My Half of the Sky: September 2013

Past Events

22nd, 23rd USCPFA Nat Convention, Foothill Authors Series, Book Group Expo 2008, East of Eden Conferences, S.F.Conservatory of Arts, CT English Middle School, China Hands Association, Mendocino Writers Conf, Kaleidoscope Books, IA, Lake Forest Academy,IL, Sidley & Austin Law Off, Villa Montalvo Arts Ctr, De Anza Community Coll, Milpitas Lit Luncheon, Saratoga High School, Barnes&Noble Bookstore, The Elliott Bay Book Co, Books Without Borders, Paulina Springs, Sunriver Books & Music, Public Libraries: Milpitas,Campbell, San Francisco, Evergreen, Saratoga, Martin Luther King-SJ

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Pacific Grove Library Hosts Amazing Book Event

Last Thursday, Friends of Pacific Grove Library invited me to talk. There was a great crowd of fifty or so, all very interesting and interested people. Gerry Low-Sabado came all the way from Fremont...and took these photos.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Gerry Low-Sabado brings Chinese History in Pacific Grove Alive

The other day I attended my friend's award ceremony. Deepka Lalwani is one of those women who does everything--and does it well. Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski gave her the Asian-Pacific Islanders Award for her contributions to the Milpitas Community, especially her creation of the non-profit Indian Business and Professional Women. IBPW supports women in their entrepreneurial endeavors and is a great networking place for the community.

As I turned to leave this lovely ceremony, a woman smiled at me-- "You look familiar."
It turned out this woman was planning to come to hear my talk at the Pacific Grove Library this Thursday and had just printed out the information and my picture. We were both amazed at the coincidence and traded stories.

Hers is fascinating.
Gerry Low-Sabado is a fifth-generation Chinese woman. Her great grandmother lived in Point Lobos...and there's a picture of her in the cabin on the property even today. Gerry has done a lot of research on Chinese in the area, gives an annual walk of remembrance through the help of numerous organizations in Monterey and Pacific Grove, and has created a video which details some of her family's story. She helps us all remember this forgotten history.

Monday, September 23, 2013

Blossoms and Bayonets Now In Paperback

Just held the real thing last week. It's such a thrill.
The book is available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Please check it out. Or, if you've already read the book, please leave a review.
Thanks!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Diebenkorn's Advice on Art and...well...Writing

Like poetry, I don't always understand art. My artist friends help me to interpret bold lines and depth of feeling. Or they try to. Recently, a friend took me and my nieces from China to the Richard Diebenkorn exhibit at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. While others oohed and ahhed with wonder, and my guide for the day bubbled with enthusiasm, my nieces--one of whom is an amazing artist--giggled. What was THAT supposed to be? Was this really painted by an adult? I had to agree with them, and was comforted that I wasn't alone in my lack of appreciation (even if my company consisted of teenagers.)
Still, while I couldn't relate to the end product, I found a connection in Diebenkkorn's notes to himself on beginning a painting. I felt he could have been talking about beginning a story....
1. Attempt what is not certain. Certainty may or may not come later. It may then be a valuable delusion.
2. Use and respond to the initial fresh qualities, but consider them absolutely expendable.
3. Mistakes...can move you from your present position.
4. Tolerate chaos.
richard diebenkorn

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Toys for Trash

We import over 400 billion dollars worth of toys and goods from China each year. That's pretty well known. What is less talked about is that our biggest export to China is our trash. Imagine...
Reminds me of a scene I witnessed on the outskirts of Shanghai last year...

If you're in the neighborhood, you might stop in to hear what USC History Professor Joshua Goldstein has to say about recycling in China.

Date: 9/12/2013

Place: Leavey Library, Leavey Auditorium, USC, Los Angeles, CA

Time: 4-5:30

Cost: Free

RSVP: uschina@usc.edu

Friday, September 6, 2013

September 26th Pacific Grove Public Library Speaking Engagement

This past summer was full of the unexpected. Among the highlights were several international visitors who spent a month with us--my two nieces from China and a French high school student. While I feared having them at the same time would be a disaster, it turned out that the mix of cultures was a bonus. There was no us versus them regarding eating, fashion, habits. It was us versus them and them which serves as a wonderful dilution. There was no 'dominant' language (i.e. English), so the goal just became communicating in any form possible. Charades worked well.
Our French friend was not fazed by much--well, except our eating...which was so early and where were the appetizers and the cheeses after dinner? He was a great fan of REALLY hardcore rap. I kept thinking that it was a case of him not understanding the lyrics. In fact, I hoped that was the case, as even MY teenagers would come to me, saying, "I can't take that music anymore." It was too funny.
Our Chinese nieces had visited before, but they had been toddlers at the time. They were struck by many things--the self checkout, the escalator that takes your shopping cart to the next floor, the variety of hair colors...and tattoos. We had fun.
In the meantime, some great book things happened. Blossoms and Bayonets came out in paperback form. Additionally, I was invited to speak at the Pacific Grove Library on September 26th at 7:30. While the flyer below focuses on My Half of the Sky, I'll be speaking about both books. I'll have both books for sale. So,if you're in the area, please come by.

What People Are Saying About My Half of the Sky

My Half of the Sky was the BookSense Pick for August 2006 as well as a Forbes Book Club Pick.

"McBurney-Lin tells a wonderfully entertaining story with the traditional coming-of-age theme (which is experienced universally)...weaving in the cultural challenges of growing up in China's rapidly changing social system."
Mary Warpeha, co-President of the Minnesota Chapter of US-China Friendship Association
March 2010

"The novel ...includes many of the tales and the folk ways of the people living in the rural areas of South China, still followed provincially. The story takes place in current China, but could relate the dilemma of any young woman in rural China through the ages."
Kitty Trescott, National Board of the Midwest Region of US-China Friendship Association. March 2010

"A lot is expected of a young Chinese girl. My Half of the Sky by Jana McBurney-Lin is the story of Li Hui, a young girl who has just achieved marriageable age. She seeks to make the most of herself, but the expectations all around her make it difficult, as her parents seek to use her as pawn to their advantage, she is faced with what she believes to be true love. She must balance career, romance, and family, all to somehow make everyone happy, a tough endeavor indeed. An engaging and entertaining read from beginning to end, "My Half of the Sky" is a poignant tale of the modern Chinese woman, and recommended for community library collections.
--Midwest Book Review November, 2008

“It is a rare women’s novel that sensitively describes the life of a young educated woman in modern-day China in its full complexity, without resorting to unnecessary sentimentalism. Jana’s deep knowledge of the realities of life in China and Singapore makes the reading extra rewarding. In fact, with every new page the novel gets harder to put down and you find yourself gobbling it up before you know it. Finally, the author has given a voice to the Li Hui in all of us, as we struggle for the golden middle between tradition and the modern momentum of our world.”
Isabella Sluzek
Friends of the Museum Book Review 2008
Singapore

You'll be rooting all the way for Li Hui as she struggles, ahead of the curve, to be her own woman in an emerging, modern China. Jana McBurney-Lin's My half of the Sky is a beautiful, witty, touching debut novel.
Thomas B. Sawyer
Head Writer TV Series "Murder, She Wrote,"
Author - The Sixteenth Man

A complex and mesmerizingly original tale of a young Chinese woman caught between the modern world and the pull of her ancient culture. McBurney-Lin’s intimate portrait of China sparks with insights and is peopled with characters so rich and alive, they seem to breathe on the page. Dazzling and unforgettable.
Caroline Leavitt, Author - Girls in Trouble

McBurney-Lin's debut novel is a gift. Li Hui is a memorable heroine, a young woman torn between her heart and her culture.Her daunting journey is a trip into China's complicated soul, and a deeply moving exploration of love, honor, duty, and loss." Frank Baldwin, Author - Balling the Jack

My Half of the Sky is a wonderfully-crafted story that was obviously written with a piece of McBurney-Lin's heart. A masterpiece."
Lee Lofland, Author - Howdunit: Police Procedure and Investigation

My Half of the Sky heralds the arrival of a fantastic new storyteller. With artistry and precision, Jana McBurney-Lin's clear-eyed prose takes the reader on a new journey into a past world that speaks to a modern sensibility, a modern world, a modern woman. This is a book to be treasured.
Emily Rapp, Author - The Poster Child

Through vivid descriptions of sights and smells, Jana McBurney-Lin's My Half of the Sky is a haunting, emotional journey of what it means to be an honorable female in modern China. Jill Ferguson, Author - Sometimes Art Can't Save You

Q & A with Jana

How did you get the idea for My Half of the Sky?

My husband is from southern China. One year, when we went back to his village to visit family, I saw a large poster on the side of a house. The poster portrayed a couple holding a child. Underneath the happy couple were the words, "A girl baby is just as important as a boy baby."

"That's so cool," I said. "That the government is behind the valuing of little girls."

He just shook his head. "The government can say what it wants," he said. "But a house with no male is a problem."

Aha. Now there was a story. What if a little girl was born into a household and managed to survive? How would she continue to thrive? To succeed in a place where the traditions were so against her? That was the beginning of My Half of the Sky.

Are your characters based on real people?

My gut instinct is to say, "Yes, of course." I've lived with these characters so long--twelve years-- they feel like old friends. Family. But the truth is they are all figments of my imagination.

How did you do your research for this book?

My husband and I lived quite a while--eight years--in Singapore. Over the years, he has not only told me a lot about the village. His parents, who lived with us while we were in Singapore, told us a lot about the village. And we visited--and continue to visit--as often as possible. In fact, the cover photo for My Half of the Sky was taken from my brother-in-law's house.

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

No. Not consciously. When I graduated from college, I had dreams of being some hotshot businesswoman. Granted, my major was in Communications, with a minor in Jajpanese. But, still, business was hot then with Japan. I figured if I went off to Japan for a year and honed my language skills, I'd be on everyone's "want to hire" list. Then I got to Japan. I not only realized it takes a great deal longer than a year to hone the language, but that I was more interested in the culture than in business. One time, I was asked to teach English to a group of secretaries from the National Diet (the US version of Congress, only larger). These secretaries mentioned that they worked for the only woman in the Diet. The only woman? I wanted to meet this woman. How had she gotten there? What was it like being surrounded by all that maleness every day?

When I interviewed her, I discovered that the woman had no problem with her colleagues except when she had to go to the bathroom. At the time, the Diet building had only men's bathrooms. So, her male secretaries would have to scout out the bathroom first to ensure the coast was clear. This was in 1986. I was so fascinated by this woman that I wanted everyone to know about her. That was my first magazine article. My first step into the writing world. And I was hooked.

This book is about China? How can Americans--and other cultures-- relate?

We all grow up with stories in our heads. Stories about the way things should be. And it's important to have stories. Important until the stories restrict forward movement.

As an example, when we moved to the US seven years ago, we had very little furniture. We had brought a couple of pieces with us from Singapore. But, in particular, we had no beds. I remembered that my great-great grandfather had built a wooden bed which was in storage in my mother's garage. I asked her if we could use that bed--it was beautifully made and so meaningful.

"No," she said. "That's your brother's bed."

Well, my brother lives in Germany. How could it be his bed? According to family tradition, she explained, the bed was to be passed down through the male lineage Never mind that I was in arm's length of the bed and actually needed a place to rest my head. And that was a story passed on by my not-very-traditional mother. Where we reconcile past traditions with the forward momentum of the globe is a struggle we deal with each day. All of us. So, I think we can all get something from Li Hui and her struggle.

Are you writing a sequel?

Yes. I started in the fall of 2006. I'm about halfway through.

Book Club Questions

Interested in reading My Half of the Sky for your next book club choice?

Here are some questions to get you started:

1. In the first chapter, Li Hui stands in line at the post office to use the phone behind Orange-haired Aunty who wore expensive perfume. Li Hui is thrilled to be behind this woman and to sniff her air. However, after she speaks on the phone with her father, she can't get out of the post office fast enough. The expensive perfume smells like a gas leak.

Why is there a shift in Li Hui's appreciation of the things money can buy? How is this scene a metaphor for what later happens to Li Hui?

2. When Li Hui goes to dinner with Chan Hai she gets all turned around, feels lost. Chan Hai points out where they are and says, "It's amazing how all of us can be so close to something and not see it."

How is this phenomenon reflected in Li Hui's relationship with her father? Chan Hai? Husband? Does Li Hui ever learn to see?

3. Waipo often told Li Hui a story about the dragon who came to the village, and how a smart little girl scared the dragon away with firecrackers.

What are Li Hui's dragons? Does she ever find firecrackers?

4. Is Crazy Lee Sa really crazy? Why is she viewed this way? What characteristics do Crazy Lee Sa and Madame Tsui Ping have in common?

5. Li Hui is claustrophobic--has a fear of riding in elevators ("moving boxes.")

In what way is her life like a moving box? Does she ever get over her claustrophobia? How?

6. What happens to Li Hui in the end? What will become of her?

7. While this story takes place in China/Singapore, what aspects--if any--can you relate to?

My Half of the Sky