(Note: This interview originally aired back in September.) Our guest is Erika Lee, who teaches history at the University of Minnesota, where she's also the Vecoli Chair in Immigration History and Director of the Immigration History Research Center. Lee tells us about her widely acclaimed book, "The Making of Asian America: A History" (Simon & Schuster). As was noted of this volume in the pages of The New York Times Book Review: "Sweeping.... Lee's comprehensive history traces the experiences of myriad Asian-American communities, from Chinese laborers in 1850s California to Hmong refugees in 1980s Minnesota.... 'The Making of Asian America' shares strong similarities with other broad inclusive Asian-American histories, most obviously Ronald Takaki's 'Strangers From a Different Shore,' first published in 1989. Lee's book doesn't radically depart from its predecessors so much as provide a useful and important upgrade by broadening the scope and, at times, deepening the investigations.... Fascinating." You can learn more about this book -- and can hear a free, on-demand stream of our interview with Erika Lee -- at this link.
"The Making of Asian America: A History" (Encore Presentation)
