Kevin Kwan explores race and identity in 'Sex and Vanity' and 'Lies and Weddings'

Summary

NPR's Book of the Day: Kevin Kwan on Race and Identity in 'Sex and Vanity' and 'Lies and Weddings'

Release Date: July 4, 2025

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Introduction to Kevin Kwan and His Literary Journey

In this episode of NPR's Book of the Day, host Andrew Limbong welcomes best-selling author Kevin Kwan, renowned for his Crazy Rich Asians series. Kwan discusses his evolution as a writer, delving into his latest works, Sex and Vanity and Lies and Weddings. These novels expand beyond the opulent settings of Hong Kong and Singapore to explore transnational themes of love, wealth, status, and culture.

Exploring 'Sex and Vanity': A Shift in Setting and Theme

Kwan begins by explaining his decision to transition from the familiar glamorous locales of his previous novels to new environments such as Italy, New York, and the Hamptons.

Kevin Kwan [02:52]: "I wanted to challenge myself and do something that would be a little breath of fresh air. This was meant to be a light summer romp."

He draws inspiration from A Room With a View, reimagining its narrative to address contemporary issues. The protagonist, Lucy Tang Churchill, is biracial—half Chinese and half WASP—embarking on a journey to discover her own identity amid family expectations and cultural clashes.

Character Dynamics: Lucy and George

Kwan introduces George Z, a Chinese Australian surfer studying environmental architecture at UC Berkeley, embodying the modern Asian man unbothered by societal expectations.

Kevin Kwan [04:20]: "George is one of these classic modern Asian men. He has no patience for the social fripperies of both the crazy rich agent set and the WASP set. He really could give a damn."

Lucy grapples with her family's unspoken racism and societal pressures, leading her to question her own biases and identity.

Kevin Kwan [05:16]: "She doesn't see the love that they have for her. She just hears the criticism, which creates a part of her that really wants to self-censor."

Delving into Race and Racism

Despite the novel's luxurious facade, Kwan does not shy away from addressing deeper issues of race and identity. Through satire, he effectively highlights the complexities of being biracial in a world that often enforces rigid cultural boundaries.

Kevin Kwan [06:12]: "Using satire is an effective tool to explore subject matters like identity and racism in a way that's meaningful without hitting people over the head."

His portrayal is inspired by real-life experiences of biracial individuals navigating their dual heritage, emphasizing the nuanced challenges they face.

Impact of 'Crazy Rich Asians' on Hollywood and Representation

Kwan reflects on the groundbreaking success of the Crazy Rich Asians movie and its influence on Hollywood's approach to diversity.

Kevin Kwan [07:27]: "I have seen change up close. Last season, there were six greenlit pilots by the networks that involved Asian casts or casts that had a lot of diversity in it. I'm hopeful, but we are by no means done."

However, he criticizes the industry's tendency to favor aspirational minority characters over diverse narratives.

Kevin Kwan [08:46]: "We don't want to limit stories to just depicting the wealthy and powerful. There are amazing stories in every genre, across all socioeconomic classes."

Introducing 'Lies and Weddings': A Modern Austen Tribute

In discussing his latest book, Lies and Weddings, Kwan describes it as a "valentine to London and England," continuing his Cities Trilogy.

Kevin Kwan [11:38]: "I was so inspired by Jane Austen, but I'm trying to flip the script of the traditional narrative of how a woman must marry a wealthy man."

The novel centers on Rufus Leung Gresham and his struggle between family expectations and his own desires, set against a backdrop of opulent weddings and intricate social dynamics.

Authenticity Through Meticulous Research

Kwan emphasizes the importance of authenticity in his storytelling, meticulously researching every aspect from jewelry designers to bespoke tailors to ensure a realistic portrayal of the ultra-wealthy.

Kevin Kwan [13:46]: "I visit museums, collections, and actual artisans because it's important to experience and see the products firsthand to lend authenticity to each character."

Addressing Criticisms and Broadening Representation

Responding to critiques that his works focus solely on the super-rich Asian elites, Kwan defends his approach by aligning it with a long literary tradition that often centers on the wealthy and powerful.

Kevin Kwan [16:03]: "Privilege, power, wealth have always fascinated people in literature. I'm showing a different facet from the Asian point of view, highlighting the complexities as Asia collides with the West."

He also highlights his efforts to represent biracial Eurasians, addressing the unique challenges they face in balancing dual cultural identities.

Kevin Kwan [16:59]: "I'm trying to give voice to the complexity of existing between two cultures, being British and Chinese."

Future Directions and Broader Literary Aspirations

Looking ahead, Kwan reveals plans to conclude his Cities Trilogy with a novel set in Paris and expresses a desire to explore narratives beyond the privileged elite.

Kevin Kwan [19:24]: "I want to stretch my wings and write about the other 99%. I would like to explore other territories beyond just this 1% very privileged world."

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Conclusion

Kevin Kwan's Sex and Vanity and Lies and Weddings offer a sophisticated blend of romance, satire, and social commentary, continuing his exploration of race and identity within the affluent Asian diaspora. Through rich character development and meticulous world-building, Kwan invites readers to reflect on cultural complexities while indulging in the escapism of his luxurious narratives.

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Notable Quotes:

• On challenging himself with new settings:
  Kevin Kwan [02:52]: "I wanted to challenge myself and do something that would be a little breath of fresh air."

• On representation in literature:
  Kevin Kwan [16:03]: "Privilege, power, wealth have always fascinated people in literature."

• On future aspirations:
  Kevin Kwan [19:24]: "I want to stretch my wings and write about the other 99%."

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the key discussions and insights from the podcast episode, providing a clear and engaging overview for those who haven't listened while highlighting significant quotes and themes explored by Kevin Kwan.

Transcript

[Andrew Limbong]

Hey, it's Andrew. Just a heads up. This week on the show, we are revisiting some of our favorite summer reads. We've got some classic beach reads, family dramas, love stories, all kinds of books to get you through a vacation or for you to appreciate from the comfort of an air conditioned library. Enjoy. Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. Kevin Kwan is on the pod today. He is the author of the hugely popular Crazy Rich Asians book series. The books he's putting out now, though, still about Asians who are crazy rich, but it's a more transnational take on love and wealth and status and culture. In a bit, we'll hear about his latest book, lies and Weddings. But first, I want to play for you this interview he did back in summer 2020 with former NPR host Lulu Garcia Navarro. It's about his previous book, Sex and Vanity. And it's an interesting interview because, well, obviously the book isn't about COVID But think about the mindset we were all in during summer 2020. And the conversation becomes a sneaky advocate for art that manages to, yes, provide some escapism from the everyday without shying away from certain topics that do affect us in the real world. That's ahead.

[Kevin Kwan]

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[Robin Young]

The settings, a lavish Capri wedding, Italian villas, mansions in the Hamptons and a mega yacht. Of course, the love interest, George Z, a Chinese Australian surfer and Lucy Tang Churchill of, yes, those Churchills. The book Sex and Vanity, it could only be written by Kevin Kwan, author of Crazy Rich Asians. And he joins us now to talk about it. Hello.

[Kevin Kwan]

Hey. It's a pleasure to be here.

[Robin Young]

It is a pleasure to have you. First of all, this book made me even sadder about being stuck in my house. Capri is lovely and I wanted to be there.

[Kevin Kwan]

I'm so sorry. That was not my intention that people would have to read this, you know, while they were self isolating. But hopefully it brings them a little spark of joy, a little laughter and we can all, we can all imagine that we're at the beach, you know, drinking a nice mojito or something like that.

[Robin Young]

Absolutely. Why did you choose to move away from the decadent, glamorous worlds of Hong Kong and Singapore and set this book mostly in Italy and New York and the Hamptons?

[Kevin Kwan]

You know, I felt it was time for me to move on. I mean, I'd written three books, you know, over 1800 pages worth of, you know, this epic story about the young Shang Hsian family. And I just wanted to try something new. I wanted to challenge myself, but I also wanted to do something that to me would be kind of like a little breath of fresh air, you know, this was meant to be a light summer romp.

[Lauren Schmies]

Yeah.

[Robin Young]

This is essentially an homage to A Room With a View. It even has main characters with the same names. What made you want to update that story?

[Kevin Kwan]

You know, it's one of my favorite books of all time and one of my favorite movies of all time. And so it was always a fantasy of how could I retell this in a whole new way, you know, with a whole new Lucy dealing with very contemporary problems. And there's a looseness to the storyline. There's so much more I could build from that, from the premise of just swapping a room that presents the, you know, the meet cute. But it was my way of really exploring so many other issues. And my Lucy is, of course, biracial. You know, she's half Chinese and half very old establishment wasp. And I wanted to be able to tell that story of sort of the fusion of that and the problems and struggles it creates in her life as she, you know, tries to really find her own identity.

[Robin Young]

Let's talk about the characters. Lucy and George meet at this wedding in Capri. Lucy spends a lot of time pretending that she does not like George, but we know better. Tell me about George. Who is he?

[Kevin Kwan]

George is one of these classic modern Asian men. He was born in Hong Kong, but he was schooled in Australia, and now he's going to college in the US he's going to UC Berkeley studying environmental architecture. So he's very much, you know, the hybrid of the modern Asian man. And he has no patience for the social fripperies of not just the crazy rich agent set, but also the WAFT set. You know, he really could give a damn.

[Robin Young]

Lucy thinks he's an inappropriate match. She's afraid of what her sort of Wall street fortune bearing WASP y side of the family might think because they might feel like he wasn't the right kind of rich.

[Kevin Kwan]

Exactly. And she's also, I think, Forced to confront her inner racism towards, you know, the Asian side of the family. The side that's perhaps not as neat and tidy and as pedigreed as her father's side of the family.

[Robin Young]

Yeah, let's talk about that. Lucy always feels like she's too much of a Tang and she has to put up with people like her cousin casually saying things like, your mother is Chinese, so it's no surprise you'd be attracted to someone like him, meaning George. And these kinds of racist statements really affect Lucy and the choices that she makes.

[Kevin Kwan]

I think for her it's a lifetime of tiny paper cuts. You know, I think the family is well intentioned, but even in their good intention, there is this unconscious racism, you know, that sort of has been infused throughout her life. And that's what she takes in. She doesn't see the love that they have for her. I mean, she just hears the criticism in her voice and I think it creates a part of her that really wants to self censor.

[Robin Young]

You know, you've written this very fun, luxurious romantic novel, but you don't shy away from race and racism. You really shine a light on it. Why was that important to do?

[Kevin Kwan]

Using satire, it's such an effective tool to really explore subject matters like identity and racism in a way that's meaningful to me. But that doesn't hit people over the head. You know, it hopefully will make them think, it'll make them laugh a little bit, but it will really hopefully, you know, let people consider that, you know, different people have different struggles, I should say. I mean, this was very much inspired by so many friends and even family members of mine who are biracial. I've grown up just watching, you know, their struggles and their triumphs, you know, integrating into the families that they come from. In Lucy's case, she had a mother that actually kind of aided and abetted and really tried to sublimate her Chinese side for the sake of her children. And that had its unintended consequences.

[Robin Young]

I want to talk about crazy rich Asians. The movie, when it came out two years ago, got a whole lot of attention for being the first movie since the Joy Luck Club to have, you know, an all Asian leading cast, headlines proclaimed it would change Hollywood and was a major step forward for representation in the industry. It definitely debunked the myth that minority movies don't sell. But has the rest of its promise sort of come to fruition, do you think?

[Kevin Kwan]

I think we're in very early days. I mean, if you really think of it, crazy rich Asians came out in 2018. And Hollywood, you know, it takes three, four or five years to develop projects and really get them off the ground. I'm very hopeful. I have seen change up close. You know, last season in the TV world, for example, there were six greenlit pilots by the networks that involved Asian casts or casts that had a lot of diversity in it. The fact that a movie like the Farewell could do so well and that Aquafina could win the Golden Globe, I'm hopeful. But we are by no means done.

[Robin Young]

Yeah. I mean, crazy rich Asians also set this other trend. I'm going to quote from an executive, from a Bloomberg piece that I read right after the film came out, and I haven't been able to get it out of my mind. It's about how Hollywood was viewing pitches by Latinos after crazy rich Asians. And an executive at a film company said that the secret to making films with mass appeal for minorities is showing a character that people would aspire to be. He said, and this is a quote, if someone comes to me with an immigration story of the poor immigrant, I'm really not that interested. What are your thoughts on the sort of effect that crazy rich Asians had, or at least the way it was interpreted by certain Hollywood executives?

[Kevin Kwan]

I mean, I think that's exactly what we don't want, quite frankly, you know, because I think there are amazing stories, you know, in every genre, in every age group, in every socioeconomic class. And in the classic immigrant story that this executive might so frown upon, could be something that's genius and beautiful and just waiting to connect to the rest of the world.

[Robin Young]

Kevin Kwan, his new book is Sex and Vanity. Thank you very much.

[Kevin Kwan]

It's been such a pleasure.

[Lulu Garcia Navarro]

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[Kevin Kwan]

NPR Network, live from NPR News.

[Lauren Schmies]

I'm Lauren Schmies.

[Kevin Kwan]

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[Robin Young]

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[Kevin Kwan]

The places where stories unfold, backed by.

[Robin Young]

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[Kevin Kwan]

Hear ways of thinking that challenge your own. Hear the bigger picture with npr.

[Robin Young]

Okay.

[Andrew Limbong]

So by now, Kevin Kwan has a number of books about the super rich, including his latest one, lies and Weddings. And in this next interview here now's Robin Young asks him why? Why focus all this time and attention on the rich? And what can we take away from these stories if we, you know, aren't crazy rich? Here's the interview.

[Lauren Schmies]

Kevin Kwan's wildly successful Crazy Rich Asians trilogy was a deep dive into the world of the super rich in Singapore and China. Gorgeous clothes, exclusive real estate. Maybe you saw the film version of the first book, the hit of the summer of 2018. Then Kevin Kwan turned his attention to Asians living outside of the Far east in his new trilogy, which launched in 2020 with the novel Sex and Vanity. Now the new Lies and Weddings. It centers, dear reader, around the young viscount Rufus Leung Gresham, his mother, a former Hong Kong supermodel his English father, the Earl of Greshambury, the family's fortune on the verge of collapse, his mother's plan marry off Rufus. Oh, too bad his heart is set on Eden, not an heiress. It's delish and deceptive. We're also talking about race and family roots. And Kevin Kwan joins us from the NPR New York studios. Welcome.

[Kevin Kwan]

It's such a pleasure.

[Lauren Schmies]

You know, the book has sort of an old fashioned Jane Austen feel to it. You know, a family's fortune rests on a child making a good marriage.

[Kevin Kwan]

It sure does. You know, I was so inspired by her, but I'm trying to flip the script of the traditional narrative of how a woman must marry a wealthy man.

[Lauren Schmies]

And there's something decidedly 2024. I don't know how you even, I mean, are all the dress designers and jewelry makers and fancy wines and stuff I've never heard of. Is that all real?

[Kevin Kwan]

Absolutely. Is meticulously researched.

[Lauren Schmies]

Yeah. Name some.

[Kevin Kwan]

There are beautiful jewelry designers, you know, Carnet Michelle Ong, one of the greatest jewelers, I think, of her generation is featured bespoke tailors, you know, like Sartoria Ripense of Rome that makes beautifully tailored men's suits, the people that make the pillows for the Pope. I mean, it's all ridiculous, but hopefully it's all in ridiculous fun.

[Lauren Schmies]

Well, it's all lush. But then there's also the lineage that you assign everyone every time a character is introduced. And there's tons of them. There's Freddie, Cee Crossroads, NYU Pepperdine. You take us through their boarding schools, up through their college education, saying what?

[Kevin Kwan]

You know, I think it's funny because in certain circles, Right. That academic Snobbery. That pedigree of where you went to school is so important. So I put it all out there from the minute you meet the characters so you know where they've come from.

[Lauren Schmies]

Well, then there's also these asterisks all along the way. And we go down to read a narrator, it seems, who's talking us through this. So, for instance, when one of the characters talks about a Francis Bacon painting, the narrator notes. At Christie's post war and Contemporary art auction in 2013, Francis Bacon's Three Studies of Lucian Freud sold for $142 million. Who's that?

[Kevin Kwan]

That narrator in this book, for the very first time, is in my voice. In previous books, you know, I've chosen characters to really represent, and they're in the different characters voices. The crazy Rich Asian series for ex. The footnotes are in the voice of Oliver, the sort of gossipy cousin. But this time I just thought, you know, let's just go for a neutral author voice.

[Lauren Schmies]

I felt it was your voice. And you say you've done research on this. What kind of research?

[Kevin Kwan]

A lot of times I visit these museums, I visit collections, I visit jewelers, actual artisans that I'm writing about because for me, it's so important to experience it, to see it, to have proof of the product, because I'm really trying to lend authenticity to each character. So the root of that is what they surround themselves.

[Lauren Schmies]

Well, and to the rest of us at Telegraphs, you can't even imagine this world that I'm talking about. I mean, it is beyond rich. And I'm wondering, you know, our program has spoken to you before, and you told us that you grew up alongside this world. Explain again what you mean.

[Kevin Kwan]

My family, we were not crazy rich Asians by any stretch of the imagination, But I came from an old, respected family, and I was growing up at a time when there were people I knew that when I went to school with classmates and friends and family, friends that were suddenly. Their wealth was exponentializing. And you were seeing that in real time. Seeing that has long, long fascinated me.

[Lauren Schmies]

Yeah. Well. And did anyone ever lose a fortune as catastrophically as the family here?

[Kevin Kwan]

Absolutely. Because you would see the flip side, too. You would see the flip side of fortunes made and lost almost seemingly overnight.

[Lauren Schmies]

Yeah. Well, talk more about the women. As you said, you flipped things a little bit here from Jane Austen, and you have the character Eden, maybe something like you. Her dad, Thomas, is the doctor to this very wealthy family. So they live on a cottage, and she's grown up with these Very wealthy kids. She's a doctor with England's National Health Service. She has this grounded feel about her that the very, very wealthy children of the Gresham family. She reminds us a little of Rachel, the heroine of crazy rich Asians. Is she a little bit. You too, this person on the periphery?

[Kevin Kwan]

I think she's probably much smarter. And, you know, she's our way in, right? She is the normal person in the midst of these crazy people.

[Lauren Schmies]

Do you hear from readers who are saying, well, wait a second, you've been portraying Asians, even though you have characters like Rachel and Eden, you've been portraying this slice of the Asian world that's so super wealthy. What do you say to that? That it's somewhat belittling of these crazy rich Asians.

[Kevin Kwan]

I look at the great literary tradition that exists before me, right? And if you look at Western writers, quote, quote, unquote, most of these stories that are being told throughout history have been centered on the wealthy and the powerful. Starting from Jane Austen to Anthony Trollope to Henry James to Edith Wharton to Tom Wolfe in modern times to Dominic D. List is long privilege, power. Wealth has always fascinated people in literature. And I'm just showing a different facet of it. I'm showing that from the Asian point of view, but I'm also showing the complexity of all this as Asia collides with the west and people intermarry and migrate and move. I haven't really gotten that much criticism about that aspect, but I have recently met a lot of readers who feel seen biracial Eurasians, they feel like no one's writing about us and the complexity of our experience existing between two cultures being British and Chinese. And so I'm trying to give voice to that.

[Lauren Schmies]

Well, let's talk more about how you explore race. In the book. You have Eden fully Chinese, when she goes with this wild family, the Greshams, to Hawaii, where they seem to have bought every flower and every ounce of expensive liquor and, you know, to have this unbelievable over the top wedding in Hawaii. She keeps being mistaken for the help.

[Kevin Kwan]

For her, it's an epiphany because she doesn't realize until she comes to Hawaii how privileged she herself has been. You know, she grew up in this little bubble in this perfect English village, being Chinese, but because of her association with this family, she hasn't experienced the degree of prejudice until she goes to Hawaii and people mistake her for hotel staff.

[Lauren Schmies]

Also, it becomes clear that one of the reasons that Rufus's can't stand the idea of her as a daughter in law is that she's too Chinese. Rufus's mother is Chinese, but married again, an Englishman. And just this idea of hapa, I think it is half Asian.

[Kevin Kwan]

Exactly. You know, I grew up with hapa relatives and hapa friends, and I would see the sort of innate paradox of their lives and the struggle for their own identities. And so I wanted to explore that more fully in this book, to really showcase. So, yeah, you know, there's all these complexities of race, of where you belong that permeate the book.

[Lauren Schmies]

Yeah, look, you definitely have a solid career as a novelist. Time magazine named you one of the hundred most influential people in the world in 2018. What do you think that means? Influential how? What do you feel maybe a responsibility for or what do you think that means?

[Kevin Kwan]

It's honoring and also baffling, I feel. And I. I can't really dissect it because if I have to really think about it that deeply, it would scare the hell out of me. I try to write books that really amuse people, that take them for a ride, but also perhaps make them think beyond just the surface. You lure them in with the candy, with the great food, with the travel, with the drama. But hopefully you see many levels of issues that are explored within my books as well.

[Lauren Schmies]

By the way, what's next? Is this something you stay with? Because why not? Are you gonna mind this vein as long as you can?

[Kevin Kwan]

Really? Only for one more novel. You know, I conceived this book. It's the second of a trilogy which I call the Cities Trilogy, in which I pay homage to a major city in each book. So the first one of this series was my last novel, Sex and Vanity, which was the New York story. This one Lies in Weddings, to me is a valentine to London and to England. And the last book in that trilogy is going to be set in Paris. But beyond that, I really do want to stretch my wings and write about the other 99%. You know, I think I would like to explore other territories beyond just this 1% very privileged world.

[Lauren Schmies]

Meantime, you get to do your research in Paris, hopefully. Yeah. Kevin Kwan's new book, Lies and Weddings. Kevin, thank you. As always. Thank you.

[Kevin Kwan]

It's always such a pleasure. Thanks.

[Andrew Limbong]

That's it for this week on NPR's Book of the Day. If you want more, you can sign up for our newsletter, npr.org newsletter books I'm Andrew Limbong. The podcast is produced by Isabel Gomez Sarmiento and edited by Megan Sullivan. Our founding editor is Petra Mayer. The show elements for this week were produced and edited by Rena Advani, Jacob Conrad, Lindsay Totti, Samantha Balaban, Melissa Gray, Ed McNulty, Reena Advani, Monte Khurana, Barry Hardeman, Emiko Tamigawa and Todd Mundt. Beth Donovan is our Managing Editor. Thanks for listening.

[Robin Young]

The House of Representatives has approved a White House request to claw back two years of previously approved funding for public media. The rescissions package now moves on to the Senate. This move poses a a serious threat to local stations and public media as we know it. Please take a stand for public media [e-mail] thank you.

[Lulu Garcia Navarro]

Support for this podcast and the following message come from Middlesex County, New Jersey. Companies like Nokia, Bell Labs are moving there to benefit from the collaboration, talent and investment that will allow them to develop technology that innovates with purpose. Middlesex County, New Jersey is more innovative than 98% of the nation. Your business can be there and benefit from this too. Go to discovermiddlesex.com AI to learn all the advantages and connect with a dedicated business advisor.