Introduction, Alice Pung

1. What were Asian-Australians referred to as when the author was growing up?
They were referred to as 'Power Points' as the other children thought that it looked like an Asian persons face with the two top slits for eyes and the lower slit for a mouth.
2. How does she interpret this title?
She thought it was because they were so smart and dweeby in a dynamic Microsoft-magnate sort of way. All that untapped potential. All that electrifying bran power! She thought it was a compliment.
3. What did this title actually refer to? Did the author find this demeaning? Why/why not?
She did not find it demeaning because she couldn't understand why they would find that so hilarious, because the power-point was white. 
4. ‘All that untapped potential! All that electrifying brain power!’ What techniques are being employed by the author? How does they highlight he misunderstanding?
She is trying to look at it in a positive way and see the good things about what the kids are saying when in actual fact they are being racist to her. Repetition of the mass of the electrifying brain power and the mass of untapped potential is being used in this.
5. What did the teen author take away from teen fiction? What did she feel that she needed to do? Why? What does this say is essential to fitting in to a culture?
She felt like she needed extensive plastic surgery. She decided that she needed to read John Marsden and Robert Cornier instead, because they spoke more honestly. This says that they were suggesting that people should look and have a certain level of intelligence and personallity to fit in to the culture.
6. Who are the authors that she turns to? Why?
She turns to John Marsden and Robert Cornier because they speak of honesty and they are also not Asian type books they are more Australian/ European.
7. In the third paragraph how does the author use repetition. How does it highlight the focus of this book?
She uses repetition of "The first....." for example; The first love, The first heartbreak, The first Epiphany. She is trying to tell us what the story is about but in an Asian perspective.
8. What metaphor does the author use to highlight the writers and the writing style in the third paragraph?
"Plucking the most garish fruit from the lowest hanging branches of an exotic cultural tree" She is trying to point across that the people think that all the Asian people are the same and don't see the other qualities about them. She is trying to say that all Asians are different through this metaphor.
9. Why does the author use a quote in the 4th paragraph? What does it say about her reaction to the stories in the book? She uses the quote to tell us how the book would relate at all if the title of the book had changed.
10. On page 2 the author talks about the themes that she loosely choose for the collection. What are they and why is it ironic that they show up in this book? She talks about the two books that were about mediating betwen two cultures;  'water buffalo' and ' the courage of soldiers. This is ironic because the authors of those books would of been facing the same problems and written a book as well.
11. At the bottom of pg 3 on to page 4 the author says that sociologists have described Asians as the ‘model minority’. What is meant by this? What difficulties arise out of this label for young Asian-Australians? She is trying to imply that Asian Australian's work hard, study hard and conform to the expectations and ideals of the dominant culture. This is a problem because it can be a burden to Asian Australians because it suggests that money, education, career and fame define their value of contribution to society.
12. What are the editor’s hopes for the collection of stories? She hopes that they can speak the truth and their true identities can be revealed