TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY – Exclusive Interview Event!
Toronto, Ontario M4W 2G8 Canada
Jeff Chang shares his epic cultural biography and traces the life of the icon, the immigrant and the movement he unknowingly ignited.
TPL presents award-winning author Jeff Chang in conversation with Vinh Nguyen at the Toronto Reference Library’s Appel Salon, celebrating what would have been Bruce Lee’s birthday.
More than half a century after his death, Bruce Lee remains as towering a figure as ever, the man who popularized martial arts in the West, became a bridge between Eastern and Western culture, and was poised to conquer Hollywood when he died suddenly at age thirty-two. But in the decades since, his legend has eclipsed the man. Forgotten is the immigrant, the fighter, the seeker, the teacher, the father grappling with exile and belonging in a country that questioned his right to simply exist.
In his epic new cultural biography Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America, acclaimed author Jeff Chang recovers the man behind the icon. Drawing on in-depth interviews with Lee’s closest intimates, thousands of newly available personal documents, and dozens of rare photographs from the family archive, Chang traces Lee’s remarkable journey: a charismatic child star turned delinquent teen fighter in Hong Kong, exiled alone to America, who transformed personal struggle into a philosophy of movement and being. Chang reveals how Lee’s rise didn’t just create a Hollywood legend, it helped birth something even more enduring: the very concept of Asian America.
Join Jeff Chang for a special evening honouring Bruce Lee’s birthday, offering a stirringly human portrait of the icon, the immigrant, and the movement he unknowingly ignited.
Q&A and book signing to follow. Books available for purchase.
About this event’s guests:
Read more:
Water, Mirror, Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A Hip-Hop History
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PLAN YOUR VISIT:
Location: Bram and Bluma Appel Salon, Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge Street), 2nd floor
Time: Doors open 6:00pm, Event starts 7:00pm.
Tickets: Free registration required.
Ticket policy: We oversell these events to ensure that the greatest number of people have an opportunity to attend. Tickets guaranteed until 6:45pm or until capacity is reached. Seating first come, first served.
Bar: Beer/wine available for purchase (debit/credit only).
Accessibility: TPL is committed to accessibility. If you are Deaf or have a disability and would like to request accommodation for this event, please contact accessibleservices@tpl.ca or 416-393-7099 at least three weeks prior to the event.
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This event is part of our signature Salon Series, where we host local and international authors, artists and thinkers in conversation about their new books and big ideas.
This event is also part of TPL’s Asian Heritage Series.
Presenting Sponsor of Heritage Programs: TD Bank Group, through the TD Ready Commitment.