When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities

Chen Chen's debut poetry collection follows a young Chinese-American man navigating his identity as a gay immigrant. The poems trace his relationships with family, lovers, and his own evolving sense of self. The collection moves through memories of childhood in Massachusetts, complex family dynamics, and experiences of love and loss. Cultural expectations clash with personal desires as the speaker works to reconcile multiple aspects of who he is. The book includes both spare, focused poems and longer, more experimental pieces that play with form and repetition. Food, animals, and elements of Chinese culture appear as recurring motifs throughout. These poems examine the intersection of sexuality, immigration, and belonging while questioning what it means to become oneself in a world of competing influences and expectations. Through their explorations of identity and desire, they suggest that growing up is not a linear path but an ongoing process of possibility.

Readers connect with Chen Chen's raw honesty about identity, family relationships, and coming of age as a queer Asian American. Many note the collection's humor and playfulness even when addressing difficult subjects. Readers highlight: - Fresh metaphors and imagery - Balance of heartbreak and hope - Accessible yet complex language - Exploration of mother-son dynamics Common criticisms: - Some poems feel less polished - A few readers found certain sections repetitive - References can be too specific/personal Ratings: Goodreads: 4.3/5 (2,000+ ratings) Amazon: 4.7/5 (100+ ratings) From reader reviews: "The lists themselves become poetry" - Goodreads reviewer "Manages to be both deeply serious and wickedly funny" - Amazon reviewer "Made me laugh out loud one minute and cry the next" - Powell's Books review "Some poems felt like inside jokes I wasn't part of" - Goodreads critique

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🌟 Chen Chen wrote this debut poetry collection while completing his PhD in English and Creative Writing at Texas Tech University 📚 The collection won the A. Poulin Jr. Poetry Prize and was longlisted for the National Book Award in Poetry 🌈 The book explores Chen's experiences as a gay Chinese-American immigrant, weaving together themes of family, identity, and cultural expectations 🍜 Food imagery appears throughout the collection as a way to connect memory, culture, and relationships—particularly focusing on Asian cuisine and family meals 🎭 The title poem "When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities" plays with multiple personas, including the speaker as a young boy, as his mother's son, and as his future self