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A Historical Novel Based on the True Story of Anna May Wong
The beloved bestselling author of The Color of Air, Women of the Silk, and The Samurai's Garden returns with this magnificent historical novel based on the life of the luminous, groundbreaking actress Anna May Wong—the first and only Asian American woman to gain movie stardom in the early days of Hollywood.
At the dawn of a new century, America is falling in love with silent movies, including young Wong Liu Tsong. The daughter of Chinese immigrants who own a laundry, Wong Liu and her older sister Lew Ying (Lulu) are taunted and bullied for their Chinese heritage. But while Lulu diligently obeys her parents and learns to speak Chinese, Wong Liu sneaks away to the local nickelodeons, buying a ticket with her lunch money and tips saved from laundry deliveries. By eleven Wong Liu is determined to become an actress and has already chosen a stage name: Anna May Wong. At sixteen, Anna May leaves high school to pursue her Hollywood dreams, defying her disapproving father and her Chinese traditional upbringing—a choice that will hold emotional and physical consequences.
After a series of nothing parts, nineteen-year-old Anna May gets her big break—and her first taste of Hollywood fame—starring opposite Douglas Fairbanks in The Thief of Bagdad. Yet her beauty and talent isn't enough to overcome the racism that relegates her to supporting roles as a helpless, exotic butterfly or a vicious, murderous dragon lady while Caucasian actresses in yellowface" are given starring roles portraying Asian women. Though she suffers professionally and personally, Anna May fights to win lead roles, accept risqué parts, financially support her family, and keep her illicit love affairs hidden—even as she finds freedom and glittering stardom abroad, and receives glowing reviews across the globe.
Powerful, poignant, and imbued with Gail Tsukiyama's warmth and empathy, The Brightest Star reimagines the life of the first Asian American screen star whose legacy endures—a remarkable and inspiring woman who broke barriers and became a shining light in Hollywood history.
"This stirring story about the drive and courageous spirit of a talented, barrier-breaking American icon works magnificently." —Booklist (starred review)
"Tsukiyama has been amplifying Asian voices throughout her career, and her new novel offers an intimate look at what made the original Chinese American film star tick." —Publishers Weekly
"Swaths of the novel are repetitive, summarizing previous events as if they were weekly series recaps or emphasizing Wong's struggles as a third-generation Chinese American woman without imagining any more of her internal landscape. This sympathetic account of a silver-screen legend flies admirably between triumph and tragedy but struggles to soar." —Kirkus Reviews
"I can think of no better author than the incomparable Gail Tsukiyama to introduce readers to Anna May Wong. For all of her remarkable life, Wong struggled against the racism of Hollywood and the conservatism of her family. For every triumph there was a disappointment, but for every disappointment, there was also a triumph. Through it all, the ups, the downs, the in-betweens, Tsukiyama keeps her focus on Wong's bright, resilient spirit. A beautiful, haunting book." —Karen Joy Fowler, New York Times bestselling author of Booth and We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
"In the riveting pages of The Brightest Star, Gail Tsukiyama once again invites her readers into an intriguing historical realm that remains in the shadows but should be widely known. Her latest novel lifts the veil on the rise of young Wong Liu Tsong, the Chinese American woman better known as the legendary first Asian American movie star, Anna May Wong, and shares the stereotyping and prejudices she was forced to navigate as she made her ascent. A fascinating portrait." —Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Mitford Affair and co-author of The Personal Librarian
This information about The Brightest Star was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Kevin Horan
Gail Tsukiyama was born in San Francisco, California, to a Chinese mother from Hong Kong and a Japanese father from Hawaii. She attended San Francisco State University where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Master of Arts Degree in English. She is the bestselling author of several novels, including Women of the Silk and The Samurai's Garden, as well as the recipient of the Academy of American Poets Prize and the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award. She divides her time between El Cerrito and Napa Valley, California.
Name Pronunciation
Gail Tsukiyama: Tsu-kee-yah-mah
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