Rachel Khong: Real Americans

In the organizer's words:

New York City, New Year's Eve 1999: Lily Chen is 22, the daughter of Chinese immigrants and an unpaid intern at a hip media company. When she meets Matthew - charming, privileged, heir to a pharmaceutical empire - she falls in love. Two worlds collide. And yet anything seems possible. 21 years later, Lily's son Nick lives with her on a remote island. He senses something is missing. As he searches for his father, he discovers secrets that change everything - and not just for him. A big bestseller from the USA that only comes along once a decade.

Rachel Khong comes from a Malaysian-American family and grew up in California. Her novel Real Americans follows the development of a Chinese-American family over several generations. The literary critic Jake Nevins called the book a mixture of "a historical novel, a love story, a science fiction thriller, a fantasy novel, and a psychological drama."

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