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LRCCS 60th Anniversary Author Series | Reading The Fortunes

Peter Ho Davies, U-M Charles Baxter Collegiate Professor of English Language and Literature
Tuesday, October 26, 2021
5:00-6:00 PM
Off Campus Location
Register HERE to receive your viewing link via Zoom:
https://myumi.ch/yKegj

The Center’s 60th anniversary programming will feature author Peter Ho Davies, Charles Baxter Collegiate Professor of English Language and Literature, as he offers a reading from The Fortunes, a novel that recasts American history through the lives of Chinese Americans and reimagines the multigenerational story through the fractures of immigrant family experience. Inhabiting four lives—a railroad baron’s valet who unwittingly ignites an explosion in Chinese labor, Hollywood’s first Chinese movie star, a hate-crime victim whose death mobilizes Asian Americans, and a biracial writer visiting China for an adoption—this work captures and capsizes over a century of our history, showing that even as family bonds are denied and broken, a community can survive—as much through love as blood. Building fact into fiction, spinning fiction around fact, Davies uses each of these stories—three inspired by real historical characters—to examine the process of becoming not only Chinese American, but American.

If there is anything we can do to make this event accessible to you, please contact us. Please be aware that advance notice is necessary as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange.
Building: Off Campus Location
Location: Virtual
Event Type: Livestream / Virtual
Tags: Asia, China, Literature
Source: Happening @ Michigan from Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies, International Institute, Asian Languages and Cultures

International Institute Programming

The International Institute’s centers sponsor numerous conferences, lectures, exhibits, and cultural performances throughout the year. These events are designed to educate the university community and the public about global issues and inspire discussion and dialogue. 

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