I Hotel
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I Hotel Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Karen Tei Yamashita (Author), Nancy Wu (Narrator), Ramon De Ocampo (Narrator),
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 27 ratings
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Karen Tei Yamashita has been honored with the American Book Award and Janet Heidinger Kafka Award. A stunning portrait of Asian Americans in 1960s and ’70s San Francisco, I Hotel is a remarkable collection of 10 related novellas. Touching on such topics as Japanese internment camps and the Marcos dictatorship, the book presents readers with characters of rich design.

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  1. Listening Length
    22 hours and 20 minutes
  2. Author
    Karen Tei Yamashita
  3. Narrator
    Nancy Wu, see all
  4. Audible release date
    June 15, 2011
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Recorded Books
  7. ASIN
    B0055X2PSW
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 22 hours and 20 minutes
Author Karen Tei Yamashita
Narrator Nancy Wu, Ramon De Ocampo, Jenny Ikeda, Louis Changchien, James Yaegashi, Ali Ahn, Angela Lin
Audible.com Release Date June 15, 2011
Publisher Recorded Books
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B0055X2PSW
Best Sellers Rank #222,410 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#1,213 in Literature Anthologies
#8,051 in Literary Fiction (Audible Books & Originals)
#13,133 in Short Stories Anthologies

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
27 global ratings
If you want to know what really happened
5 Stars
If you want to know what really happened
KTY spent years interviewing everybody. So some things have been altered to protect the not-so-innocent...... but, unlike any academic study, this thoroughly captures the zeitgeist. In an irony of 21st century nonsense, I appear in it as a woman. (photo by Crystal K.D. Huie)
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Top reviews from the United States

Yoo
5.0 out of 5 stars The most significant book to read in order to understand the Asian American movement
Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2020
Verified Purchase
I deem I-Hotel by Karen Tei Yamashita as the one novel to read if you want to understand the foundation of Asian America—its culture and art, its politics and aspirations. This book pushes aesthetic boundaries as seen in form, and it innovates in its delivery on every level. I would make this required reading for Asian American Studies and stick this on a university level American Literature syllabus. It’s fun! It’s cool. It’s cinematic. There’s something for everyone. This. Is. Art.
For my fellow Asian Americans who missed Asian American studies class (there was no class, you couldn’t be bothered, your parents wanted you to be more practical, you felt socially rejected by the guy who was the Asian American Studies cool person, this is your go-to one book you should read now…and in doing so, you can gain some cool points). This is the story of how and why Asian America came into being, how Asian people began to construct an American identity. Yamashita chronicles the cultural moment when Asian Americans declared themselves part of the creative American project and galvanized their communities, built alliances across ethnicities and races, and paved the way for our existence today.
What you’ll find and understand—the how and whys of the Black Asian alliance, class struggle and belonging, the manong, communism, food, film, dance, global organization, performance art, jazz, the questions of gender, and romance and all the while asking: how do we belong?
I did a dissertation chapter on this book. I believe it to be one of the most significant novels written by an Asian American for its aesthetics, form, and content, and predict that this will be one of the books that will be read in the decades to come. It is ahead of its time. Read it now.
3 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read, but you have to commit to it.
Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2016
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Great book - it's slightly episodic, because it ties the themes together in a way that's not primarily narrative-driven, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the read. The writing is, dare I say, sexy - it drags a little in the latter part, but the characters and events described are all very enticing.
One person found this helpful
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Patricia Loftfjeld
5.0 out of 5 stars I wish this book had won the National Book Award instead of just being a finalist.
Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2013
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Wow. What an ambitious and massive and mind-altering work. It wasn't an easy book to read, and there were moments I wasn't sure she was going to pull it all together, even though I'd already decided I was along for the whole ride and was going to give her a shot. Boy, did she pull it together. I am sure this book means different things to different readers, but for me it became "about" the elderly Filipino migrant workers--the ones Yamashita mentions in her author's note--who, because of immigration quotas, racism, and available labor, really have no one but one another and no home but the one they're being forced from. But the myriad tiny side stories are so often and so deeply affecting. I know it is a heavy book, but I wish I could put it in everybody's hands and invite them to think closely about what it means to be American.
10 people found this helpful
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Patricia in Marin
1.0 out of 5 stars I Hotel Review
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2014
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I was so disappointed because I was supposed to read this for my book club and can't remember when I literally could not get through the first chapter of a book I disliked it so much. I live in San Francisco, travel a great deal internationally and was really looking forward to this, based on what I'd heard - what a waste of money! Thank goodness I didn't pay full price but still made me sorry I don't go to the library like most of my friends!

We haven't had our meeting for this book yet (this month) but I've spoken / heard from at least three other members who had the same experience - it's going to be interesting "reviewing" a highly acclaimed book no one could manage to read.
3 people found this helpful
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Jpmacaroni
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Book!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2022
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I love this book!!!!
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raphael c.
5.0 out of 5 stars Will shop here again!
Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2021
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The book I wanted, in fantastic condition, at a great price, shipped quickly.
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Leland L.
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2017
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Interesting reading.
One person found this helpful
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Robert S Hsu
1.0 out of 5 stars Could not Complete
Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2014
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Having grown up in San Francisco during that era, I was drawn to the I Hotel book, as the subject matter was big news at the time. I bought the book thinking it would provide more insights or anecdotes to the event that many of us were only capturing from the media, and to relive that era to get a better understanding in my current day. However, I gave up halfway through the book as it was a struggle trying to maintain interest up to that point. Needless to say, I was very disappointed and wished I did not waste my time nor money with this book. I'm sorry for this review, but this is only one of two books that I failed to complete in my reading history.
4 people found this helpful
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