Amy Tan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Amy Tan | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 19, 1952 Oakland, California, United States |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | American |
Amy Tan (Chinese: 譚恩美; pinyin: Tán Enmei) (born February 19, 1952) is an American writer of Chinese descent whose works explore mother-daughter relationships. In 1993, Tan's adaptation of her most popular fiction work, The Joy Luck Club, became a commercially successful film.
Tan has written several other books, including The Kitchen God's Wife, The Hundred Secret Senses, and The Bonesetter's Daughter, and a collection of non-fiction essays entitled The Opposite of Fate: A Book of Musings. Her most recent book, Saving Fish From Drowning, explores the tribulations experienced by a group of people who disappear while on an art expedition into the jungles of Burma. In addition, Tan has written two children's books: The Moon Lady (1992) and Sagwa, The Chinese Siamese Cat (1994), which was turned into an animated series airing on PBS. She has also appeared on PBS in a short spot on encouraging children to write.
Currently, she is the literary editor for West, Los Angeles Times' Sunday magazine, and did an uncredited rewrite on The Replacement Killers at the request of Mira Sorvino. She is a resident of Sausalito, California.
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[edit] Criticism
Though her works have been widely praised by critics, some, like The Joy Luck Club, have been criticized by noted Asian American author Frank Chin for perpetuating racist stereotypes. [1] [2] [3]
[edit] Awards
- Finalist National Book Award
- Finalist National Book Critics Circle Award
- Finalist Los Angeles Time Fiction Prize
- Bay Area Book Reviewers Award
- Commonwealth Gold Award
- American Library Associations's Notable Books
- American Library Association's Best Book for Young Adults
- Selected for the National Endowment for the Arts' Big Read
- New York Times Notable Book
- Booklist Editors Choice
- Finalist for the Orange Prize
- Nominated for the Orange Prize
- Nominated for the IMPAC Dublin Award
- Audie Award: Best Non-fiction, Abridged
- Emmy Award
- Parents Choice, Best Television Program for Children
- Shortlisted BAFTA Film award, best screenplay adaptation
- Shortlisted WGA Award, best screenplay adaptation
[edit] Quotes
- "I think books were my salvation, they saved me from being miserable." [1]
- Tan began her talk by launching into an anecdote about coming upon a Cliffs Notes version of her first novel, The Joy Luck Club, in a bookstore. Surprised to see her work among Cliffs Notes' "Lord Jim", "Ulysses" and "Hamlet" (all of which she used in college to get through her English literature classes), her first thought was, "I'm not dead yet." (The Opposite of Fate 10)
- "I'm sitting in the $4.95 bookstore bleachers along with Shakespeare, Conrad and Joyce," she said. "I acknowledge that there is a fundamental difference that separates us. I am a contemporary author and they are not. And since I'm not dead yet, I can talk back." (The Opposite of Fate 10) [4]
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- "Amy Tan, Ticked Off About Lyme" Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation reprint of article by J.J. McCoy, Washington Post, August 5, 2003, retrieved March 16, 2006
[edit] External links
- Amy Tan Home Page
- Official agency page
- 1989 audio interview at Wired for Books.org by Don Swaim at Wired for Books.
- Amy Tan at TED Conference
- Amy Tan talks about her book Saving Fish From Drowning
- Amy Tan interview on Academy of Achievement
Cain, William E. American Literature Volume 2. Penguin Academics. New York.
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