Book Review: The Dim Sum of All Things

The Dim Sum of All Things by Kim Wong Keltner is a novel that touched upon themes such as Asian/Asian American Culture, stereotypes, cultural/ ethnic/ generation identity, and interracial dating. The main character, Lindsey Owyang, a typical Chinese American, struggled to define herself as an Asian American. I personally enjoyed reading this book because a lot of the themes Keltner wrote about were relatable to my own life. I could picture myself in Lindsey's Owyang's shoes experiencing the life she described and understanding exactly how she felt about it. This novel is humorous, easy to read, and personal. It was helpful that the setting of this book was placed in San Francisco because as Lindsey described the places she traveled to; it gave me a clear picture that brought this novel to life.

As an American born Chinese, I lived a life similar to Lindsey. Growing up, I was raised by my grandparents. I ate my grandmother's cooking every evening, my grandparents took care of me when I was sick, I walked the streets of Chinatown to buy groceries, and watched my grandmother play mahjong. As I was reading, Lindsey and I encountered many of the same experiences. When Lindsey was heading out of the house, her grandma, Pau Pau, would complain about the clothes she was wearing. I remember many times when my grandma always told me to wear more layers because it was cold outside. It didn’t matter if it was 80 degrees out or 50, it was never enough. Or when Lindsey ran around the house spraying air freshener so the house wouldn’t have a weird Chinese scent, I remember I would spray something on my clothes because I was paranoid that it smelled like moth balls or some other weird smell. One scene that got me nodding my head thinking “Yeah! That’s totally what I do,” was the scene of the Chinese banquet where Lindsey’s brother, Kevin, showed off his Chinese speaking skills by adding Chinese words in his sentences. “Chinglish” is what it’s called when Chinese and English words are mixed together in a sentence. I was speaking “chinglish” to my mother one time and she had a confused look on her face and said to me, “Are you speaking Chinese or English?” Other than being able to relate to Lindsey, I liked how Keltner explored the theme of interracial dating. It shows how in our generation today, interracial dating is not a big deal. It shows that as time changes, so does our view in relationships. However, many are still skeptical about telling their parents because in their generation there was no such thing as interracial dating. It was like a forbidden law and if you disobeyed you were frowned upon.

One thing the novel could have been without was the love story between Lindsey and Michael Cartier. Perhaps it was please in the novel to illustrate the theme of interracial dating, but this love story was not an important part of the novel. I also thought that some characters could have been left out of the novel such as Steve D. I honestly did not see his purpose besides his role of fulfilling Lindsey’s theory about the hoarder of all things Asian.

This novel by Kim Wong Keltner is more than just a novel. It is a life experience that I, and probably many Asian Americans, can relate to.