In this week's edition of Endnotes, we take a look at Bianca Mabute-Louie's Unassimilable: An Asian Diasporic Manifesto for the Twenty-First Century (Harper, Jan.), a deeply personal examination of Asian Americans who refuse to assimilate and instead choose to live on their own terms.
Here's how the book came together:
Milan Bozic, Senior Art Director, Harper
“In an effort to emphasize the book’s message, I felt it would be best to hire an Asian-owned design studio. Katherine Zhang at Evi-O.Studio designed a simple, powerful, and iconic cover.”
Tanya McKinnon, Principal, McKinnon Literary
“When Bianca pitched me the idea for the book, I was excited, and the moment I saw her hand drawn comics, I was hooked. They’re raw, honest, incisive, and hilarious. It was clear immediately that she had voice. I loved her irreverent and unapologetic grandmother, who lived to defy whiteness in her ethnoburb, and I loved Bianca’s own struggles to live into the legacy of her popo’s radical, anti-respectability politics—all with the perfect combination of cultural political depth and sly wit.”
Adenike Olanrewaju, Executive Editor, Harper
“The process of putting Unassimilable together was pretty straightforward—although Bianca was pregnant! When she returned from maternity leave, she jumped right in: she’d write, I’d send my thoughts back to her, and she’d make necessary changes in record time, all while taking care of a newborn. I really enjoyed working with Bianca and appreciated the diligence she brought to the work.”
Bianca Mabute-Louie, Author
“I got pregnant halfway through writing Unassimilable, which threw a wrench in my plans! I wrote as much as I could while pregnant and ended up finishing the last chapter after my maternity leave and pushing my original publication date back by six months. I love how my baby ended up accompanying and influencing the birth of this book. His imprint is on everything, from the timing to the stories to the insights.”
