Congrats May-Lee
on the recent release of
Tomorrow in Shanghai!
Tomorrow in Shanghai by May-Lee Chai
Asian American Literature & Fiction, 166 pages
Published August 30th 2022 by Blair
In a vibrant and illuminating follow-up to her award-winning story collection, Useful Phrases for Immigrants, May-lee Chai explores a complex blend of cultures spanning China, the Chinese diaspora in America, and in the world at large—revealing the complex schisms in the globalized world. Her stories illuminate the divides between rural and urban, male and female, rich and poor, and those in-between—always tracking the nuanced, knotty, and intricate exchanges of interpersonal and institutional power. Chai's stories are essential reading for an increasingly globalized world.
My thoughts about Tomorrow in Shanghai ~~
I think reading short story collections by a single author is the best way to get a feel for the versatility of that author. Tomorrow in Shanghai covers several different topics and gave me insights to a culture I am not familiar with—China—as well as giving me a peek at the Chinese people living within America and what they have to deal with.
The stories are very well written and were enjoyable. Reading this definitely made me want to take a look at the author's other works to expand my knowledge of the Chinese culture.
I received a copy of Tomorrow in Shanghai from SparkPoint Studio and this is my honest opinion of the book.
About the author
May-lee Chai is the author of eleven books, including the forthcoming (August 2022) collection of short stories, Tomorrow in Shanghai and Other Stories; three novels, My Lucky Face, Dragon Chica, and Tiger Girl; the novella, Training Days; two works of memoir, The Girl from Purple Mountain (co-authored with her father, Winberg Chai) and Hapa Girl, A Memoir; the American Book Award–winning short story collection Useful Phrases for Immigrants; Glamorous Asians, a collection of short stories and essays; a nonfiction book about the culture and history of China, China A to Z (also co-authored with Winberg Chai); and her translation into English of the Chinese author Ba Jin’s 1934 Autobiography (Ba Jin Zi Zhuan). Her own books have been translated into German, Hebrew, and Chinese.
May-lee Chai is a writer and educator. May-lee is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship; 2014 APALA (Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association) Literature Award, Young Adult category for Tiger Girl; Kiriyama Prize 2008 Notable Book for Hapa Girl: A Memoir; Honorable Mention for the 2007 Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights Award for Hapa Girl: A Memoir; and a nomination for the National Book Award in nonfiction for The Girl from Purple Mountain. Her essay “The Blue Boot” was named a Notable Essay of 2012 in Best American Essays 2013, edited by Cheryl Strayed.
In addition to her books, she has published numerous short stories in journals, magazines and anthologies as well as essays and journalism. Her work has appeared in various publications, including Entropy, The Rumpus, the Los Angeles Times, Paris Review Online, Kenyon Review Online, New England Review, Gulf Coast, North American Review, ZYZZYVA, Missouri Review, Seventeen, Many Mountains Moving, Christian Science Monitor, Dallas Morning News, Denver Post, Jakarta Post Weekender, and numerous anthologies, including Best Small Fictions.
May-lee was born in California but has lived in fourteen states in the U.S. and four countries. She received her B.A. from Grinnell College, where she majored in French and Chinese Studies. She received her first M.A. from Yale University in East Asian Studies and a second M.A. in English-Creative Writing from the University of Colorado-Boulder. She received her M.F.A. from San Francisco State University.
Connect with May-Lee
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I love discovering new to me authors and books. I would enjoy reading Tomorrow in Shanghai by May-Lee Chai!
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