Summary of Simu Liu's We Were Dreamers

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 I was born in 1989 in China, to a working-class family that lacked the money or influence to travel abroad. I spent my first four and a half years with my father’s side of the family in Harbin, without my parents. I was named 思慕, meaning introspection or ideation.

#2 The kitchen was a series of open flames, next to a sink made of blackish-brown concrete, surrounded by a jungle of exposed pipes. My grandparents didn’t get a refrigerator until after I was born, and they stored water in buckets. I didn’t need anything more.

#3 The importance of keeping your word was explained to me by my yéye. I was too old to be acting out like that, so he took me shopping to Héxìnglù and made me promise not to throw any tantrums.

#4 I was a happy child in Harbin, and I definitely did not speak about how difficult I may or may not have been for the ones tasked with taking care of me. Regardless of whether I threw a tantrum, pooped my pants or drank dirty fishbowl water, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was loved unconditionally.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Jul 13, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822546974

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Insights on Simu Liu's We Were Dreamers

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

I was born in 1989 in China, to a working-class family that lacked the money or influence to travel abroad. I spent my first four and a half years with my father’s side of the family in Harbin, without my parents. I was named 思慕, meaning introspection or ideation.

#2

The kitchen was a series of open flames, next to a sink made of blackish-brown concrete, surrounded by a jungle of exposed pipes. My grandparents didn’t get a refrigerator until after I was born, and they stored water in buckets. I didn’t need anything more.

#3

The importance of keeping your word was explained to me by my yéye. I was too old to be acting out like that, so he took me shopping to Héxìnglù and made me promise not to throw any tantrums.

#4

I was a happy child in Harbin, and I definitely did not speak about how difficult I may or may not have been for the ones tasked with taking care of me. Regardless of whether I threw a tantrum, pooped my pants or drank dirty fishbowl water, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was loved unconditionally.

#5

I was excited to meet my grandparents’ new family members, who would come at the cost of everyone I knew and loved. I was dutifully memorizing my English flash cards.

#6

I had imagined this moment in my head many times, as I’m sure my father had. I wanted to run to him, embracing him enthusiastically and without any reservations, but I just couldn’t. Everything about this man was foreign to me.

#7

I want to start with my dad, whom I technically met first. His side of the family played a much more active role in my upbringing than my mother’s.

#8

My father was born in 1960 during a difficult time for China. He grew up in a small apartment with his sister and parents, who were often busy working. He felt like the favorite child, but he knew that his sister and mother loved him more.

#9

China went through a period of countrywide reform in 1966, which included reducing