Adeline Yen Mah
Encyclopedia
Adeline Yen Mah is a Chinese American
author
and physician
. She grew up in Tianjin
, Shanghai
and Hong Kong
with an older sister, Lydia (Jun-pei); three older brothers, Gregory (Zi-jie), Edgar (Zi-lin) and James (Zi-jun); and a younger half brother, Franklin and half sister, Susan (Jun-qing). She has stated in her book Falling Leaves that she has not used the real names of her siblings and their spouses in order to protect their identities; however, she used the real names of her father, stepmother, aunt and husband. Currently she divides her time between southern California
and London
. She is married to Professor Robert Mah and has two children including one from her previous marriage.
Her official birthday is 30 November, however this is not her 'true' birthday. Since her father did not record her birthdate he gave her his own (this was a common occurrence before the advent of Communism
in China). Two weeks after her birth, her mother died of puerperal fever and, according to traditional Chinese beliefs, Adeline was labelled as "bad luck" by the rest of her family.
In 1938, when Yen Mah was a year old, Joseph Yen married a Eurasian
(half-French, half-Chinese) girl, Jeanne Virginie Prosperi, who was only seventeen years old at the time. The children referred to her as Niang (娘, another term for mother.) They had two children, Franklin and Susan.
Prosperi doted upon Joseph and her son, while abusing the rest of the family, including her own daughter and particularly Adeline. Yen Mah's third brother protected her from some of her stepmother's actions, although in Falling Leaves it appears that her main refuge from Prosperi is her Aunt Baba, her father's older sister. This childhood conflict, involving emotional abuse and Yen Mah's attempts to gain her father's affection, are detailed in her second book, Chinese Cinderella
. Throughout her childhood, she was emotionally supported by her paternal grandfather and paternal aunt. When her father became wanted by the Japanese, he left Tianjin for Shanghai. Soon afterward, her stepmother and her half brother joined him. After her father, stepmother, and half-brother disappeared, her grandmother, 'Nai Nai' died from a massive stroke.
and moved into her father's house on Avenue Joffre. She was given a room of her own until her aunt and grandfather arrived, along with her half-sister, Susan, two months later. From then on she shared her room with her aunt. When Susan arrived, she did not recognize Prosperi, and for this, Prosperi beat her. Yen Mah attempted to protest and Prosperi declared that she would never forgive her.
At the age of eleven, Yen Mah and her family moved to Hong Kong
. At the age of fourteen, as her autobiography states, Yen Mah won a play-writing competition at St Joseph's College (her play was called Gone With the Locusts), and her father let her study leave to in England. She went on to earn a medical degree from London Hospital Medical School, and eventually established a medical practice in California. Yen Mah has stated in an interview with the South China Morning Post
that her father wanted her to become an obstetrician in the belief that only women would want to be treated by a female doctor. She hated obstetrics and became an anesthesiologist
instead.
She worked as an anesthesiologist at West Anaheim Community Hospital and eventually became chief of anesthesia. In her free time, however, she continued to write about the tragedies that had overshadowed her life. In 1964, she married waiter Byron Bai Lun-Soon but he proved to be violent and Yen Mah divorced him in 1970, 4 years after the birth of their son Roger and cut him off.
Later in 1972, she remarried Professor/abstract painter Robert A Mah and they had a daughter, Ann 2 years later. They moved to Huntington Beach. Roger disliked his stepfather Robert and his half-sister but he later married and started a family of his own.
Once, one of Yen Mah's father's colleagues gave her and her siblings a brood of ducklings to raise. Yen Mah decided to name her duckling "Precious Little Treasure" (PLT for short). The family owned a ferocious dog called Jackie and one evening, when her father wanted to test out Jackie's training, he asked Gregory to select a duckling. He selected Adeline's, and the dog savaged the little duckling. PLT's leg was torn open, and it bled to death that night.
Eventually in a burst of rage Prosperi decided to send Yen Mah to a boarding school.
, was published in 1997, shortly after Jung Chang
's memoir Wild Swans
. It made the New York Times Bestseller list, selling over a million copies worldwide, and has been translated into twenty two languages. Beginning with her traumatic childhood under her stepmother's cruelty, it goes on to recount how, after her father died, her stepmother prevented his children from reading his will, until her own death two years later. When the wills were read, Yen Mah had been disinherited. The success of Falling Leaves prompting Yen Mah to quit medicine and devote her time to writing.
Her second novel, Chinese Cinderella
, was an abridged version of her autobiography
, which sold over one million copies worldwide. It received numerous awards, including:
The Children’s Literature Council of Southern California in 2000 for Compelling Autobiography
Lamplighter’s Award from National Christian School Association in June 2002 for Contribution to Exceptional Children’s Literature.
Her third book, "Watching the Tree", about Chinese philosophy and traditional beliefs (including Traditional Chinese Medicine
) was published in 2001.
Her fourth book A Thousand Pieces of Gold was published in 2002, and looks at events under the Qin
and Han
dynasties through Chinese proverbs and their origins in Sima Qian
's history Shiji.
, her first fiction book, is based on events in World War II
, and Along the River, another fictional book based in Chinese history. China, Land of Dragons and Emperors is a non-fiction history book for young adults.
In 2004, Yen Mah was voted number 4 on the New Zealand Children's Best Seller lists.
Chinese American
Chinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
. She grew up in Tianjin
Tianjin
' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
and Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
with an older sister, Lydia (Jun-pei); three older brothers, Gregory (Zi-jie), Edgar (Zi-lin) and James (Zi-jun); and a younger half brother, Franklin and half sister, Susan (Jun-qing). She has stated in her book Falling Leaves that she has not used the real names of her siblings and their spouses in order to protect their identities; however, she used the real names of her father, stepmother, aunt and husband. Currently she divides her time between southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. She is married to Professor Robert Mah and has two children including one from her previous marriage.
Early life
Yen Mah was born in Tianjin, China on November 30, 1937, to Joseph Yen(formerly Tse-rung Yen), a businessman, and Ren Yong-ping, an accountant. Her Chinese name is Yen Jun-ling (嚴君玲). She has four siblings and two half-siblings (disguised Christian names and real Chinese names): Lydia (b.1926 as Jun-pei), Gregory (Zi-jie), Edgar (Zi-lin), and James (b. 1934 as Zi-jun), all older than she was, and two half-siblings, Franklin (b.1939) and Susan (b. 1941 as Jun-qing).Her official birthday is 30 November, however this is not her 'true' birthday. Since her father did not record her birthdate he gave her his own (this was a common occurrence before the advent of Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
in China). Two weeks after her birth, her mother died of puerperal fever and, according to traditional Chinese beliefs, Adeline was labelled as "bad luck" by the rest of her family.
In 1938, when Yen Mah was a year old, Joseph Yen married a Eurasian
Eurasian (mixed ancestry)
The word Eurasian refers to people of mixed Asian and European ancestry. It was originally coined in 19th-century British India to refer to Anglo-Indians of mixed British and Indian descent....
(half-French, half-Chinese) girl, Jeanne Virginie Prosperi, who was only seventeen years old at the time. The children referred to her as Niang (娘, another term for mother.) They had two children, Franklin and Susan.
Prosperi doted upon Joseph and her son, while abusing the rest of the family, including her own daughter and particularly Adeline. Yen Mah's third brother protected her from some of her stepmother's actions, although in Falling Leaves it appears that her main refuge from Prosperi is her Aunt Baba, her father's older sister. This childhood conflict, involving emotional abuse and Yen Mah's attempts to gain her father's affection, are detailed in her second book, Chinese Cinderella
Chinese Cinderella
Chinese Cinderella is an autobiography written by author Adeline Yen Mah which describes her experiences growing up in China during the Second World War. It was published in 1999 and is a revised version of part of her autobiography, Falling Leaves.-Plot:...
. Throughout her childhood, she was emotionally supported by her paternal grandfather and paternal aunt. When her father became wanted by the Japanese, he left Tianjin for Shanghai. Soon afterward, her stepmother and her half brother joined him. After her father, stepmother, and half-brother disappeared, her grandmother, 'Nai Nai' died from a massive stroke.
Move to Shanghai and Hong Kong
When her father and step-mother were ready, Yen Mah and her three brothers and sister set off for ShanghaiShanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
and moved into her father's house on Avenue Joffre. She was given a room of her own until her aunt and grandfather arrived, along with her half-sister, Susan, two months later. From then on she shared her room with her aunt. When Susan arrived, she did not recognize Prosperi, and for this, Prosperi beat her. Yen Mah attempted to protest and Prosperi declared that she would never forgive her.
At the age of eleven, Yen Mah and her family moved to Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. At the age of fourteen, as her autobiography states, Yen Mah won a play-writing competition at St Joseph's College (her play was called Gone With the Locusts), and her father let her study leave to in England. She went on to earn a medical degree from London Hospital Medical School, and eventually established a medical practice in California. Yen Mah has stated in an interview with the South China Morning Post
South China Morning Post
The South China Morning Post , together with its Sunday edition, the Sunday Morning Post, is an English-language Hong Kong newspaper, published by the SCMP Group with a circulation of 104,000....
that her father wanted her to become an obstetrician in the belief that only women would want to be treated by a female doctor. She hated obstetrics and became an anesthesiologist
Anesthesiologist
An anesthesiologist or anaesthetist is a physician trained in anesthesia and peri-operative medicine....
instead.
She worked as an anesthesiologist at West Anaheim Community Hospital and eventually became chief of anesthesia. In her free time, however, she continued to write about the tragedies that had overshadowed her life. In 1964, she married waiter Byron Bai Lun-Soon but he proved to be violent and Yen Mah divorced him in 1970, 4 years after the birth of their son Roger and cut him off.
Later in 1972, she remarried Professor/abstract painter Robert A Mah and they had a daughter, Ann 2 years later. They moved to Huntington Beach. Roger disliked his stepfather Robert and his half-sister but he later married and started a family of his own.
Neglect and Rejection
According to her autobiography, whenever she did something that her stepmother considered wrong , such as attend a friend's birthday party, she was severely punished. When Yen Mah was elected class president, her friends came to her house, each of them bringing presents for her. She was summoned to her parents' room, where Prosperi beat her until her nose bled before commanded her to ask her friends to leave. Her father then made her open the presents and then throw them in the bin.Once, one of Yen Mah's father's colleagues gave her and her siblings a brood of ducklings to raise. Yen Mah decided to name her duckling "Precious Little Treasure" (PLT for short). The family owned a ferocious dog called Jackie and one evening, when her father wanted to test out Jackie's training, he asked Gregory to select a duckling. He selected Adeline's, and the dog savaged the little duckling. PLT's leg was torn open, and it bled to death that night.
Eventually in a burst of rage Prosperi decided to send Yen Mah to a boarding school.
Falling Leaves and Literary Career
Her memoir, Falling LeavesFalling Leaves
Falling Leaves may refer to:* Falling Leaves , an American short film* Falling Leaves, a 1966 film by award-winning Georgian-French director Otar Iosseliani...
, was published in 1997, shortly after Jung Chang
Jung Chang
Jung Chang is a Chinese-born British writer now living in London, best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans, selling over 10 million copies worldwide but banned in the People's Republic of China....
's memoir Wild Swans
Wild Swans
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China is a family history that spans a century, recounting the lives of three female generations in China, by Chinese writer Jung Chang. First published in 1991, Wild Swans contains the biographies of her grandmother and her mother, then finally her own autobiography...
. It made the New York Times Bestseller list, selling over a million copies worldwide, and has been translated into twenty two languages. Beginning with her traumatic childhood under her stepmother's cruelty, it goes on to recount how, after her father died, her stepmother prevented his children from reading his will, until her own death two years later. When the wills were read, Yen Mah had been disinherited. The success of Falling Leaves prompting Yen Mah to quit medicine and devote her time to writing.
Her second novel, Chinese Cinderella
Chinese Cinderella
Chinese Cinderella is an autobiography written by author Adeline Yen Mah which describes her experiences growing up in China during the Second World War. It was published in 1999 and is a revised version of part of her autobiography, Falling Leaves.-Plot:...
, was an abridged version of her autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, which sold over one million copies worldwide. It received numerous awards, including:
The Children’s Literature Council of Southern California in 2000 for Compelling Autobiography
Lamplighter’s Award from National Christian School Association in June 2002 for Contribution to Exceptional Children’s Literature.
Her third book, "Watching the Tree", about Chinese philosophy and traditional beliefs (including Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to a broad range of medicine practices sharing common theoretical concepts which have been developed in China and are based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage , exercise , and dietary therapy...
) was published in 2001.
Her fourth book A Thousand Pieces of Gold was published in 2002, and looks at events under the Qin
Qin Dynasty
The Qin Dynasty was the first imperial dynasty of China, lasting from 221 to 207 BC. The Qin state derived its name from its heartland of Qin, in modern-day Shaanxi. The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the legalist reforms of Shang Yang in the 4th century BC, during the Warring...
and Han
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
dynasties through Chinese proverbs and their origins in Sima Qian
Sima Qian
Sima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography for his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti"-style general history of China, covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow Emperor to...
's history Shiji.
Children's Books
Yen Mah has written three further books for children and young adults. Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon SocietyChinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society
Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society is a historical novel by Adeline Yen Mah, published in 2004. It is the fictional sequel to her autobiography for children, Chinese Cinderella....
, her first fiction book, is based on events in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and Along the River, another fictional book based in Chinese history. China, Land of Dragons and Emperors is a non-fiction history book for young adults.
In 2004, Yen Mah was voted number 4 on the New Zealand Children's Best Seller lists.