Why a Booktrail?
1997, 1999: Outside a New York apartment building, an attempted mugging alters the lives of three people.
Paper Names
What you need to know before your trail
Tony, a Chinese-born engineer turned Manhattan doorman, who immigrated to the United States to give his family a better life.
His daughter, Tammy, who grapples with the expectations surrounding a first-generation American as she grows into an ambitious young woman.
And Oliver, a charming white lawyer with a dark family secret, who is continuously propelled towards Tammy and Tony, whether by fate or his choices.
Set in New York and China over three decades, Paper Names explores what it means to be American from three different perspectives. As Tony, Tammy and Oliver each strive for their own American dream, and make sacrifices to attain it, every joyous and heart-breaking twist in their stories begs the question: was it all worth it?
Locations
Reset- America/ USA - NY - NYC
- A: Queens College, City University of New York
- B: Flushing
- C: Upper West Side
Travel Guide
New York and China
New York is the main setting here as we follow a Chinese family as they move to the city that never sleeps.
Flushing and Upper West Side are the main areas of the city where the characters live and work as well as interact. This makes a nice change from the usual spots in Manhattan and we get a sense of community, trying to assimilate and trying to find their way.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: Paper Names
Destination: New York, China Author/guide: Susie Luo Departure Time: 1997, 1999
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