Oh My Mother!: A Memoir in Nine Adventures

In Chinese, the closest expression tooh my godiswo de ma ya. Its an interjection, a polite expletive, something to say when youre out of words. Translated literally, it meansoh my motherthe instinctual first person you think of when youre on the cusp of losing it, or putting it all together.

In each essay of this hilarious, heartfelt, and pitch-perfectly honest memoir, journalist Connie Wang explores her complicated relationship to her stubborn and charismatic mother, Qing Li, through the oh my god moments in their travels together. From attending a Magic Mike strip show in Vegas to experimenting with edibles in Amsterdam to flip-flopping through Versailles, this iconic mother-daughter duo venture into the world to find their place in it, and sometimes rail against itas well as against each other.

There are hijinks, capers, and adventures. There is also tenderness, growth, and discovery. In telling these stories about the places theyve gone and the things theyve done, Wang reveals another story: the true story of two women who finally learned that once we are comfortable with the feeling of not belongingonce we can reject the need to belong to any place, community, census, designation, or nationwe can experience something almost like freedom.

Hardcover, May 9th 2023