Lisa See, author of 'Shanghai Girls,' to speak at Lunch With Authors series
24.05.12
From what she understood, Lisa See was the fifth foreign visitor to the rural Chinese village nearly 250 kilometers outside of Shanghai. But she was the first Caucasian one. She had gone to research a novel with fellow author Amy Tan. See stood out with her red hair and fair skin, the villagers coming outside their homes to glimpse the American-looking woman.
See's writing has always taken a route through China, whether through character, setting or plot. She has a greater connection to that village than what appears. She's one-fourth Chinese. Her childhood is full of memories of Los Angeles Chinatown, where her paternal grandparents worked in an antiques shop.
Her novels give her a chance to explore her Chinese ancestry, discovering ways that not just make her unique, but how similar everyone actually is.
"For all of us now, there are people who came before us. It was through their suffering and hard work, their triumphs and failures that allows us to live now," she said. "If I approach a story that way, I'm not just thinking about the Chinese-American experience, but something deeper. It's something that's so part of human nature."
Source: Hilton Head Island Packet