, and heartfelt” —Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
Nineteen eighties Detroit was a volatile place to live, but above the fray stood a safe haven: Chung’s Cantonese Cuisine, where anyone—from the city’s first Black mayor to the local drag queens, from a big-time Hollywood star to elderly Jewish couples—could sit down for a warm, home-cooked meal. Here was where, beneath a bright-red awning and surrounded by his multigenerational family, filmmaker and activist Curtis Chin came of age; where he learned to embrace his identity as a gay ABC, or American-born Chinese; where he navigated the divided city’s spiraling misfortunes; and where—between helpings of almond boneless chicken, sweet-and-sour pork, and some of his own, less-savory culinary concoctions—he realized just how much he had to offer to the world, to his beloved family, and to himself.
Served up by the cofounder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop and structured around the very menu that graced the tables of Chung’s, Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant both a memoir and an invitation: to step inside one boy’s childhood oasis, scoot into a vinyl booth, and grow up with him—and perhaps even share something off the secret menu.
An American Library Association Stonewall Honor Book—Israel Fishman Nonfiction Award • A 2024 Michigan Notable Book • Best Nonfiction Books of the Year—Kirkus Reviews • Best Books of the Year—Apple Books •TIME’s Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2023 •San Francisco Chronicle’s Highly Anticipated Books to Put on Your Radar This Fall 2023 •Washington Post’s Books to Read This Fall 2023 •Eater’s Best Food Books to Read 2023 •Lambda Literary Review’s October’s Most Anticipated LGBTQIA+ Literature 2023
The Author
Curtis Chin is the author of the award-winning memoir, "Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant." A co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop in New York City, Curtis Chin served as the nonprofit's first Executive Director. He went on to write comedy for network and cable television before transitioning to social justice documentaries. Chin has screened his films at over 600 venues in twenty countries. He has written for CNN, Bon Appétit, the Detroit Free Press, and the Emancipator/Boston Globe.
A graduate of the University of Michigan, Chin has received awards from ABC/Disney Television, New York Foundation for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and more. His essay in Bon Appétit was just selected for Best Food Writing in America 2023, and his short doc, "Dear Corky," premiered on American Masters (PBS). He is currently working on a new Chinese Restaurant project.
The Moderator
Liz Cook is a freelance food writer and recipe developer based in Kansas City, Missouri. After spending eight years as a restaurant critic in KC, Liz launched the experimental newsletter Haterade, where she digs into maligned and misunderstood foods. Her work has appeared in Serious Eats, the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, and Defector, among many other publications. Her writing has been anthologized in Best American Food Writing and The Years Best Sports Writing, and she has received awards from the Association of Food Journalists and the Association of Alternative Newsmedia. Her first book, Plain: Recipes from the Midwest, a joint project with her husband, Jed Portman, is forthcoming from Gibbs Smith.
Please Note: There are no refunds for this event. If you are unable to attend, your book will be available for pickup at Rainy Day Books starting the following day. If you are not local, we'll be happy to mail it to you upon request. Thank you for your support!
We will hold your event book in-store for a maximum of 6 months following the event. If you have not retrieved your book in that time period, it will be donated.
Event venue & nearby stays
Johnson County Library - Central Resource, 9875 West 87th Street, Overland Park, United States
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