I enjoy learning about history through storytelling. If the writer is good, I am able to imagine how lives were shaped and lived through a particular era. I can read the mannerisms of people and the fashion of a particular time period. I am able to better understand why decisions were made in the context of time and place. I am a better learner through novels than historical textbooks. I am more open to ‘other world’ ideas.
Janie Chang is an historical novelist. She draws upon her own family history for her writing. Growing up, she heard stories about her ancestors and their encounters with “dragons, ghosts, and immortals, and about life in a small Chinese town in the years before the Second World War.” She is coming to the Burnaby Public Library for an author visit and I can’t help feel that you, who are new to BC, would benefit from this visit.
Chang is experienced in moving to new places and making a new life. She was born in Taiwan, but has lived in the Phillipines, Iran, Thailand, New Zealand and now lives in Vancouver, BC where she graduated from the Writer’s Studio at Simon Fraser University.
She will be presenting her first novel, ‘Three Souls,’ on June 9th from 7-8 pm.
“Three Souls by Janie Chang is a captivating tale of romance and revolution set in China in 1935. The Ghost of a young woman named Leiyin watches her own funeral from above, distressed that she has been denied entry to the afterlife. Beside her are three souls: the rational yang, the impulsive yin, and the wise hun who tell her that to enter the afterlife she must make amends. Leiyin revisits her life in a desperate bid to make amends, and to understand herself and what she was willing to sacrifice for love and freedom.
If you’re interested in meeting Chang, you’ll need to sign up. It’s a sure sell-out!
Phone 604-436-5410 to register.
NewToBC 