How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"Aiyah, Nadine, there's a difference between being grand and being discreet," Daisy commented, knowing full well that families like the Leongs and the Youngs guarded their privacy to the point of obsession. (1.2.15)
There's a tension in the novel about what is an "appropriate" display of wealth. Daisy Foo points out here that the highest crust families value privacy over celebrity.
Quote #2
And that was the other, more essential detail about Astrid: she was born into the uppermost echelon of Asian wealth—a secretive, rarefied circle of families virtually unknown to outsiders who possessed immeasurably vast fortunes. (1.5.34)
Astrid's life is dictated by one fact: she comes from the wealthiest family in Asia. Much of it is luxury, but poor Astrid faces a lot of pain as a result.
Quote #3
To Eleanor, every single person occupied a specific space in the elaborately constructed social universe in her mind.[…] Eleanor could meet another Asian […] and within thirty seconds of learning their name and where they lived, she would […] calculate precisely where they stood in her constellation based on who their family was, who else they were related to, what their approximate net worth might be, how the fortune was derived, and what family scandals might have occurred within the past fifty years. (1.7.7)
Born of a wealthy family, Eleanor Young spends a lot of time concerned about her placement the placement of others within her social stratosphere.