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It is without question that the daunting task of following the stories of Chinese immigrants-from Chang and Eng, the famous Siamese twins and North Carolina plantation owners, to the angry poets of Angel Island (an immigration detention center off the northern shore of California)-has changed Iris Chang. "There are just so many stories...As I traced the journey of Chinese Americans, I felt like I underwent the same journey."
Despite this personal change that she has experienced, Chang maintains the voice of a skeptical journalist. As easy as it may be to say that the Chinese Americans have come out on top after such an arduous journey, Chang has trouble ending on such an uplifting note with her new book, "The Chinese in America: A Narrative History" (Viking Penguin, $29.95). She ends her 500-page chronicle of Chinese American history with a chapter entitled "An Uncertain Future," demonstrating a cautious reluctance to embrace the apparent signs of acceptance by white America, as well as her constant questioning of how racial groups fall in and out of favor in the United States.
"The Chinese in America" is a story of ups and downs, of highs and lows of acceptance and exclusion. Her book gives accounts of how the Chinese in America were praised for their industrious work habits during the building of the transcontinental railroad, and demonized for stealing all of America's gold. They were touted as "the good guys" during World War Two and accused of Communist spy activities during the Korean War. They are classed as "the model minority," evidenced by soaring college admission rates and average salaries, yet stigmatized as poor, uneducated garment workers.
Chang offers a diverse, varying portrait of Chinese Americans, with stories stretching across time, class, and gender lines. While her past works-"The Thread of...