Can I read Typical American : A Novel on EtoBox?

Typical American : A Novel by Gish Jen is a work of fiction available to read on EtoBox.

What is Typical American : A Novel about?

This “irresistible novel” of Chinese immigrants navigating the American dream is “startling [and] heartrending, without ever losing its comic touch” (Entertainment Weekly). Gish Jen reinvents the American immigrant story through the Chang family, who first come to the United States with no intention of staying. But when the Communists assume control of China in 1949, Ralph Chang, his sister Theresa, and his wife Helen find themselves in a crisis, struggling to cling to their old-world ideas of themselves. But soon they begin to dream the American dream of self-invention. They transform, poignantly and ironically, from people who disparage all that is “typical American” to people who aspire to the American ideal. With droll humor and a deep empathy for her characters, Gish Jen creates a superbly engrossing story that sparkles with wit while challenging the reader to reconsider what it means to be a typical American. “No paraphrase could capture the intelligence of Gish Jen's prose, its epigrammatic sweep and swiftness.... The author just keeps coming at you line after stunning line.” —The New York Times Book Review

Who reads Typical American : A Novel?

Author

Gish Jen

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

Published

1991

Language

EN

ISBN

9780307389220

Category

work of fiction

Subjects

Fiction, Literary Fiction

Rating

3.42 / 5 (22 ratings)

Updated

2026-03-14