We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story

We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story

  • Downloads:1835
  • Type:Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date:2022-04-13 06:52:14
  • Update Date:2025-09-06
  • Status:finish
  • Author:Simu Liu
  • ISBN:0063046490
  • Environment:PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Summary

Marvel's newest recruit shares his own inspiring and unexpected origin story, from China to the bright lights of Hollywood。 An immigrant who battles everything from parental expectations to cultural stereotypes, Simu Liu struggles to forge a path for himself, rising from the ashes of a failed accounting career (yes, you read that right) to become Shang-Chi。

Our story begins in the city of Harbin, where Simu's parents have left him in the care of his grandparents while they seek to build a future for themselves in Canada。 One day, a mysterious stranger shows up at the door; it's Simu's father, who whisks him away from the only home he had ever known and to the land of opportunity and maple syrup。 

Life in the new world, however, is not all that it was cracked up to be; Simu's new guardians lack the gentle touch of his grandparents, resulting in harsh words and hurt feelings。 His parents, on the other hand, find their new son emotionally distant and difficult to relate to - although they are related by blood, they are separated by culture, language, and values。 

As Simu grows up, he plays the part of the pious son well; he gets A's, crushes national math competitions, and makes his parents proud。 But as time goes on, he grows increasingly disillusioned with the expectations placed on his shoulders, and finds it harder and harder to keep up the charade。 

Barely a year out of college, his life hits rock bottom when he is laid off from his first job as an accountant。 Unemployed, riddled with shame and with nothing left to lose, Simu finds an ad on Craigslist that will send him on a wildly unexpected journey, into the mysterious world of show business。 

Through a swath of rejections and comical mishaps, it is ultimately Simu's determination to carve out a path for himself that leads him to not only succeed as an actor, but also open the door to reconciling with his parents。 After all, the courage to pursue his ambitions at all costs is something that he inherited from his parents, who themselves defied impossible odds in order to come to Canada。

We Were Dreamers is more than a celebrity memoir - it's a story about growing up between cultures, finding your family, and becoming the master of your own extraordinary circumstance。

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Reviews

Beth

#netgalleyarc I love a good biography, especially when it’s someone that I’m familiar with and a fan of。 I really enjoy the author as an actor and enjoyed learning about his life and how he got into acting。 A good read and one I will definitely purchase for my high school library。 #teammarvel

Mel

We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story by Simu Liu is the story of Simu Liu’s origins。 From his upbringing in Harbin where he was raised by his grandparents to immigrating to Canada when he was five years old and being raised by parents he barely knew, this book shows the tremendous efforts and sacrifices that were made on the way to Simu becoming Marvel’s first Asian superhero。I’ve never had a book that made me want to laugh, cry and warmed my heart all within the first chapter b We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story by Simu Liu is the story of Simu Liu’s origins。 From his upbringing in Harbin where he was raised by his grandparents to immigrating to Canada when he was five years old and being raised by parents he barely knew, this book shows the tremendous efforts and sacrifices that were made on the way to Simu becoming Marvel’s first Asian superhero。I’ve never had a book that made me want to laugh, cry and warmed my heart all within the first chapter but this book did。 Simu has imbued the stories of his parent’s immigration, his upbringing and where he is now with such heartfelt and funny anecdotes that made the book such a beautiful read。 He did not shy away from exploring the tumultuous relationship he had with his parents growing up and I’m glad that he was able to work past that and has a better relationship with them now。Simu Liu is an absolutely incredible writer。 He has such a way with words that flows really nicely and invokes a clear picture of the events he is describing。 I really hope that he manages to find time in his busy schedule to write more books whether fiction or nonfiction because he is very talented。I appreciated how Simu chose to structure this book as it showed a clear pathway from his early life through to the establishment of his acting career while exemplifying the drive and determination he needed to succeed in an industry where Anti-Asian racism is still unfortunately very common。 I liked how he emphasized the need for people to form their own path in life even if that differs from what their parents might want。 This is an incredibly important message that I think will resonate with a lot of people。I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Kim’s Convenience or Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and is interested in learning more about Simu Liu’s life or anyone who wants to read a heartwarming immigrant success story。We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story by Simu Liu will be released by HarperCollins Canada on May 3rd 2022。 。。。more

Joanne Machin

I'm a huge fan of Simu Liu's, and I loved his work on KIM'S CONVENIENCE, and I've watched Shang-Chi at least four times (three times in a movie theatre in the middle of a pandemic, no less! I risked my life to see it! Three times!), so when Simu previewed the cover on his IG, I 100% screamed and went to check Edelweiss for an ARC。 WE WERE DREAMERS was a joy to read。 It was full of humor, honesty, and inspiration, and it brims with Asian excellence, laughs, a healthy dose of teenage cringe (like, I'm a huge fan of Simu Liu's, and I loved his work on KIM'S CONVENIENCE, and I've watched Shang-Chi at least four times (three times in a movie theatre in the middle of a pandemic, no less! I risked my life to see it! Three times!), so when Simu previewed the cover on his IG, I 100% screamed and went to check Edelweiss for an ARC。 WE WERE DREAMERS was a joy to read。 It was full of humor, honesty, and inspiration, and it brims with Asian excellence, laughs, a healthy dose of teenage cringe (like, SUPER cringe, dudes), and a lot more N*Sync than I expected。 I laughed, I spoke obnoxiously at length about this ARC to my friends, and I read in awe of his determination to become an actor。 Moreover, I deeply respect his honesty about his road to super hero stardom, particularly in relation to his rocky relationship with his self-esteem and his identity as an Asian creative, as well as his relationship with his parents。 As a Chinese immigration myself, I related all too well to many parts of his own stories of his adolescent。 Many folks of the Asian diaspora will seem themselves in Simu's memoir, and for that, I'm so glad this book exists。 I really enjoyed this memoir, and it was a ton of fun to read。 。。。more

Jennifer

Liu's memoir recounts his rise to fame as Marvel's Shang-Chi from his birth in China, childhood in Canada and his eventual decision to make an unconventional choice in leaving a steady but lucrative field to pursue his acting dream。 Fans of the star will learn a lot and his voice really shines through。 Some may be disappointed that he doesn't get to the acting portion of his life until 2/3 into the book, but his family's immigration story is illuminating and has greatly shaped the person he is t Liu's memoir recounts his rise to fame as Marvel's Shang-Chi from his birth in China, childhood in Canada and his eventual decision to make an unconventional choice in leaving a steady but lucrative field to pursue his acting dream。 Fans of the star will learn a lot and his voice really shines through。 Some may be disappointed that he doesn't get to the acting portion of his life until 2/3 into the book, but his family's immigration story is illuminating and has greatly shaped the person he is today。 Many will relate to his experiences, especially teens struggling with their own difficult parental relationships。 Review from e-galley。 。。。more

♠ TABI⁷ ♠

will never apologize for the rabid affection this man sparks in me every time he speaks or posts or does literally anything

Mary-Faith

EVERYBODY MOVED

Zainab ♡

i find out about this through gq ????? i need this more than anything 。

angie

I love Simu Liu