Counterfeit: A Reese's Book Club Pick

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Luxury streetwear is out of reach for many people, not just because of international sanctions and low wages, but because exclusivity is built into its business model. Social and cultural forces are driving the unique fashion scene. In particular, social media has a huge influence on over these markets giving people images of things they can't own and further fueling the desire to obtains certain “ hyped” items by any means accessible. Other than Ava and Winnie, the characters don’t stand out. Most are quite flat and come on a need-be basis into the story. ICC Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau (1997), Countering Counterfeiting: A Guide to Protecting and Enforcing Intellectual Property Rights, United Kingdom. Ava Wong, Asian American lawyer, has the appearances of a perfect life. Sure hasn’t worked since having her son, Henri, now two years old. Her husband Oli is a renowned transplant surgeon and everything should be rosy. So why does she feel so flat? Well Oli spends too long either at work or travelling to and from it and Henri is a very difficult child who cries at every opportunity. In fact Ava would be completely lost without her nanny, Maria. Certain consumer goods, especially very expensive or desirable brands or those that are easy to reproduce cheaply, have become frequent and common targets of counterfeiting. The counterfeiters either attempt to deceive the consumer into thinking they are purchasing a legitimate item, or convince the consumer that they could deceive others with the imitation. An item which makes no attempt to deceive, such as a copy of a DVD with missing or different cover art or a book without a cover, is often called a "bootleg" or a "pirated copy" instead.

The reality is much different and her life is coming apart at the seams. Her son has constant tantrums, Ava hates being a lawyer and has taken an extended break, her husband works non-stop and doesn’t even live in the same residence, and she feels a little bitter she did everything she was supposed to and ended up here. If she is living the Asian-American dream, she is waiting for someone to wake her up from it. Ava Wong has always played it safe. As a strait-laced, rule-abiding Chinese American lawyer with a successful surgeon as a husband, a young son, and a beautiful home—she’s built the perfect life. But beneath this façade, Ava’s world is crumbling: her marriage is falling apart, her expensive law degree hasn’t been used in years, and her toddler’s tantrums are pushing her to the breaking point. Ava Wong has always played it safe. As a straight laced, rule-abiding Chinese American Lawyer with a successful surgeon as a husband, a young son, and a beautiful home - she's built the perfect life. But beneath this perfect facade, Ava's world is crumbling: her marriage is falling apart, her expensive law degree hasn't been used in years, and her toddler's tantrums are pushing her to breaking point. Winnie Fang, who abruptly dropped out of college under mysterious circumstances, is now looking to reconnect with her friend twenty years later.

If you are in the mood for something different and also in the mood for a book that will make you wonder if the purse you have is real or fake, you will enjoy this book. Chase, Brendon; Derek Fung (8 October 2009). "Fake iPod versus the real thing". CNET. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015 . Retrieved 9 March 2015. The story offers some interesting insights into the luxury handbags business (both genuine and counterfeit). I am the “Jon Snow” of luxury brands; I know nothing! So reading this fun take on the overpriced goods market and also seeing the companies getting a bit of comeuppance was enjoyable. The book is divided in various parts. The first part is written in Ava’s first person perspective, whereby she is narrating her experiences with Winnie and also her personal issues to the detective handling the case. After a while, it became very clear that Ava was quite self-centred and whiny, and her insecurities had been manipulated by Winnie, thereby making her an unwilling participant in her nefarious business. And then comes Part II, where you are forced to question whatever you read till then. I liked Part I but it is Part II and what came beyond that enhanced the book from a 3 star to a higher rating. In terms of character development, I feel that Chen did a great job with both Winnie and Ava. Even though I disagree with their actions and the decisions they ultimately made, I was able to relate to the struggles they went through as Chinese women who grew up in traditional Chinese families. Ava especially resonated with me, as I recognized so much of her family dynamic in my own — i.e.: the pressure to choose a “prestigious” career path that ultimately leads to wealth, even if it’s not a career that I would want for myself (this quote sent shivers down my spine because it’s almost verbatim what I experienced: “ …in my family there were only a few acceptable paths—law, medicine, engineering. Law was the one I’d disliked least. From the very beginning, I’d known my lot in life: to be good enough at my job, and to tolerate it until retirement.”); the expectation to be an overachiever in school (anything less than straight A’s was frowned upon) and maintain the image of the “good Chinese daughter” so as not to disappoint my immigrant parents who sacrificed so much for their children to have such opportunities; the cultural significance of “face” and the huge impact it has on how, as a Chinese woman, I’m supposed to live my life (another quote that applies almost verbatim to my own situation: “ …but when you grow up as I did, schooled in the supremacy of “face”—the figurative face, the image, reputation, honor that must be fought for and preserved at all costs—breaking free from constraints to think for oneself becomes a Herculean task.”). One of the things I love about the reading experience is coming across characters whom I am able to relate to in some way (even if our life circumstances are completely different) and that certainly was the case here — this makes the time and effort spent reading this all the more worthwhile.

The topic the author is trying to discuss has already been discussed multiple times by other authors like Kevin Kwan. We have read this story many times, and it now seems boring to hear it again. But there are many other problems associated with this book that needs much more serious discussion. Shanzhai ji: All you need to know about fake phones - Mobile Phones". CNET. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013 . Retrieved 5 August 2013.What is about purses that we lean toward all the name brands? I think compared to any other item, purses is where many women tend to splurge. And that’s what these counterfeit purse operations try to take advantage of. For fans of Hustlers and How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia, the story of two Asian American women who band together to grow a counterfeit handbag scheme into a global enterprise—an incisive and glittering blend of fashion, crime, and friendship from the author of Bury What We Cannot Take and Soy Sauce for Beginners. Enter Winnie Fang, Ava's enigmatic college roommate from Mainland China, who abruptly dropped out under mysterious circumstances. Now, twenty years later, Winnie is looking to reconnect with her old friend. But the shy, awkward girl Ava once knew has been replaced with a confident woman of the world, dripping in luxury goods, including a coveted Birkin in classic orange. The secret to her success? Winnie has developed an ingenious counterfeit scheme that involves importing near-exact replicas of luxury handbags and now she needs someone with a U.S. passport to help manage her business—someone who'd never be suspected of wrongdoing, someone like Ava. But when their spectacular success is threatened and Winnie vanishes once again, Ava is left to face the consequences. Intellectual Property Rights" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2010 . Retrieved 15 May 2010.

The only other way to tell if your book is not real is to spot a typo or two. If you see a word misspelled or a number or letter missing then you may realise that you have bought a dodgy copy. Looking at the image above the only real way to spot the fake is if you notice the the table numbers are different. The table number should be 15.3 but in the top version the number is 13.3. Also on the far right figure 15.1 text reads ‘CDamaged’ below where it should simply read ‘Damaged’. This is indicative of the type of errors you will find in a counterfeit book. The only other way to tell if your book is not real is to spot a typo or two. How to avoid buying a counterfeit book This entertaining novel about two former roommates who run a counterfeit luxury handbag scam has it all!” — Buzzfeed Not only is this bad in terms of taking money away from the industry that invests heavily in producing technical literature it can also have some very serious consequences in terms of safety. How can this be I hear you ask? This is a great easy read, it’s clever and fun but with dark undertones as it shines a light on things such as Chinese factory conditions. I really like the way it’s written with the saga unfolding as Ava tells the tale to Detective Georgia Murphy. The tone is so good you almost feel as if Ava is right in front of you.Counterfeiting has also been issued to "cash in" on the ever growing record collecting market. One major example is bootleggers have cloned copies of Elvis Presley's early singles for Sun Records since original copies starting changing hands amongst music fans for hundreds (and then, thousands) of dollars. Some who produce these even do so with the wrong material. For example, the song "Heartbreak Hotel" which was never released on Sun, as by the time Elvis first heard it, prior to ever recording it, he had moved from Sun to RCA Victor. Rare releases by The Beatles such as their album with the butcher cover, fan-club only released Christmas records and early demonstration discs issued by EMI are also examples of product reproduced by counterfeiters due to their high value to collectors. How good is Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen? The story of two Asian American women’s wildly successful counterfeit handbag scheme has already been optioned for television.” — Popsugar, The Best New Book Releases So Far

Counterfeit is decadent and delicious. The sparkling storyline seduces with its compelling twists and turns even as Kirstin Chen deftly interrogates issues of race, identity, wealth and consumerism. A true delight for mind and heart from beginning to end." - Jean Kwok, New York Times bestselling author of Searching for Sylvie Lee Ava Wong has always followed the rules. She appears to have achieved the perfect life. She married a Doctor, Oli, she’s a corporate lawyer, a graduate of Stanford, and has a 2 year old son, Henri. They live in San Francisco. Linsner, Bristows LLP-Marc (2 March 2021). "EUIPO Observatory publishes Anti-counterfeiting Technology Guide | Lexology". www.lexology.com. Archived from the original on 2021-06-23 . Retrieved 2021-03-18.the two female MCs were clever and strong. one of the female MCs is recounting the entire story to a detective so you know something goes wrong… but do they get away with it? what happens? how does it all go down? some people don’t like the “telling” vs “showing” trope of a book (think BLOOD SUGAR) but i didn’t mind it one bit. Thank you to #partners Libro FM, Kirstin Chen, & Harper Audio for a #gifted ALC in exchange for my honest opinion. But then the narrative changes. And we get Winnie's perspective. I was getting ready for some action! The story takes an almost satirical look at modern day consumerism, including the use-and-throw culture and brand fetishes. It is actually very very hard. These days the counterfeit books are look and feel almost exactly like the real thing. With the code of practice books we found that the counterfeit actually had brighter lighter colours but you wouldn’t know this unless you put two books together. Can you spot the fake below?