“Bad Asians is a richly drawn and emotionally honest novel that explores the complex entanglements between friendship and family, ambition and happiness, and childhood and adulthood. Lillian Li’s writing is poignant, funny, and filled with keen observations—in short, a perfect read for anyone trying to make sense of our unsettled times. A beautiful novel that made me think, gasp, and laugh.”
—Angie Kim, New York Times bestselling author of Miracle Creek and Happiness Falls

“The four friends at the center of Bad Asians are bonded by the brutal pressures of their immigrant parents, racist schoolyard bullies, their crushing expectations of themselves, and their jealousy of local ‘it girl’ and parent dream-come-true Grace, who seems incapable of doing any wrong. But when a film Grace makes of them goes viral, their collective fame as “bad Asians” threatens to destroy their bonds forever. The ugly underbelly of internet notoriety—and whether or not it’s survivable—is the riveting question Bad Asians explores. Lillian Li is an unsparing observer of our unsparing times.”
—Susan Choi, National Book Award-winning author of Trust Exercise and Flashlight

“Bad Asians is a sharp, propulsive novel about ambition, identity, and the bonds that shape us—whether we choose them or not. Lillian Li’s masterful prose crackles with humor and insight, exploring the language of belonging—between cultures, generations, and the people we call friends. Bad Asians is a novel about the stories we tell ourselves and the ones we can never quite escape.”
—Weike Wang, award-winning author of Chemistry and Rental House

“With richly drawn characters and fantastic insights into class, upward mobility, parental expectations, and the false promise of the American dream and the toll it takes on those who pursue it, this is an engaging, darkly comic and thoroughly contemporary page-turner—a remarkable novel!”
—J. Ryan Stradal, author of Kitchens of the Great Midwest and Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club