As a Chinese-Canadian millennial, this book made me feel seen.

Jon M. Chu is a well known director, particularly amongst the Asian American and YouTube community. Chu's journey to becoming a filmmaker, from growing up surrounded by emerging cutting edge tech in Silicon Valley to garnering Stephen Spielberg's attention right out of college was fascinating and reminded me a lot of Spielberg's movie, The Fabelmans.

But what made me really connect with Chu were his stories about his parents, his Chinese-American upbringing, his work ethic and passion for storytelling, and finding his community amongst other Asian Americans. Although Chu and I lived in different parts of the continent with very different career paths, I found his childhood stories and insights and struggles with being Asian in America extremely relatable.

I've been a long time fan of Chu's and reading this book made me realize that I had a lot in common with him (and I'm sure many other Asian Americans/Canadians will feel the same way). Our childhoods, family dynamics, exposure to Asian American YouTubers and dance crews, and perfectionism and work ethic, all felt so familiar. I loved that he gave a shoutout to OG Asian American YouTubers Ryan Higa, Wong Fu Productions, and Kina Grannis (I would also like to mention other favourites of mine, including KevJumba and Happy Slip) and shoutout to OG ABDC Asian dance crews like Jabbawockeez and Kaba Modern (he forgot about Quest Crew!)

In many ways, I think this sparked Chu's path to making sure that Asian-Americans were represented in mainstream media, which led to the worldwide blockbuster movie, Crazy Rich Asians. I'll be honest - Crazy Rich Asians was one of those books where I thought the movie was way better. Learning some of the behind-the-scenes of how the movie came together really made me want to rewatch the movie.

There was a lot that I loved about this book but most of all, I loved that this book was very introspective and focused a lot on Chu's personal growth and his outlook on his career and Asian-American identity. Overall, this was a fantastic memoir that I urge other Asian-Americans/Chinese millennials to read.

My only complaints with this book is:

1) Chu mentions in passing his disappointment with how poorly Jem did but doesn't really go into any details (I would prefer more details, or no mention of it at all - his mentioning of it in passing has sparked my curiosity and now I want to know more about how he feels about it and lessons learned!) I suspect Chu still hasn't fully healed from his experience with Jem and doesn't want to dwell on it.

2) the ebook formatting includes random 'blurbs' sprinkled throughout the book which throws me off whenever they appear because they disrupt the flow of the book (I also kept mistaking the blurbs as chapter headings and the mark of a new chapter...)

I loved this memoir and felt it was really well done. Jon M. Chu talks about his childhood growing up in Silicon Valley, his lifelong love of movie making, his struggles grappling with his identity and it's impact on the choices he made in his career. I connected deeply with Jon's story because of the parallels with my own life - growing up in the bay area, being distinctly Asian American and reconciling both parts of that identity, being an early adopter of YouTube and finding myself in the Asian American creators that were early utilizers of the platform. However, even without these parallels I think Jon's experience and the insight we get into the behind-the-scenes of some of his widely popular films makes this memoir such an engaging read. Five stars, definitely pick it up!

I enjoyed John Chu's storytelling about his upbringing as the fifth child of immigrants and the influences on his development as a moviemaker. This is an excellent memoir about what John Chu learns about himself and what is important to him in life.

I really enjoyed getting to read this book, I enjoyed getting to read Jon M. Chu’s journey and thought it was a unique perceptive of this type of book. It had that memoir element that I was looking for and enjoyed getting to know him in this Hollywood journey.

I've been a fan of Chu's directing since I saw Crazy Rich Asians. He brought the same passion he brings to directing into telling his story in this memoir. His story telling is very engaging. Like Crazy Rich Asians, I found Chu's struggle of straddling two identities very relatable on a personal level. I also appreciate Chu's willingness to call out the lack of diversity in Hollywood and his willingness to listen when his own personal efforts fall short. I can't wait to see what he does with Wicked.

John M. Chu's journey from Silicon Valley the youngest of five children in an immigrant family to successful film director is covered in this memoir. One of the few successful Asian American directors and a graduate of USC, Chu reviews his journey from an admirer of Steve Jobs and the tech savviness of Northern California to the Hollywood scene, catching the early eye of Steven Spielberg with his early student films. Director of Crazy Rich Asians which broke barriers to present day, Wicked, Chu's journey to success is a fight for AAPI recognition. It is important to get that seat at the table in Hollywood. Chu wants to make sure the seats increase for minorities.

THANK YOU NetGalley and Random House for this ARC. What an incredible memoir by the incredible Jon Chu! I am a fan of Jon M. Chu as an incredible filmmaker, who to date as directed "Crazy Rich Asians," "In the Heights," and "Wicked," with an anticipated adaptation for the Broadway musical set for release later this year. It should be noted he is also the genius behind Justin Bieber's Believe documentary. I am now an even bigger fan after reading Mr. Chu's memoir. I was intrigued when I came across Viewfinder and loved its cover, and found it was indeed Jon M. Chu's memoir about growing up a creative, first generation Chinese American, and becoming one of Hollywood's biggest directors. Viewfinder is a page turner from beginning to beautiful epilogue ("I grew up in the future. But I do not live there anymore.") Mr. Chu is a visionary and master storyteller, both on the big screen and here in Viewfinder. This is more than a memoir, it is narration at its finest and a lens into Mr. Chu's real life, as his family's American dream evolves in real time. He navigates growing up obsessed with movies and technology, while helping his parents at Chef Chu's, their Chinese restaurant located in wealthy Silicon Valley, the tech hub of the world. Viewfinder is a fascinating, emotional read as Mr. Chu faces his own cultural identity crisis growing up as a 90's child of immigrants surrounded by both Hollywood and Silicon Valley. He sees and hears things that will enlighten the reader, and uses every project as an opportunity to learn and grow. I loved his Wizard of Oz parallels, and how he describes his Mom reminiscing of watching The Wizard of Oz growing up in Taiwan. He views it as a fairytale, just like millions of others who believed in the magic of the Wizard. I sincerely enjoyed his included photos and descriptions of his family, and the way he intertwines his memories to "try to find a better way into the future." He gives honest insight into the ups and downs of dreams and reality for movie lovers and aspiring filmmakers everywhere. Mr. Chu goes on to make his mark as a student at USC's famed film school, and shares what it was really like being discovered by Steven Spielberg when his early work in 2002 caught Mr. Spielberg's attention. After viewing his short, Mr. Spielberg decides to mentor him, bringing him into the A list of Hollywood and studio executives. What an incredible dream come true moment for a filmmaker. This week while reading Viewfinder, Mr. Chu was unintentionally caught in USC's turmoil, and as a result he was unfortunately canceled as this year's keynote speaker- through no fault of his own. I was very much looking forward to his commencement speech. Viewfinder is not all about winning at The American Dream. Mr. Chu is incredibly honest as he finds himself struggling to comprehend who he really is as his dreams become a reality. He is honest as he shares the ups and downs of both Hollywood and Silicon Valley, and is hard on himself at times as his identity develops along with his storytelling. In this ever evolving world, he is still very much in the learning process. I loved Viewfinder, Mr. Chu’s honesty, and how even as a superstar director in the Top Gun elite still possesses feelings like all humans- especially about social media: "I knew it was time to log off and stay off. But the damage to my sense of myself, and the kind of positive impact that I thought my work could have, had been done." Thank you, Mr. Chu, for taking your fans on your incredibly creative journey with you. We cannot wait for the sequel. 5/5

[Reviewed from galley] When offered the chance to review Jon M Chu's VIEWFINDER, I did not expect to find any commonality with the subject. After all, I am not a respected, successful movie director and John Chu is. But I have seen CRAZY RICH ASIANS so many times, it seemed to bode well for possibly enjoying this memoir.

Chu writes in such an engaging way that I could relate to his challenges through childhood and adolescence. I found the narrative quite compelling and chapters were completed more quickly than usual for me. His recounting of childhood in Silicon Valley and his parents' restaurant ownership are very relatable. Yes,Chef indeed!

My two passions are musicals and behind the scenes of any type of production. Chu enthusiastically details his love of same. He directed Wicked and In The Heights, for goodness sake! Having read this book, I find myself evaluating programming and movies in a different way with greater appreciation - or more critical eye - under Chu's influence.

A couple of passages or explanations seemed too long and detailed but they hopefully are trimmed before publication. This is an enjoyable recounting of one person's life with honesty about human foibles and failures to which many will probably relate. John Chu is a very good storyteller.

This memoir is excellent, John Chu talks about his upbringing and his work in filmmaking. Chi is an excellent storyteller, I really enjoyed reading this memoir!

This memoir was an absolute treat. Chu paints such a vivid picture of his Silicon Valley upbringing, his start as a filmmaker, and the projects that have defined his career. I felt like I was right there alongside him! He's such a fantastic storyteller--on screen and now, in memoir form--and I think the world will really love hearing his own story.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC!