Banana Boys

by Terry Woo

What is the nature of Banana? To Luke, Dave, Mike, and Sheldon, it’s a curious predicament brought on by upbringing — growing up yellow on the outside, white on the inside. They’re together to pay their last respects to Rick, the one Banana Boy who seemed to have it all, but was found dead in his living room, apparently of suicide. The tragedy that has reunited the Banana Boys becomes the point from which we are introduced to the intertwined stories of a group of young friends caught in cultural and social limbo. Not really Chinese and not quite Canadian, the Banana Boys stumble through situations, incidents and interactions that ultimately explore the nature of identity and reveal the possibilities each character has within himself. Peppered with piercing insights and laced with comic anecdotes, Banana Boys provides unforgettable texture to the ordinary — and extraordinary — tribulations of being twentysomething, male, and Asian in Canada.

Genres: Fiction, Canada, Contemporary

380 pages, Paperback

First published August 31, 1998

Reviews

[Brad H · Rating 4 out of 5]

After attending an energetic staging of the play Banana Boys at The Factory Theatre in Toronto in April 2017, I decided to take the novel upon which it was based off my shelf, where it had sat for years, and finally read it. I’m glad I did, for in its pages Terry Woo presents an endearing portrait of a group of five friends who meet while students at the University of Waterloo. Readers get an intimate look into the lives of the five young men as they navigate university, relationships and jobs.

Underlying much of the thoughts and dialogue of the characters is an ongoing introspection about what it means to be a young person of Asian ethnicity living a mostly Western lifestyle, hence the term Banana Boys. One character recalls growing up and being “subjected to racial taunts, general abuse, evidently because the sons of the local Hatfields thought I had slanty-eyes (I did?) and yellow skin (it was?)” (page 37 of my copy). Following the death of one of the guys, the deceased’s sister reflects that “the Banana Boys didn’t really seem Chinese… They were all CBCs, Canadian-born Chinese, ‘Bananas’ – yellow on the outside and white on the inside” (page 11 of my copy).

Woo successfully employs a rotating narrative technique whereby he allows each character to tell the reader about himself in separate chapters, cycling through the lives of Luke, Dave, Sheldon, Rick and Mike, and then going through the cycle again multiple times. The resulting narrative feels intimate and genuine. The author also includes a good dose of humour, such as frequent pie charts (Woo calls them BrainCharts) that illustrate the thoughts occupying a person’s mind. One character is an aspiring writer working on a project known as The Book, with a trademark symbol attached to this title each time it appears.

In the case of Banana Boys by Terry Woo, The Book is a good one.

[Saleha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book in my sister's room. She bought a copy after she saw the play. I never got to see the play but I'm glad I got to read the book. After picking the book up, I couldn't put it back down until I finished it. This is probably the first book that got me interested in reading canlit again (high school ruined it for me). I always thought Americans were more engaging writers. I also never read anything about people living in inner cities in Canada before this. I think Woo writes with a great sense of humor and explores the confusion of balancing two separate identities very well. I've also never seen anyone write about the frustrations of graduating from university and struggling to adapt to the workforce and adult life the way Woo does.

[Liam Apted · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a good book, objectively. It has a funny tone, while still seriously exploring so many relevant themes. If it hadn't dated itself with old cultural references, it could've been written today. It just isn't my kind of book. The lack of a plot for most of the book made the slow pace even more grating. Also, the chapters are just way too long. How am I supposed to remember Rick's girlfriend from 70 pages ago? If I didn't have to read it for school, I probably would've stopped reading it. The characters also didn't seem to develop all that much over the course of the story (except for Mike at the very end).

I do wish I could've seen the play, though. A significantly shorter version of this book, I believe, genuinely could've saved it. Everyone else on this page seems to like it, at least.

Ultimately, 2.5/5 (rounded up to 3). Good story, funny characters, explored its themes well. The lack of a plot, and poor pacing ruined it for me - but if you like the kind of book where people just around talking, you'll love it.

[Nathaniel Voll · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. Terry Woo has crafted a funny, dynamic and multi-faceted look at what it means to be a Chinese-Canadian man, a "Banana Boy," in the 21st century. Using six first-person narrators, each of whom are funny and stunted and sometimes-problematic in their own ways, Woo urges his readers to look beyond appearances of "Asians" and "Asian" boys to see the varied, beautiful individuals beyond these labels.

Woo's Boys each struggle with themes of identity, belonging, sexloverelationships, and growing up. A feel-good story of love and loss and racism and youth, "Banana Boys" is a text I'll be sure to return to when I need a fun, character-driven read. I can't recommend it enough.

[C-chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing read. The characters are true to life (to the point that a few friends of mine have told me this book and/or the stage adaptation are very close to their own lives). Even as someone not from that background, I felt myself sympathising and relating to the characters much more than I probably should admit.

I would definitely recommend this book to others -- especially other twentysomethings living in Toronto (though its appeal, I believe, can go far beyond this demographic). I've read this a few times now, and I seriously need to get this book into my own collection.

[Hippo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure of the date.

The interplay between the various characters was written with a total absence of fear. Written years before Russel Peters' trash-talking comedy pushed back at an aversion to making observations about ethnic groups, the honesty that the author brought to his characters was a bracing shock to my system.