As many of you have likely already seen, Tigertalk’s short film, Growing Pains, was played at Harbord’s Asian Heritage Month Assembly to illustrate our experiences with growing up Asian. Using carefully selected quotes from Asian authors of all different backgrounds, we hoped to highlight their voices with our own interpretations and meanings. Here is a list of all the quotes and books that were featured in our video. If you’d like to view the film again, it can be found on our Instagram @hcitigertalk.

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“Angry mothers raise daughters fierce enough to fight wolves.”

• Nghi Vo, The Empress of Salt and Fortune

“Maybe being their child simply means that I will always feel the weight of their past.”

• Thi Bui, The Best We Could Do

“Come in first so you have something to be humble about.” 

• Amy Chua, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

“When does a war end? When can I say your name and have it mean only your name and not what you left behind?”

• Ocean Vuong, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous

“That’s what careless words do. They make people love you a little less.”

• Arundhati Roy, God of Small Things 

“Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favorite colors.”

• Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner

“People see what they want to. I’m sick of hoping that they’ll see me.”

• Sabaa Tahir, All My Rage

“History is a myth shaped by the tongues of conquerors.”

• Roshani Chokshi, The Gilded Wolves

“Lose your innocence but not your hope.” 

• Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club

“She said that was the only way for us to live, to be like poets.”

• Durian Sukegawa, Sweet Bean Paste

“She has the gift of accepting her life.”

• Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake

“One hundred balloons fill the sky.”

• Zahra Marwan, Where Butterflies Fill the Sky

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In addition to this list of powerful quotes from the film, we have also curated a list of books by Asian authors across a variety of genres and cultures. 

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1. Yolk by Mary H. K. Choi
2. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
3. Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong
4. Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay
5. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
6. Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
7. Parachutes by Kelly Yang
8. The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
9. Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
10. The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar
11. The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri
12. Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
13. The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
14. Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
15. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
16. The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X. R. Pan
17. Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram
18. She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan
19. How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu
20. The Blue Between Sky and Water by Susan Abulhawa

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Even as Asian Heritage Month comes to a close, we encourage everyone to continue reading books by Asian authors. Learn about our experiences, listen to our voices, and embrace our diversity. Happy reading!