The Fortunes is a work of historical fiction, and part of the reason that the author chose to explore Chinese immigration to the United States in the form of four semi-linked stories is that this format allowed him a broader scope: Rather than tracing only one or two characters throughout their lifetimes, he examines four different Chinese American communities and ultimately creates a multi-generational work that spans several historical periods and geographical spaces. Through these different stories, the author illustrates the way that events like the construction of the early US railway system, the very gradual acceptance of Asian American actors in Hollywood, the tension between American and foreign industries, and China’s one-child policy shaped the experiences of Chinese Americans in the United States.

The protagonist of “Celestial Railroad” works first in a Chinese-owned laundry, but ultimately ends up as part of the vast, predominantly Chinese workforce tasked with the construction of American railroads. His work both in the laundry and on the railroad is representative of broad trends in immigration and labor that shaped early Chinese American communities and dictated what kind of lives Chinese American workers would live in the United States.