Book
Livonia Chow Mein : A Novel.
'Livonia Chow Mein' is a a gripping debut story of family history and political upheaval centered around a Chinese family-owned restaurant in Brownsville, Brooklyn and its impact on the neighbourhoods Jewish and Black residents over the course of a century.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781668075234
- Physical Description: 368 pages ; 3 x 15 cm
- Publisher: Canada : Simon & Schuster, 2026.
Content descriptions
| Immediate Source of Acquisition Note: | Library Bound Incorporated |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | FICTION FICTION / City Life FICTION / Literary |
Available copies
- 0 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeshore Branch | ON ORDER | pr08197949 | FICTION | On order | - |
- Simon and Schuster
âAbigail Savitch-Lew opens up doors to a Brooklyn world that most of us will never see. She reveals the convergence of cultures that is the real New York to life with flair and grace that make this an utterly enjoyable read.â âJames McBride, New York Times bestselling author of The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store
In the vein of Happiness Falls and Family Lore, a gripping story of family history and political upheaval centered around a Chinese family-owned restaurant in Brownsville, Brooklyn and its impact on the neighborhoodâs Jewish and Black residents over the course of a century.
In 1978, two tenements on Livonia Avenue in Brownsville burn to the ground, killing one resident and displacing dozens of others. It remains unclear who set the buildings ablaze, but the survivors are convinced the culprit is Mr. Wong.
Who exactly is Mr. Wong, and what allegedly drove him to this extraordinary act of violence, is the question that consumes this novel as it plunges into four generations of Wong family history. First is Koon Lai, an immigrant who runs a Chinese restaurant on Livonia Avenue; second, his son Richard, a man desperate for his own chance at the American Dream; and third, Jason, a poet who seeks his escape in the bohemian counterculture of the 1970s, but finds himself an unwitting participant in Brooklynâs gentrification. In the 21st century, Jasonâs daughter Sadie returns to Brownsville as a journalist, determined to unravel the mystery of what happened decades earlier on the night the buildings blazed.
Joining together the present and the past is the community organizer Lina Rodriguez Armstrong, who was also displaced by that fire and who has spent the intervening years fighting for the rights of Brownsvilleâs residents and organizing a Livonia Avenue community land trust.
A stunning debut from a new talent, Livonia Chow Mein contemplates how the American pursuit of freedom relies on a collective amnesia and challenges us to consider what it would take for us to truly live in harmony.
