Additional information
by Ann Mah (Author)
"Ann Mah's Kitchen Chinese is a delicious debut novel, seasoned with just the right balance of humor and heart, and sprinkled with fascinating cultural tidbits."
--Claire Cook, bestselling author of Must Love Dogs
Kitchen Chinese, Ann Mah's funny and poignant first novel about a young Chinese-American woman who travels to Beijing to discover food, family, and herself is a delight--complete with mouth-watering descriptions of Asian culinary delicacies, from Peking duck and Mongolian hot pot to the colorful, lesser known Ants in a Tree that will delight foodies everywhere. Reminiscent of Elizabeth Gilbert's runaway bestseller Eat, Pray, Love, Mah's tale of clashing cultures, rival siblings, and fine dining is an unforgettable, unexpectedly sensual reading experience--the story of one woman's search for identity and purpose in an exotic and faraway land.
Front Jacket
Isabelle Lee thinks she knows everything about Chinese cuisine. After all, during her Chinese-American childhood, she ate it every day. Isabelle may speak only kitchen Chinese--the familial chatter learned at her mother's knee--but she understands the language of food. Now, in the wake of a career-ending catastrophe, she's ready for a change--so she takes off for Beijing to stay with her older sister, Claire, whom she's never really known, and finds a job writing restaurant reviews for an expat magazine. In the midst of her extreme culture shock, and the more she comes to learn about her sister's own secrets, Isabelle can't help but wonder whether coming to China was a mistake . . . or an extraordinary chance to find out who she really is.
--Patricia Wells, author of Vegetable Harvest and We'll Always Have Paris... and ProvenceBack Jacket
Isabelle Lee thinks she knows everything about Chinese cuisine. After all, during her Chinese-American childhood, she ate it every day. Isabelle may speak only "kitchen Chinese"--the familial chatter learned at her mother's knee--but she understands the language of food. Now, in the wake of a career-ending catastrophe, she's ready for a change--so she takes off for Beijing to stay with her older sister, Claire, whom she's never really known, and finds a job writing restaurant reviews for an expat magazine. In the midst of her extreme culture shock, and the more she comes to learn about her sister's own secrets, Isabelle can't help but wonder whether coming to China was a mistake . . . or an extraordinary chance to find out who she really is.
