ection>CRITICAL PRAISE FOR DRAGON CHICA
“It is very rare that a coming of age novel transcends its inherent limitations and attains the complex emotional resonance of adult fiction. Dragon Chica does this with great aplomb. The book explores with subtlety and depth the mature, universal issues of identity and connection, but it also retains its direct appeal to younger readers.
“May-lee Chai has performed a remarkable act of literary magic.”
—Robert Olen Butler, Pulitzer Prize-winning author
of A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain
“Eleven-year-old Nea has seen the very worst this world has to offer – from civil war in Cambodia, to the rice fields of the Khmer Rouge, to the bullying hallways of American public school. Thankfully, her heart and imagination bloom wide enough to let her continue longing for the best. As she grows into a woman, Nea navigates her difficult life with clear-eyed and courageous idealism. May-lee Chai has written a brilliant and important coming-of-age story about a young refugee who refuses to give up her search for that promised refuge.
“Dragon Chica is an important and deliciously readable novel that will hold you in thrall; you won’t be able to look away from these pages, even as your eyes fill up with tears.”
—Nina de Gramont, author of Every Little Thing in the World and Gossip of the Starlings
“From the killing fields of Cambodia to a Chinese restaurant in the middle of the cornfields of Nebraska, Dragon Chica takes the reader deep into a compelling story about two sisters and the secret histories that surround them.”
—Marie Myung-Ok Lee, author of Somebody’s Daughter
“Powerful, witty and profound, Dragon Chica introduces readers to a new kind of American heroine.”
—Alicia Erian, author of Towelhead
ALSO BY MAY-LEE CHAI
Hapa Girl: A Memoir
Glamorous Asians: Short Stories and Essays
China A to Z (co-authored with Winberg Chai)
The Girl from Purple Mountain (co-authored with Winberg Chai)
My Lucky Face: A Novel
Translation
The Autobiography of Ba Jin
a novel by
MAY-LEE CHAI
First published by GemmaMedia in 2011.
GemmaMedia
230 Commercial Street
Boston, MA 02109 USA
© 2011 by May-lee Chai
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles of reviews.
Printed in the United States of America
15 14 13 12 11 1 2 3 4 5
978-1-934848-48-7
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
[TK]
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