NATIONAL BESTSELLER • ONE OF USA TODAY'S MUST-READ BOOKS • This groundbreaking memoir offers a glimpse into an activist's journey to finding and cultivating community and the continued fight for disability justice, from the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project
“Alice Wong provides deep truths in this fun and deceptively easy read about her survival in this hectic and ableist society.” —Selma Blair, bestselling author of Mean Baby
In Chinese culture, the tiger is deeply revered for its confidence, passion, ambition, and ferocity. That same fighting spirit resides in Alice Wong.
Drawing on a collection of original essays, previously published work, conversations, graphics, photos, commissioned art by disabled and Asian American artists, and more, Alice uses her unique talent to share an impressionistic scrapbook of her life as an Asian American disabled activist, community organizer, media maker, and dreamer. From her love of food and pop culture to her unwavering commitment to dismantling systemic ableism, Alice shares her thoughts on creativity, access, power, care, the pandemic, mortality, and the future. As a self-described disabled oracle, Alice traces her origins, tells her story, and creates a space for disabled people to be in conversation with one another and the world. Filled with incisive wit, joy, and rage, Wong’s Year of the Tiger will galvanize readers with big cat energy.
About the Author
Alice Wong is a disabled activist, media maker, and research consultant based in San Francisco, California. She is the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project—an online community dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture—and the editor of the anthology Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century and Disability Visibility: 17 First-Person Stories for Today (Adapted for Young Adults). Alice is also the host and coproducer of the Disability Visibility podcast and copartner in a number of collaborations such as #CripTheVote and Access Is Love. From 2013 to 2015, Alice served as a member of the National Council on Disability, an appointment by President Barack Obama. She is currently working on her next anthology, Disability Intimacy, forthcoming from Vintage Books.
Praise For…
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: NPR • KIRKUS REVEWS
LONGLISTED FOR THE BARBELLION PRIZE
A GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD NOMINEE • ONE OF USA TODAY'S MUST-READ BOOKS
ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Ms. Magazine, Esquire, BuzzFeed, Literary Hub, Electric Lit, Book Riot, Gothamist, Kirkus Reviews, PopSugar, KQED, Autostraddle
“Enlightening. . . . Incisive critiques, humor, practicality, and optimism become compellingly inseparable. . . . Year of the Tiger demonstrates an individual mind at work, as one might expect from a good memoir, and encompasses something larger. . . . Memoir will be redefined for many readers by Wong’s candid voice, tenacious spirit and necessary truths.” —Anna Leahy, The Washington Post
“A remix of essays, interviews, and archival ephemera relayed in a style that is by turns intimate, profane, and crackling with righteous anger.” —Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times
“Powerful. . . . Wong’s memoir is full of wit and humor but also frustration and rage, and she doesn’t hold back in exposing the systemic oppression and inequities faced by disabled people in an ableist society. . . . An empowering read.” —Reyna Grande, San Francisco Chronicle
“At once a celebration of [Wong’s] love of art, food, and pop culture and a challenge to dismantle the systemic ableism that pervades our society, Year of the Tiger is both inspirational and fun.” —Qian Julie Wang, TODAY
“Alice Wong provides deep truths in this fun and deceptively easy read about her survival in this hectic and ableist society. I would like to imagine this memoir as required reading for our fellow earthlings. From start to finish I felt I was spending a week with an old friend, grateful for the work she has done, inviting us to be more aware and have conversations about disability justice. Read this book. You will be farther ahead as a person and ally to the disability community, which is essentially learning to be your own ally. In sickness and in health. Thank you, Alice.” —Selma Blair, bestselling author of Mean Baby
“Innovative and informative, Year of the Tiger is a multidimensional portrait of a powerful thinker.” —Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire
“Wong forgoes the conventional memoir for something more creative—and more candid. . . . The collection offers a meticulously curated look at who Wong is: a superhero who never needed a cape.” —Shannon Carlin, Bust
“Year of the Tiger is a ferocious, fun adventure in the style of my favorite fanzines of the ’90s. Alice Wong is one of our foremost disability advocates, and yet this book isn’t only about disability, though it discusses disability with frankness and humor; more importantly, it's not about ‘overcoming’ a condition. This book is about a colorful life lived alongside disability—a full life. This memoir is a must-read.” —Esmé Weijun Wang, author of The Collected Schizophrenias
“An expansive and maximalist self-portrait of a person who I look up to with all my heart. Alice Wong’s memoir is hundreds of different pieces of her that come together poignantly to illuminate the crackling, bombastic, and deeply thoughtful artist and activist she is. Year of the Tiger deftly avoids the trappings of traditional memoir to create a new form—ferocious, boundary-breaking, and brilliant—that is completely unique to her and all her triumphant work.” —Jonny Sun, New York Times bestselling author of Goodbye, again and everyone’s a aliebn when ur a aliebn too
“Wong shares her journey . . . in an impressionistic memoir of essays and artwork.” —Barbara VanDenburgh, USA Today, “5 Must-Read Books This Week”
“Wong’s memoir pushes back against the nauseating stereotypes that disability memoirs need to be at turns inspiring and depressing, and center the disabled writer as overcoming their disability. Instead . . . Wong presents a life full of disabled joy. . . . This hybrid memoir shows the richness and nuance of disabled life, while also challenging nondisabled readers to confront their own ableism and their complacency in allowing discrimination against disabled people to continue.” —Margaret Kingsbury, BuzzFeed
“An intimate glimpse into Wong’s life and her thoughts on power, ableism, access and more. . . . Wong’s memoir creates space for disabled individuals to be in conversation and community with one another.” —Kristie Song, KQED
“A great book for disabled and non-disabled folks to hear other perspectives. . . . [Wong] uplifts, honors, and amplifies disabled voices.” —Molly Gaumer, Gothamist
“Illuminating and eye-opening.” —Christina Pascucci-Ciampa, Boston Magazine
“From its first pages, Year of the Tiger embodies rebellion and defies expectation. Alice’s tenacity and winking mischievousness make her a pleasure to read—this book is empowering, thought-provoking and an enthusiastic call to action. Her absolute confidence and creative devotion to herself, her safety, and most importantly, her joy . . . it’s truly exhilarating.” —Stephanie Foo, author of What My Bones Know
“Wong uses structure and format in interesting ways . . . to share her joy as well as her struggles living as a disabled person in an ableist world.” —Erica Ezeifedi, Book Riot
“I savored every section of Year of the Tiger. . . . As per usual, Wong does not abide by convention. . . . Let Wong’s memoir disrupt your norms.” —Giannina Ong, Mochi Magazine
“Stunning. . . . [Wong] sprinkles in dry humor and is adept at balancing compassion with flashes of rage. The combination of memoir, manifesto, scrapbook, confession, and rousing call to action make for a winning mix. This one’s tough to forget.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Wong’s collection provides a truly multidimensional portrait of a disabled writer effectively fighting the tendency of able-bodied people to treat the disability community as a monolith, an idea the author effectively deconstructs throughout the book. Not just beautifully written, the book is formally innovative, incorporating fiction (most notably, science fiction) and illustrated elements that are both profoundly insightful and consistently creative. Wong’s grasp of social justice issues is as impressive as her ability to explain complex ideas clearly, passionately, and often humorously. . . . A stunningly innovative, compulsively readable hybrid of memoir, cultural criticism, and social activism.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“An imaginative and insightful memoir. . . . Written in a refreshingly frank and honest manner, Wong explores communal joy, grief, and rage and carves out a space for all people to be in conversation with one another. . . . An essential read for anyone with an interest in accessible futures, community building, and social justice.” —Zhui Ning Chang, Library Journal
“Stylish. . . . Moving. . . . Compelling. . . . Seasoned generously with [Wong’s] quick wit and fierce calls to action. . . . Wong’s thoughtful use of multimedia elements . . . adds playfulness and dimension. . . . A kaleidoscopic image of Wong’s life, illuminated by her revolutionary ideas of interdependence and care.” —Claire Fallon, BookPage
“Incisive, joyful, angry, and passionate.” —Jaime Herndon, Book Riot
“An inviting look at one of our most important community-builders. . . . Alice Wong’s commitment to her cause is felt on every page.” —Literary Hub, “Lit Hub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2022”
“Wong’s portrait of her life . . . capture[s] her wit and commitment to community . . . compelling readers to face the joys and pressures of life with that same vigorous determination.” —Sabienna Bowman, PopSugar
"Essential." —Karla J. Strand, Ms. Magazine
"Phenomenal." —R.O. Kwon, Electric Lit, "62 Books by Women of Color to Read in 2022"
