A Way of Looking

A Way of Looking is a powerful and original book. It is so concise and straightforward that it takes a few pages before one realizes how quietly complex it is. Zheng's form—half prose, half verse—is the sort of thing that might easily go wrong, but he uses it to give two succinct views of each moment in the personal narrative. It's as if he told an anecdote and then showed a photo that did not duplicate but amplify the story. A Way of Looking is a heartfelt account of exile and homecoming. It is a significant addition to the Asian American literature of immigration. — Dana Gioia