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The Family Chao

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The Family Chao

By: Lan Samantha Chang
Narrated by: Brian Nishii
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About this listen

A REMARKABLE FAMILY NOVEL ABOUT RACISM, COMMUNITY AND JUDGEMENT, FOR LISTENERS OF CELESTE NG, C PAM ZHANG, BRIT BENNETT AND JEFFREY EUGENIDES

‘An insightful comedy of the American immigrant experience, and of a small town's inner workings' JOHN IRVING

‘One of the finest and most ambitious novels about America I've read' YIYUN LI

‘A gorgeous and gripping literary mystery. . . reflecting themes of family, betrayal, passion, race, culture and the American Dream. . . A masterpiece' JEAN KWOK

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For years, the residents of Lake Haven, Wisconsin ignored the whispered troubles about the Chao family, if only to keep eating at the best restaurant in town. But when tyrannical patriarch Big Chao is found frozen to death in the family's meat freezer, scandalous events force the community to turn its attention to the three Chao sons.

Dagou – presupposed heir to the business.

Ming – accomplished city lawyer, determined to sever ties with Haven's Asian community once and for all.

James – naive college student, who is only just learning of his family's past.

When the family's dog mysteriously disappears, and Dagou ‘Dog Eater' Chao is held on trial for his father's murder, the Chaos' turbulent history spills into the public eye, while a small town looks on in disbelief. . .

AN INVENTIVE COMIC MYSTERY ABOUT THE UNDERCURRENTS OF AN UNFORTUNATE DEATH AND A TIMELESS TALE ABOUT DISTRUST, JUDEGEMENT AND CONDEMNATION

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MORE PRAISE FOR THE FAMILY CHAO

‘With nuance and slyness, wit and empathy, Chang turns the desires and deceits of one unhappy family into a moving and compelling saga of that classic American illness: ambition' VIET THANH NGUYEN

‘At once a brilliant reimagining of Dostoevsky and a wholly original and gripping story about the passions, rivalries and searing pressures that roil a singular immigrant family' JESS WALTER

‘The Family Chao is the ultimate family saga. Love, mystery, courtroom drama and lots of sibling rivalry. . . at every turn there's something new and surprising. I absolutely loved it. It's a masterclass' LUAN GOLDIE

‘A gripping story of three brothers, their tyrannical father and the family restaurant set in the American Midwest. . . Chang writes brilliantly about love, hate, food, dogs, race, sex, morality and money. . . marvellous and wonderfully entertaining' MARGOT LIVESEY

‘An intricate look at the so-called American Dream and one small-town American family trying and failing to save itself. . . An up-to-the-minute look at what it means to be accused and visible in America' ELIZABETH MCCRACKEN

©2022 Lan Samantha Chang (P)2022 Recorded Books
Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction

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Critic reviews

"An insightful comedy of the American immigrant experience, and of a small town’s inner workings." (John Irving)

"A gorgeous and gripping literary mystery...reflecting themes of family, betrayal, passion, race, culture and the American Dream.... A masterpiece." (Jean Kwok)

"With nuance and slyness, wit and empathy, Chang turns the desires and deceits of one unhappy family into a moving and compelling saga of that classic American illness: ambition." (Viet Thanh Nguyen)

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