News

Two new books are coming soon from Jean! A murder set at Harvard and a romantasy trilogy that is described asFourth Wing crossed with Hunger Games, by way of Chinese mythology.

Reader’s Digest chooses THE LEFTOVER WOMAN as a Book Club Pick

Indigo in Canada picks THE LEFTOVER WOMAN as one of their top 10 Best Books of the Year

THE LEFTOVER WOMAN is a Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee for Best Mystery & Thriller

Jean is featured on the cover of Writer’s Digest 

THE LEFTOVER WOMAN is a Good Morning America Book Club Buzz Pick

Jean appears in Lucy Worsley’s documentary about Agatha Christie along with Ruth Ware and Kate Mosse

Jean’s essay, “Fear Doesn’t Need to Stop You” appears in Oprah Daily

Library staff across America choose THE LEFTOVER WOMAN as a top 10 book pick for LibraryReads

THE LEFTOVER WOMAN is a Book of the Month Pick

THE LEFTOVER WOMAN has been chosen as a CBS New York Top 3 Pick

THE LEFTOVER WOMAN, SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE, MAMBO IN CHINATOWN and GIRL IN TRANSLATION are all in development for film and television

Jenna Bush Hager does the cover reveal for Jean’s new novel, THE LEFTOVER WOMAN, coming Oct 10, 2023

Jean’s new novel, THE LEFTOVER WOMAN, is now available for preorder

Jean has written a new, authorized Miss Marple story for a collection for the Agatha Christie estate, entitled MARPLE: TWELVE NEW MYSTERIES

Jean is reviewing for the New York Times Book Review again

Jean’s work has been added to the curriculum at Pace University, CUNY, Indiana University, Northern Illinois University, the University of San Diego, and many other schools and colleges

Jean’s essay, “The Perpetual Foreigner,” appears in Oprah Daily

Searching for Sylvie Lee is NOW AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK, including a new section with a book club guide, recipes and more

Jean’s essay “Searching for Grace during Lockdown” appears on TODAY

Indiana University is already teaching Searching for Sylvie Lee 

Searching for Sylvie Lee is a Time Must-Read Book 

Searching for Sylvie Lee is the Lake Forest Reads: Ragdale Common Read for 2020 

The New York Post chooses Searching for Sylvie Lee as a Best Book 

Searching for Sylvie Lee is a Goodreads Choice Awards Semi-Finalist for Mystery & Thriller 

Marie Claire picks Searching for Sylvie Lee as a Best Book 

Searching for Sylvie Lee is a Real Simple Best Book 

NBC News picks Girl in Translation as one of 5 Books to Read about the Chinese American Experience

Jean appears on the Today Show with Maria Shriver and Jenna Bush Hager

Foreign rights to Searching for Sylvie Lee sold to Croatia, the Czech Republic, Vietnam and the UK

Searching for Sylvie Lee named a best book of summer by Marie Claire, The NY Post, O, The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, People, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Good Housekeeping, Nylon, The Week, The Daily Beast, Publishers Weekly, BookBub, Conde Nast Traveler and more.

Searching for Sylvie Lee is an INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Searching for Sylvie Lee hits THE NEW YORK TIMES (hardcover fiction and combined print and ebook), USA TODAY, AMAZON, APPLE, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY and THE AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION bestseller lists

The TODAY SHOW’s Jenna Bush Hager chooses Searching for Sylvie Lee as the June Book Pick (Read with Jenna)

Emma Roberts
 of Belletrist chooses Searching for Sylvie Lee as the June Book Pick

Searching for Sylvie Lee to be taught at Indiana University

Marie Claire selects Searching for Sylvie Lee for Best Women's Fiction of 2019

Russian rights to Searching for Sylvie Lee sold

Dutch rights to Searching for Sylvie Lee sold

Searching for Sylvie Lee, Jean's third novel, is coming on June 4, 2019

Estonian rights
 to Girl in Translation sold

Girl in Translation read in Dutch secondary schools
, including Het College Hageveld and Gymnasium Camphusianum Gorichem, where Jean will speak

Jean gives talks at Harvard University

Jean
 has been named the Hannah Judy Gretz Fellow at Ragdale

Bustle 
chooses Girl in Translation as one of 11 must-reads for Human Rights Day

Bijna thuis
, the Dutch translation of Girl in Translation, is the #2 bestseller in the Netherlands 

The British School in The Netherlands is reading Girl in Translation as a part of their curriculum 

Mambo in Chinatown selected for Penguin Stacks

Cedar Crest College chooses Girl in Translation for their honors freshman common read

Girl in Translation 
selected as Lincoln Academy's Books & Brunch summer read

Girl in Translation
 has just been added to the curriculum of the Lycée Français des Pays-Bas Vincent van Gogh

Real Simple
 selects Mambo in Chinatown for Best Books of 2014

Mambo in Chinatown
 is the Penguin USA Twitter Book Club Pick for July

Jean writes for 
TIME Magazine

iBooks
 puts Mambo in Chinatown in Top 10 Fiction List

Dutch translation of 
Mambo in Chinatown (Dans met mij) to be released on 2 July

Mambo in Chinatown
 selected byWoman’s Day’s for Best Books of 2014

Mambo in Chinatown 
chosen for Artis-Naples Critic’s Choice

Booklist alongside books by Donna Tartt, Joyce Carol Oates and Chang-Rae Lee

One of Real Simple’s Hottest Page-Turners This Summer: Mambo in Chinatown

Girl in Translation featured in Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month alongside books by Pearl S. Buck, Ha Jin, Jamie Ford and Jhuma Lahiri

Woman’s Day
 is sponsoring a Mambo in Chinatown giveway, including Latin dance shoes

Girl in Translation 
approved for the curriculum at the International School of Amsterdam

Danish rights to Mambo in Chinatowsold

Foreign rights to Norway, Finland and Sweden sold for Mambo in Chinatown

Dutch rights to Mambo in Chinatown sold

Girl in Translation chosen for the 2014 list of Outstanding Books for the College Bound by YALSA, a division of the American Library Association
Mambo in Chinatown
 selected for Publishers Lunch's BUZZ BOOKS 2014

Jean will be doing a national book tour in June/July 2014

Foreign rights for Germany to Mambo in Chinatown sold

Large-print rights
 sold

Israeli rights to Mambo in Chinatown just sold

Girl in Translation is a core text at the American School of the Hague

The New Community College at CUNY is using Girl in Translation for first year curriculum

Chosen by Portland Community College
 as their All-School Read

Will be read in Dutch high schools as a part of the English Noordhoff Blackbirds series, alongside titles by Steinbeck and Roald Dahl

Chosen as one of three books in "Lit Kit Bags"distributed to more than 450 schools and public libraries in 58 cities and towns by Northwest Indiana Literacy Coalition and Books to Bridge the Region

Chinese rights
 have just been sold

Documentary on Jean's life and book just filmed for national Dutch television


Jean's short story "Where the Gods Flyshortlisted for the Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award, the world's largest short fiction prize

Jean awarded "Distinguished Graduate Award 2012" for Hunter College High School

Delaware County Community College has selected GIRL IN TRANSLATION for their college-wide common read 2012

GIRL IN TRANSLATION  has been adopted across an entire county in Georgia for inclusion in their year-long curriculum

Wright State University has chosen GIRL IN TRANSLATION for their 2012 Common Read Program


Foreign rights to Indonesia just sold

GIRL IN TRANSLATION is being recorded for the Library of Congress, specifically the NLS (National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped)

Join the online international Global Read for GIRL IN TRANSLATION on Thursday, 1 December 2011 from 4pm to 5pm EST, sponsored by Primary Source, the Pearson Foundation and We Give Books! Free registration here.

Extensive author notes now available on Subtext, the new free ipad app! Deleted scenes, author commentary, and more. 

Selected for the TAYSHAS High School Reading List (2012)

Winner of the Salt Lake County Library Reader’s Choice Award

Chosen as the County-City Library's Pick

GIRL IN TRANSLATION has become a New York Times bestseller again, now in trade paperback

GIRL IN TRANSLATION is the November Costco Book Pick

Chosen as the Suburban Mosaic Book of the Year, Adult and High School Title 2011-2012

Selected as a Florida Teens Read

Selected by the Chinese American Library Association as a 2010 Best Book

GIRL IN TRANSLATION in trade paperback has already hit the ABA Indiebound, NCIBA and SCIBA bestseller lists

Featured in Apple iPad and iPhone national commercials

Selected as an Orange New Writers title for best debut fictionPromotions by Orange and Waterstone's to be in stores in June.

Chosen as a John Gardner Fiction Book Award finalist
3, 2011

Winner
 of an American Library Association Alex Award

Selected as one of China Daily’s Top 10 Books of 2010. 

Chosen by the School Library Journalas one of their Best Adult Books 4 Teens

Nominated in TWO categories for the Goodreads Choice Awards 2010: Fiction and Debut Author

Foreign rights sold to Turkey and Croatia, for a total of 14 foreign countries

GIRL IN TRANSLATION has been nominated for QPB’s 2010 New Voices award

Selected as one of Woman & Homes Top 30 Books of 2010. 

GIRL IN TRANSLATION chosen by readers at About.com as one of the Best of 2010

Featured in The Guardian’s Choice of First Novels.

Selected by the blogger community as Best Cultural Book in Book Blogger Appreciation Week 2010

Picked by Flavorwire as one of ten women authors they love.

GIRL IN TRANSLATION hit the New York Times Best Seller List
Paperback release date: May 
is a “Discover Great New Writers” pick for Barnes and Noble

Selected as an Indie Next List pick for May 2010! The Indie Next List is compiled from hundreds of nominations from indie booksellers nationwide.  It's a predictor of the twenty hottest titles to come.

A Blue Ribbon featured pick for all of the following book clubs: Book of the Month, Doubleday, Literary Guild, Large Print, the Lifestyle Clubs, Rhapsody, and Book of the Month Club 2.