The Great Neck Library and the Great Neck Chinese Association are hosting a conversation with Michael Luo, author of “Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging, and the Epic Story of the Chinese in America,” at the Great Neck Library, 159 Bayview Ave, on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 2:00 p.m.
“Strangers in the Land” is an epic history of exclusion, belonging, and the complications of America’s multiracial democracy. Told in the tradition of “The Warmth of Other Suns” with the style and sweep of a New Yorker writer, this is a cinematic, character-driven, deeply researched story of race in America that places Chinese American history alongside other events that took place during a crucial period of formation for the country after the Civil War, when visions of liberty and equality foundered.
“This is not just the story of the Chinese in America; it’s the story of any number of immigrant groups who have been treated as strangers,” the library said in a statement. “It’s the story of our diverse democracy. It’s the story of us. Asian American history is American history.”
Michael Luo is an executive editor at The New Yorker and writes regularly for the magazine on politics, religion, and Asian American issues. Before joining the magazine in 2016, he spent 13 years at The New York Times as a national correspondent, metro reporter, and investigative reporter and editor.
He is a recipient of a George Polk Award and a Livingston Award for Young Journalists. He is a second-generation Chinese American and lives in New York City with his wife and two children.
The event requires tickets, which are free of charge and can be picked up at any Great Neck Library location beginning Oct. 30 at 10 a.m.
Two tickets are available per library card holder. The event is suitable for adults and high school students.
Books are available for purchase at the event courtesy of Theodore’s Books.
