“Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America” book talk with Jeff Chang

Join us for a conversation and book signing with award-winning writer, critic, and cultural observer Jeff Chang as he brings fresh insight and humanity to the legendary Bruce Lee in Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America. Jeff will be in conversation with filmmaker Ursula Liang.

His new book is not only a sweeping, intimate biography of a global martial arts icon, but is also the untold story of the rise of Asian America.

Water Mirror Echo—a title inspired by Bruce Lee’s own way of moving, being and responding to the world—reminds us of his core essence. In the hands of author Jeff Chang, Bruce Lee’s story brims with the personal. Based on in-depth interviews with Lee’s closest intimates, newly available personal documents, and featuring dozens of photographs from Lee’s family archive, Chang reveals the man behind the iconography. Stirringly, he shows how Lee’s growing fame ushered in something even more enduring—the creation of Asian America.

This event is presented in partnership with Eastwind Books. They will be selling copies of Water Mirror Echo at the event.

Author Biography

Jeff Chang is an award-winning writer, host, and cultural organizer known for his keen observations on culture, politics, the arts, and music. His first book, Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation, was named one of the best nonfiction books of the last quarter century. His other books include Who We Be: A Cultural History of Race in Post Civil Rights America), and We Gon’ Be Alright: Notes On Race and Resegregation. Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America, a sweeping cultural biography, is his newest release. He is also the host of the podcasts Signal Award-winning Edge of Reason, and KALW’s Notes From the Edge. Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai’i of Chinese and Kanaka Maoli descent, he is a graduate of ‘Iolani School, the University of California at Berkeley, and the University of California at Los Angeles.

Moderator Biography

Ursula Liang (she/her) is an award-winning director and producer with 25 years of experience in storytelling. Her debut feature, 9-Man (2014), was broadcast on public television and called “an absorbing documentary” by The New York Times. Her second film, Down a Dark Stairwell (2020), had its premiere at True/False and was called “the most essential Asian American documentary in decades.” Her latest feature, Jeanette Lee Vs. (2022), is part of ESPN’s acclaimed 30 for 30 series while her most recent short, Two Strikes (2023), aired on the iconic PBS series Frontline. Her work has been supported by ITVS, Ford Foundation, Sundance Institute, Firelight Media, and the Center for Asian American Media. Before becoming a filmmaker, Ursula held staff positions at The New York Times Op-Docs, T: The New York Times Style Magazine, ESPN The Magazine, Asia Pacific Forum, and Hyphen magazine. She has also produced for television, including UFC Primetime and NBC Spartan Ultimate Team Challenge. Ursula is a member of Film Fatales, A-DOC, IDD, and is the Board Vice President of Brown Girls Doc Mafia. Originally from Newton, Massachusetts, she spent two decades in the Bronx, and currently works from Oakland, California.