Jean Kwok
Encyclopedia
Jean Kwok is a contemporary Chinese American
writer
and the author of the national bestseller Girl in Translation.
and immigrated to Brooklyn
, New York
when she was five years old. While living in a roach-infested apartment without central heating, she worked in a Chinatown
clothing factory for much of her childhood. She was accepted to Hunter College High School
, a public secondary school for intellectually gifted students. Upon graduation, she won early admission
to Harvard University
, where she worked as many as four jobs at a time, and received a BA
in English
with honors, before going on to earn her MFA
in fiction
at Columbia University
. She then moved to The Netherlands and worked for Leiden University
, teaching English and as a Dutch-English translator. She speaks English
, Chinese
, Dutch
and studied Latin
. She lives in The Netherlands with her husband and two sons, and now writes full-time.
, an imprint of Penguin
, in May 2010 and became a New York Times bestseller
. It has been published in 15 countries and translated into 13 languages. Kwok drew upon her personal experience to write this novel about an exceptionally bright young girl who leads a double life in an exclusive private school
and a Chinatown
sweatshop
. Author Min Jin Lee compared the novel to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Nicole Tsong in the Seattle Times commented on Kwok's innovative use of language that allows readers to experience the linguistic barriers for themselves: "Kwok uses the potent combination of... halting English and a sophisticated internal narration about her new life to tell [the heroine's] story." Hannah Lee in the Philadelphia Jewish Voice
noted that Girl in Translation was "as accurate to my childhood and upbringing in the world of New York's garment factories as a novel can be." Girl in Translation was featured in The New York Times
, USA Today
, Entertainment Weekly
, Vogue
and O, The Oprah Magazine
, among others.
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...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and the author of the national bestseller Girl in Translation.
Biography
Jean Kwok was born in Hong KongHong 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...
and immigrated to Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
when she was five years old. While living in a roach-infested apartment without central heating, she worked in a Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
clothing factory for much of her childhood. She was accepted to Hunter College High School
Hunter College High School
Hunter College High School is a New York City secondary school for intellectually gifted students located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. It is administered by Hunter College, a senior college of the City University of New York. Although it is not operated by the New York City Department of...
, a public secondary school for intellectually gifted students. Upon graduation, she won early admission
Early admission
Early admission is a college admission plan in which students apply earlier in the year than usual and receive their results early as well. This benefits students by reducing the number of applications to be completed at one time, and by providing results early...
to Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where she worked as many as four jobs at a time, and received a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in English
English major
The English Major is a term in the United States and a few other countries for an undergraduate university degree focused around the consumption, analysis, and production of texts in the English language...
with honors, before going on to earn her MFA
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
at Columbia University
Columbia University School of the Arts
The Columbia University School of the Arts , also known simply as the School of the Arts or as SoA, is the division of the university that offers Master of Fine Arts degrees in Film, Visual Arts, Theatre Arts, and Writing, as well as a Master of Arts degree in Film Studies...
. She then moved to The Netherlands and worked for Leiden University
Leiden University
Leiden University , located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands. The university was founded in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt in the Eighty Years' War. The royal Dutch House of Orange-Nassau and Leiden University still have a close...
, teaching English and as a Dutch-English translator. She speaks English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
and studied Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. She lives in The Netherlands with her husband and two sons, and now writes full-time.
Career
Kwok's debut novel Girl in Translation was published by Riverhead BooksRiverhead Books
Riverhead Books is a division of Penguin Group .Notable books and major bestsellers published by Riverhead include Journals by Kurt Cobain; The Art of Happiness by His Holiness the Dalai Lama; The Color of Water by James McBride; Native Speaker, A Gesture Life, and Aloft by Chang-rae Lee; Fever...
, an imprint of Penguin
Penguin Group
The Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...
, in May 2010 and became a New York Times bestseller
Bestseller
A bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
. It has been published in 15 countries and translated into 13 languages. Kwok drew upon her personal experience to write this novel about an exceptionally bright young girl who leads a double life in an exclusive private school
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
and a Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
sweatshop
Sweatshop
Sweatshop is a negatively connoted term for any working environment considered to be unacceptably difficult or dangerous. Sweatshop workers often work long hours for very low pay, regardless of laws mandating overtime pay or a minimum wage. Child labour laws may be violated. Sweatshops may have...
. Author Min Jin Lee compared the novel to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Nicole Tsong in the Seattle Times commented on Kwok's innovative use of language that allows readers to experience the linguistic barriers for themselves: "Kwok uses the potent combination of... halting English and a sophisticated internal narration about her new life to tell [the heroine's] story." Hannah Lee in the Philadelphia Jewish Voice
Philadelphia Jewish Voice
The Philadelphia Jewish Voice is a monthly online journal that addresses the critical social and political issues facing the Jewish community of the metropolitan Philadelphia area and beyond...
noted that Girl in Translation was "as accurate to my childhood and upbringing in the world of New York's garment factories as a novel can be." Girl in Translation was featured in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
, Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
and O, The Oprah Magazine
O, The Oprah Magazine
O: The Oprah Magazine, sometimes simply abbreviated to O, is a monthly magazine founded by Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Corporation.-Overview:...
, among others.
Honors and awards
- John GardnerJohn GardnerJohn Champlin Gardner, Jr. was an American novelist, essayist, literary critic and university professor. He is perhaps most noted for his novel Grendel, a retelling of the Beowulf myth from the monster's point of view....
Fiction Book Award finalist, 2011 - Orange New Writers title, 2011
- American Library Association Alex AwardAlex AwardsThe Alex Awards are also a separate award given for excellence in entertainment packaging.The Alex Awards is an annual event designed to commend and honor the ten books published for adults during the previous year, which have been also judged to have "special appeal" for young readers, primarily...
, 2011 - Barnes & NobleBarnes & NobleBarnes & Noble, Inc. is the largest book retailer in the United States, operating mainly through its Barnes & Noble Booksellers chain of bookstores headquartered at 122 Fifth Avenue in the Flatiron District in Manhattan in New York City. Barnes & Noble also operated the chain of small B. Dalton...
Discover Great New Writers Pick, 2010 - Indie Next Pick, 2010
- Quality Paperback Book Club New Voices Award nominee, 2010
- Best Cultural Book, Book Bloggers Appreciation Week, 2010
- Blue Ribbon Pick, 2010
- Bread Loaf Writers' ConferenceBread Loaf Writers' ConferenceThe Bread Loaf Writers' Conference is a writers' conference held every summer at the Bread Loaf Inn, near Bread Loaf Mountain, east of Middlebury, Vermont...
Scholarship - Columbia University Graduate Writing DivisionColumbia University School of the ArtsThe Columbia University School of the Arts , also known simply as the School of the Arts or as SoA, is the division of the university that offers Master of Fine Arts degrees in Film, Visual Arts, Theatre Arts, and Writing, as well as a Master of Arts degree in Film Studies...
Fellowships - Harvard Club of New YorkHarvard Club of New YorkThe Harvard Club of New York is a private club in Midtown Manhattan, New York, New York, USA. Anyone who has attended Harvard University may apply to become a member. Incorporated in 1887, it is housed in adjoining lots at 27 West 44th Street and 35 West 44th Street...
Scholar - John HarvardJohn HarvardJohn Harvard may refer to:* John Harvard , English clergyman after whom Harvard University is named* John Harvard , journalist, politician and office holder in Manitoba, Canada...
Scholarship for Academic Achievement of the Highest Distinction - Elizabeth Cary Agassiz Scholarship for Academic Achievement of the Highest Distinction
Poetry
- "Flawed Words and Stubborn Sounds" (2000)
- "A Translation of Schrijvende Vrouw" (2000)
Essays
Anthologies/Textbooks
- Elements of Literature (2007)
- The NuyorAsian Anthology (1999)
External links
- Jean Kwok's website
- Jean Kwok - Penguin Speakers Bureau
- Interview and Reading Group Guide - Penguin Books
- Jean Kwok's Debut 'Girl in Translation' Speaks Eloquently - USA Today
- New Releases - New York Times
- Debut Novel is an Immigrant's Tale - Seattle Times
- Girl in Translation - Irish Examiner
- Sampsonia Way Interview