James Shin Hoo Character Analysis

James Shin Hoo is a restaurateur, father to Doug Hoo, and husband to Madame Sun Lin Hoo. He’s one of Sam Westing’s 16 potential heirs. Born James Hoo in Chicago to immigrant parents, Hoo added “Shin” to his name when he went into the restaurant business in order to sound more authentically Chinese. All his life, Hoo—an aspiring inventor—has had to endure the bigots who patronize his restaurant yet mock his culture, leaning into their assumptions about him in order to make a profit and support his family. Hoo encapsulates Raskin’s view of the impossible catch-22 that many immigrants and minorities face: the directive to either assimilate into American society and abandon their heritage, or to accept harmful stereotypes in order to satisfy white people’s prejudiced assumptions. In spite of the struggles Hoo has faced, he remains hopeful that he’ll one day make it big as an inventor. His current project is an insole made from thin paper—a seemingly ridiculous invention that nonetheless actually seems to work for the residents of Sunset Towers Hoo tries them out on. Though Hoo faces prejudice and bigotry throughout the novel—most pointedly from his partner in the Westing game, Grace Wexler—he remains devoted to his business, his family, and his values. Hoo comes under suspicion when it’s revealed that many years ago, he was locked in a dispute with Sam Westing over the rights to a patent on paper diapers, and he is further maligned after a series of bombs go off throughout Sunset Towers. Hoo maintains his innocence, however—and by the end of the novel, he is not only vindicated but embraced by his fellow players as an important fixture of their newfound community. Though prickly and often surly, Hoo proves to be a staunch defender of his family, his culture, and his own self-worth—things he has had to defend more often than most due to the unfair forces of racism, prejudice, and bigotry he’s confronted all his life.