Lan Samantha Chang

The Family Chao

A novella and five stories reveals the lives of immigrant families haunted by lost loves, from a ghost that seduces a young girl in a flooded river to a mother who commands her daughter to avenge a death. By the LA Times-finalist author of Inheritance. Reprint.

Hunger: A Novella and Stories

Making a pact to stay together after the suicide of their mother, Junan and her sister, Yinan, find their vow challenged when Junan is separated from her husband by the Japanese invasion of China and decides to send Yinan after him to the wartime capital. Reader's Guide included. Reprint. 25,000 first printing.

Inheritance: A Novel

Two students at a renowned writing school, Roman and Bernard, vie for the admiration of their charismatic and mysterious poet professor and forge a relationship that has lasting repercussions on their art and their lives.

All is Forgotten, Nothing is Lost

Hunger

A Novel

A Novella and Stories

A first-generation immigrant from China marries an exiled musician whose unfulfilled desires nearly destroy their children, in the title story in a collection of tales about the trials and tribulations of Asian Americans. 17,500 first printing. Tour.

One of Literary Hub's and The Millions' Most Anticipated Books of 2022 A Goodreads Readers' Most Anticipated Mystery of 2022 An acclaimed storyteller returns with “a gorgeous and gripping literary mystery” that explores “family, betrayal, passion, race, culture and the American Dream” (Jean Kwok). The residents of Haven, Wisconsin, have dined on the Fine Chao restaurant’s delicious Americanized Chinese food for thirty-five years, content to ignore any unsavory whispers about the family owners. Whether or not Big Leo Chao is honest, or his wife, Winnie, is happy, their food tastes good and their three sons earned scholarships to respectable colleges. But when the brothers reunite in Haven, the Chao family’s secrets and simmering resentments erupt at last. Before long, brash, charismatic, and tyrannical patriarch Leo is found dead—presumed murdered—and his sons find they’ve drawn the exacting gaze of the entire town. The ensuing trial brings to light potential motives for all three brothers: Dagou, the restaurant’s reckless head chef; Ming, financially successful but personally tortured; and the youngest, gentle but lost college student James. As the spotlight on the brothers tightens—and the family dog meets an unexpected fate—Dagou, Ming, and James must reckon with the legacy of their father’s outsized appetites and their own future survival. Brimming with heartbreak, comedy, and suspense, The Family Chao offers a kaleidoscopic, highly entertaining portrait of a Chinese American family grappling with the dark undercurrents of a seemingly pleasant small town.

The Family Chao: A Novel

A REMARKABLE FAMILY NOVEL ABOUT RACISM, COMMUNITY AND JUDGEMENT, FOR READERS OF CELESTE NG, C PAM ZHANG, BRIT BENNETT AND JEFFREY EUGENIDES ‘An insightful comedy of the American immigrant experience, and of a small town’s inner workings’ JOHN IRVING ‘One of the finest and most ambitious novels about America I've read’ YIYUN LI ‘A gorgeous and gripping literary mystery. . . reflecting themes of family, betrayal, passion, race, culture and the American Dream. . . A masterpiece’ JEAN KWOK ____________ For years, the residents of Lake Haven, Wisconsin ignored the whispered troubles about the Chao family, if only to keep eating at the best restaurant in town. But when tyrannical patriarch Big Chao is found frozen to death in the family’s meat freezer, scandalous events force the community to turn its attention to the three Chao sons. Dagou – presupposed heir to the business. Ming – accomplished city lawyer, determined to sever ties with Haven’s Asian community once and for all. James – naive college student, who is only just learning of his family’s past. When the family’s dog mysteriously disappears, and Dagou ‘Dog Eater’ Chao is held on trial for his father’s murder, the Chaos’ turbulent history spills into the public eye, while a small town looks on in disbelief. . . AN INVENTIVE COMIC MYSTERY ABOUT THE UNDERCURRENTS OF AN UNFORTUNATE DEATH AND A TIMELESS TALE ABOUT DISTRUST, JUDEGEMENT AND CONDEMNATION ____________ MORE PRAISE FOR THE FAMILY CHAO ‘With nuance and slyness, wit and empathy, Chang turns the desires and deceits of one unhappy family into a moving and compelling saga of that classic American illness: ambition’ VIET THANH NGUYEN ‘At once a brilliant reimagining of Dostoevsky and a wholly original and gripping story about the passions, rivalries and searing pressures that roil a singular immigrant family’ JESS WALTER ‘The Family Chao is the ultimate family saga. Love, mystery, courtroom drama and lots of sibling rivalry. . . at every turn there's something new and surprising. I absolutely loved it. It’s a masterclass’ LUAN GOLDIE ‘A gripping story of three brothers, their tyrannical father and the family restaurant set in the American Midwest. . . Chang writes brilliantly about love, hate, food, dogs, race, sex, morality and money. . . marvellous and wonderfully entertaining’ MARGOT LIVESEY ‘An intricate look at the so-called American Dream and one small-town American family trying and failing to save itself. . . An up-to-the-minute look at what it means to be accused and visible in America’ ELIZABETH MCCRACKEN

'A work of gorgeous, enduring prose' Washington Post 'Luminously elegiac stories... Complex and rueful... gives voice to internal struggles, catalogues of loss' New York Times Book Review A modern classic of American fiction: a haunting collection of stories that explore the lost loves and complex desires of Chinese-American immigrant families The novella and five stories that make up this collection tell of displaced lives, and exiled imaginations. Far away from their ancestral home, a grandmother tells her granddaughters stories of their river ancestors. Having relocated to the American Midwest, a young couple purposefully drive all remnants of their lives in China into the shadows. In the title novella, a woman recounts her tragic marriage to an exiled musician, whose own disappointments nearly destroy their two daughters. In exquisitely crisp, spare and subtle prose, Lan Samantha Chang untangles how an immigrant can hunger for love, for acceptance, and for what they have left behind. An undeniable classic of modern American literature, Hunger is a haunting collection of stories, suffused with quiet beauty and longing. Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe Lan Samantha Chang is the author of the award-winning books Hunger and Inheritance, and the novel All Is Forgotten, Nothing Is Lost. Her work has been translated into nine languages and has been chosen twice for The Best American Short Stories. A recent Berlin Prize winner, she has received creative writing fellowships from Stanford University, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Samantha lives in Iowa City, where she is director of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her most recent novel, The Family Chao, is also published by Pushkin Press and was one of Barack Obama's Books of Summer 2022.

"A smart, thoughtful, and often poignant meditation."—Boston Globe At the renowned writing school in Bonneville, every student is simultaneously terrified of and attracted to the charismatic and mysterious poet and professor Miranda Sturgis, whose high standards for art are both intimidating and inspiring. As two students, Roman and Bernard, strive to win her admiration, the lines between mentorship, friendship, and love are blurred. Roman's star rises early, and his first book wins a prestigious prize. Meanwhile, Bernard labors for years over a single poem. Secrets of the past begin to surface, friendships are broken, and Miranda continues to cast a shadow over their lives. What is the hidden burden of early promise? What are the personal costs of a life devoted to the pursuit of art? All Is Forgotten, Nothing Is Lost is a brilliant evocation of the demands of ambition and vocation, personal loyalty and poetic truth.

Lan Samantha Chang

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