OCTOBER 2022 - AudioFile
Author/narrator Constance Wu, star of CRAZY RICH ASIANS and "Fresh Off the Boat," moves listeners with her raw memoir. Raised to suppress her emotions and avoid making a scene, Wu reflects upon various memorable moments and their impact on her as a person. Each memory is cleverly set up as a scene on set. In the first half of the audiobook Wu struggles to engage the listener with her conversational delivery and lackluster anecdotes, but she hits her stride with both content and performance in the second half. She candidly shares intimate details of her experiences of sexual assault and harassment and of her infamous tweet. She also sheds light on the pressures she’s faced and her mental health struggles. The result is poignant and relatable. V.T.M. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
From the Publisher
"Brilliant... achieves a vividness that most celebrity writers can only aspire to... Wu’s range as a writer is titanic." —Jezebel
"Vulnerable and audacious." —NPR
"Dazzling... Her depth of emotion makes her memoir both captivating and tender... Wu writes with unsparing honesty... bursting with revelation and reckoning." —Rajpreet Heir, The New York Times Book Review
"Illuminating... enthralling... her willingness to not just address her faults but grapple with them makes Wu’s memoir all the richer. Throw in her talent for vivid scene setting, plus an understanding that reflections are nothing without introspection, and the ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ star delivers a page-turner that amounts to much more than its headline-grabbing revelations." —The Washington Post
"A portrait of a young woman's life and of a young artist, struggling to find her way... poignant... frank and intimate." —The New York Times
"Candid and relatable... Her voice is forthright and clear." —Time
"A frank, powerful story told with a strong voice—but would you expect any less from a performer as bold as Wu?" —Town & Country
“So captivatingly immediate. It has something to say about both the inner life of an artist and the perils of public attention that I’ve never seen expressed before, and it’s adorably funny.” —Lena Dunham, The Skimm
“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*
“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
"Constance Wu is a beautiful writer, a hilarious storyteller, and unafraid to tell the truth about her experiences." —Amy Schumer
"One of the most captivating and honest books I’ve read in years. Constance’s sharp and gorgeously observed ability to speak her truth, unforgivingly and often hilariously, gave me goosebumps, tears, gasps, and belly laughs." —Awkwafina
OCTOBER 2022 - AudioFile
Author/narrator Constance Wu, star of CRAZY RICH ASIANS and "Fresh Off the Boat," moves listeners with her raw memoir. Raised to suppress her emotions and avoid making a scene, Wu reflects upon various memorable moments and their impact on her as a person. Each memory is cleverly set up as a scene on set. In the first half of the audiobook Wu struggles to engage the listener with her conversational delivery and lackluster anecdotes, but she hits her stride with both content and performance in the second half. She candidly shares intimate details of her experiences of sexual assault and harassment and of her infamous tweet. She also sheds light on the pressures she’s faced and her mental health struggles. The result is poignant and relatable. V.T.M. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2022-07-27
An acclaimed actor “taught not to make scenes” as a young girl explores how “scenes” from her life have made her into the woman she became.
In her first book, Wu, best known for her roles in the TV show Fresh Off the Boat and the film Crazy Rich Asians, reflects on the experiences that transformed her from a shy girl into a self-confident performer able to create meaningful, stereotype-defying characters. The American-born daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, Wu, who dreamed of a professional acting career, assimilated well into the conservative White Virginia suburb where she grew up. Yet the Asian actors she saw often made her want to cringe for the way they brought attention to the “Asian-ness” Wu could not entirely accept in herself. It wasn’t until she began studying drama in college that the author began to dig within herself to find what could truly make her characters come alive. In her personal life, Wu deepened her emotional maturity with lessons in love while also experiencing the turmoil caused by a traumatic sexual experience. “I didn’t feel attacked or assaulted or coerced and I certainly didn’t feel raped,” she writes. “Strange as it sounds, the word ‘rape’ didn’t even occur to me.” After moving to California for her acting career, she began to educate herself on rape culture. Her awakening, however, could not protect her from Hollywood anti-feminism or her own desire to be a “cool girl” who could brush off casual misogyny. As she gained professional visibility and acclaim, Wu found herself at the mercy of an Asian American producer who intimidated and sexually harassed her. Theessays—parts of which she cleverly imagines as stage scenes—are intimate and rich in emotional detail. However, the time shifts and occasional lack of thematic connection sometimes limit the impact of the author’s message.
Disjointed in spots but thoughtful and often inspirational.
