Join us for a night of poetry, healing, and conversation with Sham-e-Ali Nayeem.

What happens when we lose our anchor? In her debut book City of Pearls, Sham-e-Ali Nayeem writes poetry to offer a meditation on healing from grief. Weaving together memories of her late father and ancestral home of Hyderabad, Nayeem explores the landscapes of loss. Nayeem, an Indian Muslim American, draws from the languages of her life to express vulnerability and tenderness in her poetry: Hyderabad—the City of Pearls—become a metaphor for resilience and growth to transform the grit of migration, displacement and loss.

Nayeem will be joined in conversation with spoken word poet Bao Phi.

Pre-register to receive livestream directions and event reminders.

About the Artists:

Chinatown Presents is funded is supported in part by a grant from the Boston Cultural Council, a local agency which is funded by the Mass Cultural Council, and administered by the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture.

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA Green, Red, and Orange lines.

Contact: Cynthia Woo | 617-863-9080

Pao Arts Center is proud to present author of A River of Stars, Vanessa Hua, on Thursday, April 4th.

ABOUT A RIVER OF STARS

In a powerful debut novel about modern-day motherhood, immigration, and identity, a pregnant Chinese woman makes her way to California and stakes a claim to the American dream.

A River of Stars has been named as one of the best books of the year by The Washington Post, NPR and Real Simple.

Holed up with other mothers-to-be in a secret maternity home in Los Angeles, Scarlett Chen is far from her native China, where she worked in a factory and fell in love with the owner, Boss Yeung. Now she’s carrying his baby. Already married with three daughters, Boss Yeung is overjoyed because the doctors have confirmed that he will finally have the son he has always wanted. To ensure that his child has every advantage, Boss Yeung has shipped Scarlett off to give birth on American soil. U.S. citizenship will open doors for their little prince.

As Scarlett awaits the baby’s arrival, she chokes down bitter medicinal stews and spars with her imperious housemates. The only one who fits in even less is Daisy, a spirited teenager and fellow unwed mother who is being kept apart from her American boyfriend.

Then a new sonogram of Scarlett’s baby reveals the unexpected. Panicked, she escapes by hijacking a van—only to discover that she has a stowaway: Daisy, who intends to track down the father of her child. The two flee to San Francisco’s bustling Chinatown, where Scarlett will join countless immigrants desperately trying to seize their piece of the American dream. What Scarlett doesn’t know is that her baby’s father is not far behind her.

A River of Stars is an entertaining, wildly unpredictable adventure, told with empathy and wit by an author the San Francisco Chronicle says “has a deep understanding of the pressure of submerged emotions and polite, face-saving deceptions.” It’s a vivid examination of home and belonging, and a moving portrayal of a woman determined to build her own future.

Suggested donation for the event: $10. Doors will open at 6 pm, the event will begin at 6:30 pm. Vanessa Hua will read selections from her book, to be followed by an audience Q&A and book signing. Books will be available for sale at the event.

About the Author:
Vanessa Hua is a columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle and the author of a novel, A River of Stars, and a short story collection, Deceit and Other Possibilities. For two decades, she has been writing, in journalism and fiction, about Asia and the diaspora. She has received a Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers’ Award, the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, the San Francisco Foundation’s James D. Phelan Award, and a Steinbeck Fellowship in Creative Writing, as well as honors from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Asian American Journalists Association. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, and elsewhere. A Bay Area native, she works and teaches at the San Francisco Writers’ Grotto.

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA Green, Red, and Orange lines.

Contact: Cynthia Woo | 617-863-9080

Pao Arts Center and Chinese Historical Society of New England (CHSNE) are proud to present activist and author, Helen Zia, as she discusses her latest book, “Last Boat Out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao's Revolution” at the Pao Arts Center on Tuesday, February 12th.

THE LAST BOAT OUT OF SHANGHAI
“Stories of courage and resilience emerge from decades of oppression. On May 25, 1949, the People's Liberation Army marched into Shanghai, completing Mao's victorious takeover of China. Coinciding with the 70th anniversary of that revolution, Chinese-American journalist Zia vividly chronicles the lives of several individuals caught in the violent 'tsunami of revolution' in China's 'biggest, most glamorous, and most notorious city,' the port where throngs of Chinese rushed to escape. In early May 1949, the World War II transport ship General Gordon was the last boat out of Shanghai, culminating an exodus that sent millions of Chinese to seek refuge throughout the world. In a narrative gleaned from more than 100 interviews, Zia focuses on four exiles whose stories represent 'the voices, viewpoints, and character of the Shanghai diaspora.'... After the war, the arrival of American soldiers and the ousting of Japanese soldiers and civilians augured stability, but a civil war between Nationalists and Communists led to more privations, an atmosphere of suspicion, and virulent repression. With captivating detail, the author reconstructs the tense 'panic to flee' that engulfed the nation. An absorbing history of a refugee crisis that mirrors current events.”
—Kirkus Reviews

Suggested donation for the event: $5. Doors will open at 5:30 pm, the event will begin at 6 pm. Helen Zia will read selections from her upcoming book, to be followed by an audience Q&A session and book signing. Pre-sale books will be available shortly.

RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/helen-zias-last-boat-out-of-shanghai-author-event-tickets-54436695622

About the Author:
Helen Zia is the author of "Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People," a finalist for the prestigious Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize. She was Executive Editor of Ms. Magazine and is a founding board co-chair of the Women's Media Center. Her articles, essays and reviews have appeared in numerous publications, books and anthologies, receiving awards for her ground-breaking stories.

The daughter of immigrants from China, Helen has been outspoken on issues ranging from human rights and peace to women's rights and countering hate violence and homophobia. Her work on the 1980s Asian American landmark civil rights case of anti-Asian violence is featured in the Academy Award nominated documentary, "Who Killed Vincent Chin?" and she was profiled in Bill Moyers' PBS series, "Becoming American: The Chinese Experience."

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA Green, Red, and Orange lines.

Contact: Cynthia Woo | 617-863-9080

BCNC is proud to host author Vincent Yee for the first book signing for his second book, “The Tamago Stories.”

This is a collection of eight riveting, contemporary Asian American short stories spanning a multitude of genres from crime-action to family drama, legal and medical situations, romance comedy and even sci-fi. The Asian American characters are a blend of Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Taiwanese and Thai to show an Asian American intersectionality in storytelling.

On the heels of an amazing summer where we saw Asian representation in film from “Crazy Rich Asians” to “Searching”, “The Tamago Stories,” continues to show Asian American characters in contemporary and dramatic stories where they are the heroes.

Though there will be a small number of books on hand, it is recommended that you buy “The Tamago Stories” or Vincent’s first novel, “The Purple Heart” beforehand for it to be signed.

About the Author: Vincent Yee was born in Boston, Massachusetts. For most of his career, he has worked for a number of Fortune 100 companies in various managerial roles. At all other times, he has a vision… “to use the power of fiction to portray Asian American men and women positively in the media.” His first novel, “The Purple Heart,” is a story about love and courage. Vincent Yee was a former National President for the National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP). He’s also been known to create artistic culinary dishes for friends. He now lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts and is planning his third book project.

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA Green, Red, and Orange lines.

Contact: Carmen Chan | 617-603-2538

Join us for a meet & greet with Lillian Li, author of the hit debut novel, Number One Chinese Restaurant. Tickets $30 per person includes book and light dinner.  Seating is limited. Purchase your ticket by Wednesday, October 10th. All proceeds support BCNC programs for children, youth, and families. 

About the Author: Lillian Li is the author of the novel Number One Chinese Restaurant (Henry Holt). Her work has been published in Guernica, Granta, Glimmer Train, Bon Appetit, and Jezebel. Originally from the D.C. metro area, she lives in Ann Arbor.

Reviews of her first book:

Named a Summer Must-Read by TIME, Buzzfeed, The Wall Street Journal, Star Tribune, Fast Company, The Village Voice, Toronto Star, Fortune Magazine, InStyle, and O, The Oprah Magazine

"A joy to read―I couldn't get enough."
―Buzzfeed

"This novel practically thumps with heartache and sharp humor."
―Chang-rae Lee, New York Times bestselling author of Native Speaker 

An exuberant and wise multigenerational debut novel about the complicated lives and loves of people working in everyone’s favorite Chinese restaurant.  

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA Green, Red, and Orange lines.

Contact: Jean Quintal | 617.603.2540

At this free event, families will

• Experience the family-friendly play Turk, Turk, Turk by playwright Deirdre Girard,

• Hear story and song selections inspired Grace Lin’s most popular books,

• Enjoy the work of theater artists Ben Choi-Harris, David Lien, Gary Ng, Michael Hisamoto, Phoebe Kurata-Anthony, Lily Park, Linda Chin, Min Kahng, Neil Gustafson,

• Taste mooncakes and egg tarts as you view Grace Lin’s exhibit on its last day, and

• Meet Grace Lin as she shares her newest picture book, A Big Mooncake for Little Star. Books will be available for sale and signing.

Programmed by Linda Chin and supported by the Artist’s Resource Trust, the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, and Wheelock Family Theater. Thanks to Dina Mardell & Porter Square Books.

About the artist: Grace Lin, a NY Times bestselling author/ illustrator, won the Newbery Honor for "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" and the Theodor Geisel Honor for "Ling and Ting." Her most recent novel "When the Sea Turned to Silver" was a National Book Award Finalist. Grace is also a commentator for New England Public Radio, a reviewer for the NY Times, a video essayist for PBS NewsHour, and the speaker of the popular TEDx talk, “The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf.” In 2016, Grace’s art was displayed at the White House where Grace, herself, was recognized by President Obama’s office as a Champion of Change for Asian American and Pacific Islander Art and Storytelling. 

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA green, red, and orange lines.

Contact: Cynthia Woo | 617-863-9080

Note: Event Time Change 10am-noon.

In recognition that some families may wish to participate in Families Belong Together: March on Boston this Saturday, June 30, the exhibition opening and reception for From Pencil to Page: Sketches and Illustration by Grace Lin has been moved to 10am-noon. 

Join us for a family-friendly Opening Reception for From Pencil to Page: Sketches and Illustrations by Grace Lin. The reception will include a live musical and a storytelling performance by Broadway & Boston actor Lisa Yuen and friends* 

*This project has been supported by a grant from the Artist’s Resource Trust. Special thanks to the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation and Wheelock Family Theatre. 

About the artist: Grace Lin, a NY Times bestselling author/ illustrator, won the Newbery Honor for "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" and the Theodor Geisel Honor for "Ling and Ting." Her most recent novel "When the Sea Turned to Silver" was a National Book Award Finalist. Grace is also a commentator for New England Public Radio, a reviewer for the NY Times, a video essayist for PBS NewsHour, and the speaker of the popular TEDx talk, “The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf.” In 2016, Grace’s art was displayed at the White House where Grace, herself, was recognized by President Obama’s office as a Champion of Change for Asian American and Pacific Islander Art and Storytelling. 

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA green, red, and orange lines.

Contact: Cynthia Woo | 617-863-9080

Kaya Press authors Anelise Chen and Q.M. Zhang come together to discuss trauma, memory and the writing.  Both authors push the boundaries of genres with their hybrid and experimental text that refuse to be placed in simple categories such as memoir, novels, self-help and more.  

Moderated by author, educator, and playwright Proshot Kalami. 

$10 suggested donation. 

About Anelise Chen and So Many Olympic Exertions: The essays and reviews of Anelise Chen have appeared in the New York Times, NPR, BOMB Magazine, The New Republic, VICE, and Village Voice. She has received fellowships from the Asian American Writers' Workshop, the Wurlitzer Foundation, and she will be a 2019 Literature Fellow at the Akademie Schloss Solitude in Stuttgart, Germany. 

Blending elements of self-help, memoir, and sports writing, So Many Olympic Exertions is an experimental novel that perhaps most resembles what the ancient Greeks called hypomnemata, or “notes to the self” in the form of observations, reminders, and self-exhortations. Taken together, these notes constitute a personal handbook on “how to live” or perhaps more urgently “why to live,” a question the narrator, graduate student Athena Chen, desperately needs answering.

About Q.M. Zhang and Accomplice to Memory: Q.M. Zhang (Kimberly Chang) grew up in upstate New York, lived in China and Hong Kong, and currently makes her home in Western Massachusetts.  She is a writer and teacher of creative non/fiction stories and forms, with a focus on Chinese American border crossings.  Trained in the disciplines of anthropology and psychology, she has published ethnographic studies of Asian diasporic communities on both sides of the Pacific.  She currently teaches at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA.

In Accomplice to Memory, Q.M. Zhang tries to piece together the fractured mystery of her father’s exodus from China to the U.S. during the two decades of civil and world war leading up to the 1949 revolution. Part memoir, novel, and historical documentary, this hybrid text explores the silences and subterfuge of an immigrant parent, and the struggles of the second generation to understand the first. Mixing images and text in the manner of W.G. Sebald, Zhang blurs the boundary between fiction and nonfiction, memory and imagination, and the result is a literary page-turner of one woman racing against time to uncover and reimagine her family's origin story.

Directions: The Pao Arts Center is located in the One Greenway building, 99 Kneeland Street. For GPS driving directions, use 66 Hudson Street, Boston, MA 02111. From Hudson Street, walk up the stairs and across the deck to the 99 Albany Street entrance. The public parking garage entrance is on Hudson Street. The Pao Arts Center is accessible by the MBTA green, red, and orange lines.

Contact: Karthik Submaranian | 617-863-9072

Join The Boston Filipino American Book Club for a half hour book discussion via Skype with author Lisa Ko at 3:30pm.  Before hand, mix and mingle with old and new friends!  

Lisa Ko is the author of The Leavers, a novel which was a finalist for the 2017 National Book Award for Fiction and won the 2016 PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction. Her writing has appeared in Best American Short Stories 2016, The New York Times, BuzzFeed, and O. Magazine. She has been awarded fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and the MacDowell Colony, among others. Born in Queens and raised in New Jersey, she currently lives in Brooklyn.

For more information and to RSVP contact Bren Bataclan. 

This event is programmed in conjunction with current exhibition Kulap: New Works By Bren Bataclan.