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Fresh Off the Boat
Fresh Off the Boat: A Memoir | Eddie Huang
A Taiwanese-American rebel restaurateur chronicles his rise to success from his difficult childhood in the American South to his turn as a drug dealer who embraced rap culture and more.
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giulia.mosna
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Pickpick

4,5/5 ⭐

I read this book because I really liked the show and wanted to read what inspired it. Even though I realized the show is only very, very vaguely based on the book, I really enjoyed it. It's a fascinating memoir that shows what it can mean to find your way as the Chinese-American son of immigrants. Eddie Huang seems intelligent, funny and a person who loves deeply in his own unique way.

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Erin.Elizabeth10
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Pickpick

I‘m getting towards the end of my “year of memoirs” and this was probably the wildest one I‘ve read yet! His writing is so different but it made me laugh a lot. I really appreciated his perspective on things, and I want to try watching the show!

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ChantalReads
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Pickpick

So, I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I loved Eddie Huang's voice, but I got lost in some of the things he was talking about. And I don't mean his Chinese culture - I mean his hip-hop, drug-dealing, private school culture. That said, he is a super intelligent, cool dude who's done a lot of different things with his life, and this book provides some perspective.

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Charityann
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Watched all the Fresh off the Boat Halloween episodes today!😆🎃🕸📺 #scarathlon #teamslaughter @Clwojick

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tholmz
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I listened to this one and really enjoyed Eddie telling his story in his own voice, literally! Enjoyable and funny and very entertaining.

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sammisho
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Bailedbailed

I love Eddie Huang's food show on Vice, and the food descriptions in this book are the only things I enjoyed. His narration was not great and the stories fell flat for me.

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sammisho
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I am giving this book one more chapter before bailing...

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BookishRedhead
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Interesting look at the life of an Asian American in the early 90s and how his life shaped who he is.
It's more in depth than the show and there are more serious topics that he mentioned. It was funny at times but also sad as well.

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Smrloomis
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Surprised by how much I liked this. Definitely recommend it if you‘re interested. 1.99 USD Kindle deal 🎉

JoScho Haven‘t read the book but love the show. 6y
Smrloomis @JoScho loved the book but haven‘t seen the show yet. Hopefully soon 🤞🏽 6y
53 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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Posh_Salad..AKA..LazyLimaLife
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I enjoyed this. Eddie Huang‘s journey is funny, harsh and captivating. I love learning about people‘s journey through varying careers and how they overcame hardships. And now I get why he was upset with how the television show was portrayed. Definitely recommend. #DiverseBooks

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Sarahandhella
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Picked up a small amount of books while going to thrift stores. And got my bookish pins at Barnes and Noble. I haven‘t gathered my recent garage sale piles yet. I am going to miss garage sale season. In South Dakota it usually ends in early September.

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Sue
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Some Sunday night audio crochet ... I quite like how this new pattern is looking.

tpixie Pretty!!! 6y
Rudis It‘s so lovely! 😍😍😍 6y
MicrobeMom Wow! Very pretty! 6y
ladym30 Beautiful! 6y
81 likes1 stack add4 comments
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abbylibrarian
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Today's #libraryhaul y'all!

mrozzz Yessssss 🙌🏻 7y
20 likes1 comment
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razmanda
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You guys! I'm in a book! My mini-story got selected and published in this collection of immigration stories by the New York Times!

WhatDeeReads Congratulations!!! 🥂🍻 7y
TrishB Well done 👍 7y
AllenTStClair Congrats!!! 7y
See All 9 Comments
Reggie Congrats!!!!!🎈 7y
EricQiao Wow! That's amazing! 7y
CouronneDhiver Woohoo! 7y
Smrloomis 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽🌟🌟🌟 7y
Laura317 That is so cool!! 7y
LauraBrook Wooo, congrats!!!! 7y
27 likes9 comments
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Hestapleton
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This cold is knocking. me. out. Almost no reading has been done BUT I have been watching FRESH OFF THE BOAT on Hulu (based on the tagged book) and it is a delight. #litsypartyofone

Graciouswarriorprincess Aww, feel better! Hugs!! 7y
DGRachel Feel better soon!! 7y
DrexEdit I love that show. Hope you feel better soon! 7y
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PurpleyPumpkin Feel better!💜 7y
Booksnchill @Hehaney love FOTB- did not know it was a book- stacked it! 7y
Jinjer Love that show! Didn't know it was a book! Get well soon! 7y
43 likes2 stack adds6 comments
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donnalyy
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I'm officially off work! Ice water and a book are all I want in this moment. Working at a high school means I get a summer break, albeit an abridged version. Cheers to a month of reading and recharging.

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SaraFair
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Pickpick

Listened to this as read by the author. Priceless take on an Asian family immersed into American life in the 90's. Similarities to the tv show, but some of the real life characters are quite different. Eddie's stint on the football team was my favorite part. I really loved the fresh view of American life. However, although the tv show is tame and so funny, many many f bombs in this- caution.

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DogEaredBooks
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Pickpick

A great audio memoir. It is nothing like the show so immediately forget everything about it. It's a great memoir about Eddie's life in Orlando- with fresh off the boat parents, fights, and importantly food as he finds his way to being the chef of Bauhaus in NYC. He's smart and funny and brings up a lot of issues in a new way while still staying true to his story. Trust me and the second half is better than the first.

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Nitpickyabouttrains
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Panpan

I have watched some of the tv show, and really liked it, so I went into this book with high hopes. But what I was expecting to be about being a first generation American, or food, was instead a lot about proving the authors cred. He walks through basketball games he played in eighth grade. He talks about fights that he had in college. It was not what I was hoping for.

JenBrown It's a pity, I really like the show tho. 8y
13 likes1 comment
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alisahar
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alisahar
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Mehso-so

This book was fine but it wasn't really for me. Let me put it this way.. If I met Eddie Huang at a party it would take about five minutes for me to prejudge him as a macho asshole who was probably awful to women and exit the convo. I would misjudge him because he's more than that, but I'd ultimately be right that we'd never be friends. I feel the same way about Junot Diaz. That said, this was studded with thought-provoking quotes & insights.

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alisahar
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I can see why Eddie Huang hates the TV show so much. The show strips out all of the harsh realities-- and all of the meaning-- that was in the book. I appreciate the book but I'm having a lot of trouble getting into it.

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Chasingmermaids
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Nothing like you expected. But makes you question stereotypes and what happens when your culture is only stereotypes. You know it's written by a hot blooded guy. Nothing like the show so don't read if that's the only reason you want to read it. Read for #readthemargins

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Smrloomis
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I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this. I usually don't like memoirs from people who haven't lived long enough to have much to write about, but this was surprisingly good.

LindsayReads Have you seen the show? It's hilarious. 8y
Smrloomis @LindsayReads no! I kind of forgot it existed. I'll have to check it out. 8y
LeahBergen There's a sequel, too, that seems like more of a "foodie" book 8y
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beaniebankbeth Huang has distanced himself from the show since its 1st season, citing that his personal family history has been, uh Disney-fied. Watch Huang in his element, he has a new show on the Viceland channel called "Huang' s World," where he travels to a different city each episode, eats the food & gets on the local with locals. I love it since he is so straight forward & hilariously hip hop while respecting his roots & the culture where he finds himself. 8y
Bookzombie @beaniebankbeth That's disappointing. I didn't know he had distanced himself from the show. I love the mom, Jessica. She is really why I keep watching. 8y
Smrloomis @LeahBergen have you read it? I assumed it focused more on his foodie stuff so I will probably skip it, but you never know. 8y
Smrloomis @beaniebankbeth @Bookzombie yeah, my husband was saying the same thing. I'd definitely like to see it, but I can imagine his family might not be exactly good tv material. They sounded somewhat harsh in the book from what I remember. 8y
beaniebankbeth @Bookzombie I'm a fan of the show and the book, but I did want to put that fact out there. The show is great because it's putting Asian Americans out there visibly. And it's a great show. Eddie Huang himself is great to watch on his show too. I'll find a link to the article on him and the shows to post. 8y
beaniebankbeth Great article summing up Huang's life, thoughts on Fresh off the Boat, and his new show. 8y
Smrloomis @beaniebankbeth interesting! Thanks for posting that! 8y
64 likes2 stack adds11 comments
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Matilda
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📚🔔📚 the memoir the show is inspired from is $1.99 Amazon/B&N today!

Bookzombie I love this show, especially the mom, Jessica. 🙂 8y
Wannabe_Quijote You are not good for my credit card balance!! ;) 8y
42 likes1 stack add4 comments
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LeahBergen
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Hobbinol Funny Fartsy?👀 8y
Hobbinol Oh wait. I see: Farsi. Sorry. I'm at intermission and it's kinda dark in here. 8y
LeahBergen Ha! Silly @Hobbinol !! 😁 8y
54 likes4 stack adds3 comments
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jgarrigan
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Poignant and funny stories from a great storyteller, with engrossing narration by the author. (Listened to audiobook)

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Sararl77
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Memoirs sometimes make me feel like I'm trapped in a plane with that seatmate who was interesting for the 1st 2 hours and now needs to shut up already. Eddie Huang's memoir is profane and crass and insightful and I'm so glad I read it. Good for even a super long flight.

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BoothDweller87
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Some reading with my Saturday morning cereal!

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