Making a Scene (Signed Book)

by Constance Wu

Overview

From actor Constance Wu, a powerful and poignant memoir-in-essays.

Growing up in the friendly suburbs of Richmond, Virginia, Constance Wu was often scolded for having big feelings or strong reactions. “Good girls don’t make scenes,” people warned her. And while she spent most of her childhood suppressing her bold, emotional nature, she found an early outlet in local community theater—it was the one place where big feelings were okay—were good, even. Acting became her refuge, her touchstone, and eventually her vocation. At eighteen she moved to New York, where she’d spend the next ten years of her life auditioning, waiting tables, and struggling to make rent before her two big breaks: the TV sitcom Fresh Off the Boat and the hit film Crazy Rich Asians.

Through raw and relatable essays, Constance shares private memories of childhood, young love and heartbreak, sexual assault and harassment, and how she “made it” in Hollywood. Her stories offer a behind-the-scenes look at being Asian American in the entertainment industry and the continuing evolution of her identity and influence in the public eye. Making a Scene is an intimate portrait of pressures and pleasures of existing in today’s world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781668015681
Publisher:	Scribner
Publication date:	11/25/2022
Edition description:	Signed Edition
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Constance Wu is the Golden Globe Award–nominated star of Crazy Rich Asians and Hustlers. Her breakthrough role was starring as Jessica Huang in the television comedy Fresh Off the Boat (2015–2020). She has been nominated for the Screen Actors Guild award, two Television Critics Association awards, and four Critics Choice awards. Time has honored her as one of the 100 Most Influential People of the Year. She lives on the east side of Los Angeles with her partner, Ryan Kattner, their daughter, and their pet bunny rabbit, Lida-Rose.

Editorial Reviews

06/13/2022

Wu, star of Crazy Rich Asians, dazzles in this essay collection about love, family, and her hard-won path to Hollywood success. The daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, Wu was discouraged from calling attention to herself while growing up in 1980s Richmond, Va., but found an outlet in acting. Despite “assimilating very well” in her predominantly white hometown (doing “all the normal American stuff like cheerleading and... sleepover parties”), Wu couldn’t ignore the discomfort she felt when watching Asian characters on screen. As she writes in “Welcome to Jurassic Park”: “My face always burned with shame, especially if that character spoke with an Asian accent.” It wasn’t until 2015, when Wu took a starring role in the sitcom Fresh off the Boat as Jessica, a Taiwanese immigrant and mother to three Asian American children, that her mindset changed: “Off the Boat wasn’t race-neutral. It was race-relevant.” While the show was groundbreaking—centering an Asian American family’s story on American television for the first time in more than 20 years—Wu reveals in “You Do What I Say” that it didn’t protect her from the harassment of a producer, or from later having to fight for filming dates that worked for her with Crazy Rich Asians. Even still, Wu remained undeterred, and it’s that dogged determination that radiates from every page. Fans will feel lucky to be in on the action. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Wu wisely aligns poignant childhood anecdotes with new adult lessons... Generously sharing experiences of love, family, harassment, discrimination, and growth, Wu writes about others and her past self with the utmost respect. Her memoir is a gorgeously relatable portrait of a life guided by passion and art.”
—Booklist, *starred review*



"Intimate and rich in emotional detail...thoughtful and often inspirational.”
—Kirkus Reviews

"Wu dazzles in this essay collection about love, family, and her hard-won path to Hollywood success... her determination radiates from every page."
—Publishers Weekly

“Constance Wu writes with originality, ferocity, and unsparing honesty that doesn't let anyone — especially herself — off the hook. Making A Scene is as much about acting as it is about heartbreak, forgiveness, and being messily human. It made me laugh and it made my heart hurt; it reminded me of how necessary — and life giving — art is. This is a vital book by a singular talent.”
—Rachel Khong, author of Goodbye, Vitamin

“There were times when I was reading Making a Scene that I didn’t realize I was holding my breath; it’s that riveting and personal. Making a Scene is a treasure and so is Constance Wu. I feel so lucky to call this talented and hilarious woman my friend.”
—Mindy Kaling, author of Why Not Me?

"Constance Wu is a beautiful writer, a hilarious storyteller, and unafraid to tell the truth about her experiences. Don't miss Making a Scene."
—Amy Schumer, author of The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo

"Making a Scene was one of the most captivating and honest books I’ve read in years, and I found it difficult to put down. Constance’s sharp and gorgeously observed ability to speak her truth, unforgivingly and often hilariously, gave me goosebumps, tears, gasps, and belly laughs. She details the things in life that never quite leave us, and that truly form us: heartbreak, struggle, hopelessness and the eventual discovery and ownership of our self-worth."
—Awkwafina

From the Publisher

08/01/2022

Award-winning actress Wu (Crazy Rich Asians) is refreshingly honest in this look back at the most formative moments of her life, with each chapter acting as a stand-alone, deeply personal essay. Wu began participating in community theater as child looking for acceptance and an outlet for her powerful emotions. She struggled with overcoming her continual casting as the ingénue, fighting for more diverse roles and eventually finds sitcom fame as the tiger mom on TV's Fresh off the Boat. Wu takes full responsibility for the more complicated times and relationships in her life—estrangements with her sister and mother, fights with friends, and love affairs that fizzled out. She candidly describes her experiences with date rape and sexual harassment, culminating in her social media meltdown and a backlash that led to her being taken off her balcony and sent to a hospital. Wu's writing shines when she explores the seemingly simple yet meaningful loves of her life—her pet rabbit, her first car, her childhood neighbors, and her first job in a bakery. VERDICT Wu's mea culpa is a moving study in self-acceptance that will win her more fans.—Lisa Henry

Library Journal