Willis Wu

Willis Wu is the protagonist and second person narrator of the novel. His parents are Dorothy and Ming-Chen Wu, both immigrants from Taiwan. As a young boy, Willis grows up in Interior Chinatown, living in the Chinatown SRO Apartments with his parents. For a time, he feels free to make his own memories, to live and be his authentic self. Yet his childhood is also defined by profound struggles. He often overhears his parents talking about their disappointments, their difficulties to make money and provide, while feeling at home in a country that seems to actively resist their presences.

As he grows up, Willis is closest with his mother, loving the days when they can spend uninterrupted time together. He is hurt and confused, therefore, when his mother discourages his dream of someday becoming Kung Fu Guy. Despite her urgings for him to be something more, Willis...