by Hua Hsu
First published 2016
In 1930s America, China is a mystery waiting to be unlocked. Immigrant writer H.T. Tsiang self-publishes visionary novels, dreaming of a transpacific future. But his avant-garde voice is drowned out by bestselling authors who shape America's vision of China. As Tsiang's manuscripts vanish, a fierce competition erupts over who gets to define the Middle Kingdom. This absorbing history traces the personal rivalries and institutional forces that still echo today.
Genres: literary-fiction, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: China, United States
Period: 20th Century
288 pages · Hardcover · Harvard University Press