The film adaptation of Crazy Rich Asians, a novel by Kevin Kwan, opened yesterday. With plenty of advertising buzz and a wave of positive reviews, Kwan's original work is sure to receive plenty of interest. Published in 2013, Crazy Rich Asians tells the story of an American-born Chinese girl who travels to Singapore for the wedding of her boyfriend's best friend. Once there, Rachel Chu (played in the film by Constance Wu) discovers her boyfriend, Nick (Henry Golding), is part of Singapore's crazy rich social elite. Rachel is embroiled in a clash of classes, complete with plenty of snobbery, conspicuous displays of wealth and efforts by Nick's mother to keep the couple apart. (For a Maximum Shelf review of Crazy Rich Asians, plus an interview with Kevin Kwan, click here.)
The success of Crazy Rich Asians led to two sequels: China Rich Girlfriend (2015) and Rich People Problems (2017), all of which are available from Anchor. The movie version of Crazy Rich Asians marks an important moment for representation in film--it is the first major Hollywood release since 1993's Joy Luck Club to feature Asians in all leading roles. This cast also includes Gemma Chan, Awkwafina, Kris Aquino, Lisa Lu, Nico Santos, Ken Jeong and Michelle Yeoh. A movie tie-in edition of Crazy Rich Asians was published by Anchor in July ($16, 9780525563761). --Tobias Mutter
