A short life of the author
Lisa See (b. 18 February 1955) was born in Paris and raised in Los Angeles’s Chinatown. Her family has deep roots in the Chinese-American community of Los Angeles, which she documented in her memoir On Gold Mountain (1995).
Life and Career
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (2005) — set in nineteenth-century China, about two women who communicate through nu shu, a secret writing system used exclusively by women — was a major bestseller. Shanghai Girls (2009) — about two sisters who flee Shanghai in 1937 and build new lives in Los Angeles — and The Island of Sea Women (2019) — about the haenyeo, the female free divers of Jeju Island, Korea — are her most acclaimed works.
Major Works and Themes
See writes about the lives of women — their friendships, their suffering, their resilience — in Chinese and Asian history. Her research is thorough and her storytelling is accessible and emotionally resonant.
Key Works
- Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (2005)
- The Island of Sea Women (2019)
Collecting See
Snow Flower first edition (Random House, 2005) in fine condition with dust jacket brings $20–$50. Signed copies are more valuable. See continues to publish.