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Fiction Asian American

The Immortal Woman

A Novel

by (author) Su Chang

Publisher
House of Anansi Press Inc
Initial publish date
Mar 2025
Category
Asian American, Cultural Heritage, Family Life
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781487013189
    Publish Date
    Mar 2025
    List Price
    $19.99
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781487013172
    Publish Date
    Mar 2025
    List Price
    $24.99

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Description

By turns wry and lyrical, The Immortal Woman reveals an insider’s view of the fractured lives of new Chinese immigrants and those they leave behind.

A Chinese mother and daughter wrestle with the demons of their past. Lemei, once a student Red Guard leader in 1960s Shanghai and a journalist at a state newspaper, was involved in a brutal act of violence during the Tiananmen Square protests and lost all hope for her country. Her daughter, Lin, is a student at an American university, executing her mother’s grand plan for her to become a true Westerner.

Following China’s meteoric rise, Lemei is slowly dragged into a nationalistic perspective that stuns Lin, leading to grave conflicts. Their final confrontation results in tragic consequences, exposing the constant tension Chinese immigrants face—the push and pull between the pressure of assimilation and the allure of Chinese nationalism. How does unresolved political trauma lead to internalized racism and eroded identities? And how do immigrants find true belonging in a world that feels increasingly divided?

The Immortal Woman is a sweeping generational story of heartbreak, resilience, yearning, and ultimately, hope for a better future.

About the author

SU CHANG is a Chinese-Canadian writer. Born and raised in Shanghai, she is the daughter of a former (reluctant) Red Guard leader. Her fiction has been recognized in Prairie Fire’s Short Fiction Contest, Canadian Authors' Association (Toronto) National Writing Contest, ILS/Fence Fiction Contest, the Masters Review's Novel Excerpt Contest, among others.

Su Chang's profile page