logo
O.C. readers spend Lunar New Year with author Kevin Kwan

O.C. readers spend Lunar New Year with author Kevin Kwan

Author Kevin Kwan laughed as he shared his mother's concern for the turnout of his special appearance in Orange County, since the event fell on Lunar New Year.
'She said, 'Who is going to come to the O.C. to see you on Lunar New Year?' said the Singaporean-born American novelist. 'Asian parents are a very specific breed, but I was really lucky in that they were always supportive of my crazy schemes.'
Thankfully, nearly 340 readers turned out for Kwan's literary event on Jan. 29 at the Norma Hertzog Community Center in Costa Mesa.
Presented by OC Public Libraries and partly funded through a grant from the California Department of Aging, the series features keynote speakers, like Kwan, in celebration of literacy. Kwan spoke with local journalist Jennifer Tanaka, took questions from the audience and signed copies of his books, which were made available for sale on site by Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore.
Kwan is the author of the international bestselling novel 'Crazy Rich Asians,' which has been translated into 40 languages. The subsequent books in the series, 'China Rich Girlfriend' and 'Rich People Problems,' both went on to be best sellers.
The film adaptation of 'Crazy Rich Asians' in 2018 became Hollywood's highest-grossing romantic comedy in more than a decade and is credited with launching the mainstream careers of many actors cast in the production, like Awkwafina. Directed by Jon M. Chu and released theatrically in the United States by Warner Bros., the film was the first major studio project almost entirely cast with performers of Chinese descent in a present-day setting since 'The Joy Luck Club' in 1993.
Kwan referenced the 'The Joy Luck Club' and its author, Amy Tan, another Asian American writer, as a source of early inspiration.
'Amy Tan, she is amazing, and she is one of my heroes. Her book was life-changing for me,' said Kwan. 'Reading 'The Joy Luck Club' was one of the most intensely wonderful experiences of my life.'
Kwan also maintained that the movie adaption of Tan's book was done at a level he strove for when his bestseller was adapted for the big screen.
'That movie was such a beautiful adaptation of a book and so to me that was the gold standard,' said Kwan. 'She was intensely involved in her movie, in fact she was one of the screenwriters. So watching her, I said I have to do the same thing. If Hollywood studios don't want to involve me, then they are not going to get to do this.'
Readers have gravitated to Kwan's storytelling for its insight into modern, albeit lavish, Asian culture, but they have also found themselves pulled in by his knowledge and colorful description of popular foods from Singapore, Malaysia and Hawaii.
'I grew up in Singapore as a child, and I think Singapore is the original foodie country,' said Kwan. 'We literally ate five times a day; breakfast, lunch, high tea, dinner and supper was what my family did, so we were always food obsessed. When I moved to America, that just never ended.'
While Kwan writes often about the food he loves, he also writes about food the characters in his books love as a way of informing the reader a bit more about who they are and their tastes. As he read aloud from his latest release, 'Lies and Weddings,' he elicited oohs and ahhs from the audience as he shared a scene in which two characters dine on what they consider a simple lunch.
'Barely two hours later, Arabella found herself at a table on the glorious outdoor terrace of Rosina's rooftop garden suite, alternately sipping champagne and chrysanthemum tea and enjoying a simple lunch of flame blue lobster with caviar, Sichuan-style mapo tofu with minced Iberico pork, lacquered abalone with ginger and butter and lime, lotus roots with seasonal vegetables and golden garlic, braised boneless beef ribs flambe with wine, goji berries and radish in a stone pot and wok-fired rice noodles with wagyu beef and bok choy in a silky egg gravy,' Kwan read.
Some readers have been inspired to visit the places Kwan writes about and use his books as a travel guide of sorts. The author's books include scenes at popular restaurants like Din Tai Fung and Tex Drive-In in Hawaii. Even an Orange County restaurant, Nick's in Laguna Beach, gets a shout out.
'I love their French dip sandwich,' said Kwan. 'That was my Laguna Beach discovery and I love it.'
Kwan discussed upcoming projects and fielded questions about the anticipated movie sequel to 'Crazy Rich Asians' and another film from his new book series in development.
'The first exciting news is that 'Sex and Vanity' is being made into a film by Sony, so right now we are furiously trying to rework the script and get that finalized, and if all goes well, perhaps it will film this year. There are two amazing actors that are already attached but I can't say who they are.'
Kwan also spoke about plans to turn 'Crazy Rich Asians' into a musical with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures and Chu, who recently helmed the Broadway-musical-turned-Hollywood-blockbuster 'Wicked,' returning as director.
'The other exciting news is the 'Crazy Rich Asians' musical,' Kwan said. 'We have actually been working on it for five years now. A book-to-Broadway adaption takes 10 years, believe it or not.'
He also hinted at upcoming plans for both the big and small screen.
'In the meantime, Warner Bros. is also trying to do spinoffs.'
At heart Kwan is a writer, and he spoke about his new series that borrows from classic literature with Asian American characters at the center. He offered sage advice for anyone interested in writing a novel.
'Start with a page a day, and in a year you will have a book.'
'A Slice of Literary Orange' series has more keynote speakers lined up throughout the year, including Erika L. Sánchez, author of the New York Times bestseller 'I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter' on Feb. 3 at 6:30 p.m. at the Clifton C. Miller Community Center in Tustin and national best-selling author ReShonda Tate on Feb. 13 at 6:30 p.m. at the Norma Hertzog Community Center in Costa Mesa.
For more information on other events with 'A Slice of Literary Orange,' visit ocpl.org.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'I Literally Have Almost No Money'—MrBeast Shocks Fans by Borrowing Wedding Funds from His Mom
'I Literally Have Almost No Money'—MrBeast Shocks Fans by Borrowing Wedding Funds from His Mom

Yahoo

time30 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

'I Literally Have Almost No Money'—MrBeast Shocks Fans by Borrowing Wedding Funds from His Mom

Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, recently surprised fans by revealing on X that he's borrowing money from his mother to pay for his upcoming wedding. The disclosure comes despite an estimated $1 billion net worth and a business empire reportedly valued at $5 billion, highlighting a paradox of the creator economy: being asset-rich but cash-poor. "I literally have almost no money," MrBeast said in a June 2 post on X.. "I've just been reinvesting everything into content and 'literally' had to borrow money from my mom to help with my wedding lol." Don't Miss: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing — 'Scrolling To UBI' — Deloitte's #1 fastest-growing software company allows users to earn money on their phones. This comes as his businesses—collectively known as Beast Industries—were reported by Bloomberg in February to be raising funds at a $5 billion valuation. "I think this year we'll spend around a quarter of a billion on content," Donaldson continued. According to Business Insider, his business generated just under $500 million in revenue last year. This high spending is driven by projects like MrBeast's Feastables snack brand and the Amazon Prime Video series, "Beast Games," which require substantial upfront capital. The show awarded a $10 million prize to its first-season winner—making it one of the most expensive game shows ever produced, Forbes reported. Despite financial constraints, Donaldson and his fiancée, Thea Booysen, are opting for an intimate, low-key wedding. "This will definitely be more family and friends—definitely more private. I don't take much vacation because of how hard I work... It will be the ultimate way to take some time away and enjoy things," MrBeast told People. Trending: Maximize saving for your retirement and cut down on taxes: . Booysen echoed the sentiment, telling the New York Post that they were considering holding the wedding on an island, away from public attention, and described the event as "nice but certainly intimate," focused on close family and friends. Goldman Sachs estimates that the creator economy could reach $480 billion by 2027, powered by more than 50 million active creators. However, MrBeast's experience illustrates that building billion-dollar ventures may come at the cost of short-term personal liquidity. Donaldson said on the "The Diary of a CEO" podcast that while he may be a billionaire "on paper," he has "less than a million dollars" in his actual bank account. Read Next: Invest where it hurts — and help millions heal:. The average American couple has saved this much money for retirement —? Image: Shutterstock UNLOCKED: 5 NEW TRADES EVERY WEEK. Click now to get top trade ideas daily, plus unlimited access to cutting-edge tools and strategies to gain an edge in the markets. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article 'I Literally Have Almost No Money'—MrBeast Shocks Fans by Borrowing Wedding Funds from His Mom originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Momos and Dosas Take Diners On a Journey Through Southeast Asia at Tapori
Momos and Dosas Take Diners On a Journey Through Southeast Asia at Tapori

Eater

timean hour ago

  • Eater

Momos and Dosas Take Diners On a Journey Through Southeast Asia at Tapori

On March 12, two days before H Street's anticipated Southeast Asian restaurant opened, head chef Baburam Sharma finally touched down in D.C. After developing Tapori's menu over Zoom for over a year, months of visa delays, and over 20 hours of travel from Nepal, Sharma headed directly from his hotel to the Northeast kitchen that executive chef Suresh Sundas had built for them. 'I just put my luggage in the room and came here, and we started prep,' he recounted. Sundas, who has been recognized by the Michelin Guide for his inventive cooking at neighborhood spot Daru, says that he and Sharma immediately clicked. They had been workshopping a complex menu spanning popular street foods from all over India and their shared birthplace of Nepal while 7,000 miles apart. But once they were together, those dishes evolved even more. From workshopping new ingredients, like pesto and pine nuts in the fragrant mushroom pilau, to finally having Sharma's expertise on South Indian techniques, they began to perfect Tapori's key dishes. These three represent their commitment to recreating Southeast Asian street foods from distinct regions in an American kitchen: momos from Nepal; dosas from Tamil Nadu; and bison phav bhaji from Mumbai. Sharma explains that while there are only two Himalayan snacks on the menu, one of them had to be a momo. 'The most selling item in Nepal is the momo,' he said. 'You will find the momo everywhere, every state... even in India.' The steamed dumplings from Nepal and Tibet are usually filled with vegetables or minced meat, traditionally chicken, pork, or lamb. For Sundas, the lesser known wagyu beef momo at Tapori is an homage to a food memory from 45 years ago that still haunts him. A momo shop a block away from his father's business was his daily indulgence while growing up in Nepal. He still smiles as he describes 'the smell of that momo… Oh my god.' He's been trying to recreate that 'texture of the wrap' and meat filling ever since, but he's never been able to without those 'pure local ingredients.' So he decided he would do something more original. Instead of a small bowl of richly flavored broth sometimes served beside momos in Nepal, the wagyu beef momos at Tapori come swimming in a chicken stock that is simmered for four hours and seasoned with Nepalese session peppers, garlic, and leeks. The wagyu filling is seasoned simply as well, with chili, ginger, cilantro, and a little soy sauce. The similar seasonings meld together the two different proteins, while a bit of cilantro oil drizzled on at the end cuts through the rich flavors. Sundas was laser-focused on producing the best dosa possible: 'Every single day we are working on it together,' he says. He had started his culinary career in D.C. in 2007 working at South Indian restaurants and he knew that he had to show diners 'the taste of a very authentic dosa.' He found many dosas in the District were more crepe-like. They were missing that sour fermented flavor and thin texture with a satisfying crunch. That's where Sharma came in. He had started his career in five-star hotel kitchens in the southernmost state of Tamil Nadu and had made dozens of dosa almost daily for 15 years. They create Tapori's creamy and fermented batter over two days. The process of soaking the lentils and rice for at least four hours and cleaning the grains 10 to 12 times is repeated twice before they are ground up in a specially-ordered, massive dosa grinder from India, which they converted themselves to work with an American power grid. Salt and sugar are added for an eight-hour fermentation period to keep the batter at room temperature overnight. Sundas and Sharma are also grilling up each dosa at Tapori right now, expertly spreading out and flipping 40 to 50 a day with an 'intuition' that comes with years of practice. The flavor punch of podi masala, a combination of seeds and spices known as gunpowder seasoning, plus a potato filling and nutty ghee that are added to the batter as it fries up on their grill. It's served with an array of stews and coconut chutney, though that crispy texture and spicy, fermented flavor makes it easy to eat on its own. Sundas says that labor intensive process pays off when Indian and Indian American diners tell him that the dosa is 'exactly how they got it in India.' Tapori is named after rowdy Mumbai street culture, so it had to include the city's favorite internationally-influenced street food: phav bhaji. The hearty snack is comprised of buttered buns (originally from Portuguese immigrants) and stewed potato and pea curry, but Sundas wanted to create a flavorful meat version that stood out from the chicken or fish dishes on the menu. After trying to source local water buffalo meat from West Virginia, he finally settled on bison from Texas that's cooked down with tomato paste, onion, minced garlic, green chili, and cumin paste. Cilantro and butter are added after a little over a half hour of stewing to balance out the heavy umami flavors. The buns add even more butter to the mix with a recipe that was developed in-house. The chefs are proofing and baking the buns themselves on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the total process taking about three hours. On busier weekend shifts, artisan wholesale bakery Uptown Bakers makes buns based on the Tapori team's original recipe. Why create your own buns half the week when you have a great supplier? It's the same reason that Sundas and Sharma fold fresh momos if they run out of their prepped dumplings after a long night of service. They'll dig into the dough and wagyu filling they saved for the next day instead of saying they're sold out, because they're devoted to making each dish perfectly for every customer that walks through Tapori's door. See More: DC Restaurant News Inside The Dishes

Kate Middleton Embraces Power Dressing in Blue McQueen Suit for Museum Visit
Kate Middleton Embraces Power Dressing in Blue McQueen Suit for Museum Visit

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Kate Middleton Embraces Power Dressing in Blue McQueen Suit for Museum Visit

Kate Middleton stepped out for a solo public appearance during a visit to the Victoria & Albert museum in London on Tuesday. The Princess of Wales met with Tristram Hunt, director of the V&A, and other distinguished personnel during her tour of the museum. For her daytime outing, Middleton favored one of her go-to designers, wearing a look courtesy of McQueen. The British royal family member styled a crepe jacket in electric blue and cigarette wool trousers in the same shade of blue courtesy of McQueen. More from WWD Prada Group Creates Trust Fund With UNESCO for Sea Beyond Project Queen Letizia of Spain Favors Classic Black and White Colorblocking in Massimo Dutti for Public Engagement in Madrid Katie Holmes Goes for Color Contrast in Prada, Danielle Brooks Shines in Stephane Rolland and More Looks From the 2025 Tony Awards The Princess of Wales coordinated the look with a cotton blend puff sleeve top in white by American designer Ralph Lauren. She also wore a pair of pointed-toe suede pumps in navy by Prada. Middleton added a black belt to her attire as well. As for her jewelry pieces, Middleton wore a pair of blue lapis and moonstone earrings by London-based label Carousel Jewels. She added another piece with her yellow gold necklace courtesy of New York City-based designer Laura Lombardi. McQueen has long been a favorite label of the Princess of Wales. The British royal's April 2011 wedding dress, worn for her nuptials at Westminster Abbey, was designed by former McQueen creative director Sarah Burton. The designer left the fashion house in 2023 for an appointment as the creative director of Givenchy. Middleton's latest look not only highlights one of her preferred designers, but also a style that's grown in popularity among contemporary royal women. The Princess of Wales has often incorporated power dressing and suited looks into her royal wardrobe, styling pieces by Burberry, Roland Mouret and more designers. The power suit for royal women has deep roots, dating to Princess Diana's memorable Catherine Walker suited moment and Hackett waistcoat from 1988. In the decades since, women like Queen Letizia of Spain, Meghan Markle, Queen Mary of Denmark and more have styled power suiting moments, specifically for daytime occasions. View Gallery Launch Gallery: Kate Middleton's Style Through the Years: Burberry Suits, Alexander McQueen Dresses & More Best of WWD Mia Threapleton's Red Carpet Style Through the Years [PHOTOS] Princess Charlene of Monaco's Grand Prix Style Through the Years: Louis Vuitton, Akris and More, Photos Princess Charlene's Monaco Grand Prix Style Evolution at Full Speed: Shades of Blue in Louis Vuitton, Playful Patterning in Akris and More

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store