About My Book
My parents moved to New York from Japan, so I spent my childhood doing all I could to blend in. I turned cartwheels as a high school cheerleader, joined a wholesome sorority in college and thought I'd live in a suburban house with a picket fence when I "grew up."
Instead, I spent most of my adult life living in Hong Kong (both when it was a British colony and after it was returned to China), Shanghai's gritty and historic French Concession, the bougie 16th arrondisement of Paris, deep in the Gourmet Ghetto of North Berkeley, California and finally, uh, that suburban New York house (sans picket fence.)
Along the way, I learned about cultures, languages and students, both as a journalist and, currently, as an education researcher. And what I love most about education is how it encapsulates not only demographic and socio-economic factors, but the aspirations and goals of young people.
In my book, Make College Your Superpower: It's Not Where You Go, It's What You Know, I provide a new way to approach the college application process so students can better control the process. Data and strategy help empower students, as does an economy that values skills, knowledge and creativity over a pedigree'd degree. Applying to colleges is stressful, but make it less so by reading my book.
The world is your oyster - so, go for it!
Knockout kudos for Make College Your Superpower
More praise
Make College Your Superpower upends conventional beliefs about the entire college decision process. For students, parents and anyone who feels daunted by what can be a complicated and costly process, Anna Esaki-Smith provides inspiring insights, hope and a roadmap.
Meredith Artley, former Editor-in-Chief
CNN Digital
My Story
My parents moved to New York from Japan, so I spent my childhood doing all I could to blend in. I turned cartwheels as a high school cheerleader, joined a wholesome sorority in college and thought I'd live in a suburban house with a picket fence when I "grew up."
Instead, I spent most of my adult life living in Hong Kong (both when it was a British colony and after it was returned to China), Shanghai's gritty and historic French Concession, the bougie 16th arrondisement of Paris, deep in the Gourmet Ghetto of North Berkeley, California and finally, uh, that suburban New York house (sans picket fence.)
Along the way, I learned about cultures, languages and students, both as a journalist and, currently, as an education researcher. And what I love most about education is how it encapsulates not only demographic and socio-economic factors, but the aspirations and goals of young people.
In my book, Make College Your Superpower: It's Not Where You Go, It's What You Know, I provide a new way to approach the college application process so students can better control the process. Data and strategy help empower students, as does an economy that values skills, knowledge and creativity over a pedigree'd degree. Applying to colleges is stressful, but make it less so by reading my book.
The world is your oyster - so, go for it!
Meeting Luciano: A Novel
I also wrote a novel, some years ago, loosely based on my mother. It's about Hanako Shimoda, recently divorced, who believes Luciano Pavarotti is a god. To her daughter, Emily, this fixation on Pavarotti is a harmless fantasy, the byproduct of loneliness. Meeting Luciano is the story of what happens when Hanako acts on her fantasy and invites opera star Pavarotti to dinner in their Westchester County home.