Filed Under: Books, Culture, Events, Identity, Social Issues

November 6, 2007

Min Jin Lee’s first novel Free Food for Millionaires has been compared to 19th century Victorian classics, such as Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but it takes place in the present and tackles difficult topics such as love, betrayal, class and race. The U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS and the Korean American Coalition Washington DC Area Chapter are pleased to sponsor an evening featuring Min Jin Lee and Asian-American Literature. Yoonmee Chang, Professor of English at George Mason University and specialist in Asian American literature and culture introduced Mrs. Lee, who spoke about her writing, read an excerpt from her book and answered questions from the audience.

“It would be remarkable if she had simply written a long novel that was as easy to devour as a 19th-century romance — packed with tales of flouted parental expectations, fluctuating female friendships and rivalries, ephemeral (and longer-lasting) romantic hopes and losses, and high-stakes career gambles. But Lee intensifies her drama by setting it against an unfamiliar backdrop: the tightly knit social world of Korean immigrants, whose children strive to blend into their American foreground without clashing with their distinctive background. It’s a feat of coordination and contrast that could kill a chameleon, but Lee pulls it off with conviction.” — Liesl Schillinger, New York Times Book Review

For more information about Min Jin Lee and Free Food for Millionaires, click here.