Shirley Geok-Lin Lim – författare

A piercing tale of a Malaysian woman''s quest for independence that combines "the nuance of a poet with the ear of a born storyteller" (Julia Watson, coeditor of Women, Autobiography, Theory: A Reader). Li An, a young Malaysian woman of Chinese descent, seeks to understand herself as the country around her struggles to determine its own identity. And much like the politically charged atmosphere of 1969 Kuala Lumpur, Li An must confront the contradictions within. While she supports her nation''s fight to break free from the influence of British colonial rule, she cannot deny her love for the English poetry that she teaches. While she aspires to be an independent woman, she still finds herself married to the dependable Henry—until she meets an American Peace Corps volunteer named Chester Brookfield. Their encounter propels Li An on a quest of self-discovery, one that spans the divide between East and West, women and men, freedom and responsibility. Told with insight and wit, Lim''s sweeping debut novel demonstrates that while the journey is never easy, all roads lead, ultimately, to our true selves. "This elegantly crafted tale places Lim among the most imaginative and dexterous storytellers writing in the English language today." —Rey Chow, author of Primitive Passions "A gripping novel centered around a strong, language-struck, culture-crossing Asian woman''s quest for independence." —Rob Wilson, author of Reimagining the American Pacific "This felicitous novel is several books in one—Madame Butterfly transplanted to Malaysia, a feminist manifesto, and a commentary on the new Southeast Asia that has been emerging in recent years. Lim has woven these strands together in a colorful batik that is dazzling." —Hisaye Yamamoto, author of Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories

This “fascinating autobiography” from an award-winning Asian-American female author “reads like a novel” (The Washington Post Book World).   With insight, candor, and grace, Shirley Geok-lin Lim recalls her path from her poverty-stricken childhood in war-torn Malaysia to her new and exciting yet uncertain womanhood in America. Grappling to secure a place for herself in the United States, she is often caught between the stifling traditions of the old world and the harsh challenges of the new. But throughout her journey, she is sustained by her “warrior” spirit, gradually overcoming her sense of alienation to find a new identity as an Asian American woman: professor, wife, mother, and, above all, an impassioned writer.   In Among the White Moon Faces, Lim offers a memorable rendering of immigrant women’s experience and a reflection upon the homelands we leave behind, the homelands we discover, and the homelands we hold within ourselves.   “What sets Among the White Moon Faces apart is that Lim writes with such aching precision, revealing and insightfully analyzing her changing roles as woman, immigrant, scholar, and Other.” —San Francisco Chronicle Book Review   “Lim’s descriptions are both lyrical and precise.” —Publishers Weekly   “Evocative writing bolstered by insights into colonialism, race relations, and the concept of the ‘other’. . . . This is an entrancing memoir.” —Kirkus Reviews

Two Dreams draws together the best of Shirley Geok-lin Lim’s short fiction from nearly three decades, most of it never before available in the United States, and includes important new work. The setting of these sometimes wryly funny, sometimes heartbreaking stories shifts from the war-torn, tradition-bound Malaysia of Lim’s childhood to the liberating, but confusing and often harsh United States of her adulthood. Her memory is undiluted by nostalgia, her ear is perfectly tuned to the voices of both her old country and her new, and her eye is sharp to the special dilemmas faced by girls and women.