DR. ED ENG, PhD, MBA
The Accidental Mayor
A Collection of Stories from the Side Streets of Chinatown to the Main Street of City Hall.
“…riveting and insightful… The struggles and pain, blanketed in hope and determination, and delivered with humble sincerity is captivating....A must read!"
Daphne Harvey, Sr Vice President, NBCUniversal
An immigrant's improbable journey to becoming a mayor of a city
Book Synopsis
My family and I immigrated from Hong Kong to Los Angeles’s Chinatown in the 1960s hoping to build a better life for ourselves. However, it felt like the universe was against us. From living in a cockroach-ridden apartment with my family of nine, to getting beaten up on an almost weekly basis in school, I didn’t understand why we chose America as our new home.
Over the last six decades, I have lived through the happiest and most harrowing experiences and emotions. Very few things made sense in the moment, but the opacity of my very unorthodox path has gotten clearer. I strove to get a college education, dual master’s degrees, recently a doctorate, worked as an engineer, publishing executive, government consultant, and now the mayor of a city.
The throughline for my journey has been resilience, love from my family and friends, and an unwavering belief in myself to make a difference in the world. I wrote this book hoping that you can empathize, relate to, and learn from my collection of stories and adventures.
Dr. Ed Eng was a guest on "The On Purpose Podcast". The show hopes to learn from personal stories and explore thought-provoking topics all with one goal in mind, living a more purposeful life.
Full Episode: iTunes | Spotify
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TESTIMONIALS
“…riveting and insightful… The struggles and pain, blanketed in hope and determination, and delivered with humble sincerity is captivating. The raw emotion and endearing authenticity of the stories connect with your heart and soul. The Accidental Mayor is an instructive and compelling insight into the Chinese immigrant experience, and the winding road taken by one man in his quest for the American Dream. A must read!”
Daphne Harvey, Sr Vice President, NBCUniversal
"Dr. Eng's failures, successes, and the lessons learned will no doubt inspire someone else's miracle. A fascinating story."
Ben Everard, Hollywood Film Producer
Yes Day (2021), The Laundromat (2019) / Lights Out (2016)
“An odyssey of true grit, determination and an unyielding refusal to achieve anything less than greatness, as homage to humble immigrant parents that embodied loving sacrifice. This autobiography of transformation and success, illustrates an inspirational landscape that shows what is possible through discipline, focus and the unrelenting desire to succeed!”
Yvette M. Walker, Executive Producer & Host
ABC News & Talk Affiliate-Southern California Business Report