Overview

Iris Chang's best-selling book The Rape of Nanking forever changed the way we view the Second World War in Asia. It all began with a photo of a river choked with the bodies of hundreds of Chinese civilians that shook Iris to her core. Who were these people? Why had this happened and how could their story have been lost to history? She could not shake that image from her head. She could not forget what she had seen. A few short years later, Chang revealed this ""second Holocaust"" to the world. The Japanese atrocities against the people of Nanking were so extreme that a Nazi party leader based in China actually petitioned Hitler to ask the Japanese government to stop the massacre. But who was this woman that single-handedly swept away years of silence, secrecy and shame? Her mother, Ying-Ying, provides an enlightened and nuanced look at her daughter, from Iris' home-made childhood newspaper, to her early years as a journalist and later, as a promising young historian, her struggles with her son's autism and her tragic suicide. The Woman Who Could Not Forget cements Iris' legacy as one of the most extraordinary minds of her generation and reveals the depth and beauty of the bond between a mother and daughter.

Full Product Details

9781605981727

Table of Contents

Reviews

My eulogy to Iris Chang is found in the appendix of this book. Read the eulogy and you'll understand the global significance of Iris and her work. Read this book by her mother and you will know her as the courageous woman she was.--James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers, Flyboys , and The Imperial Cruise

In this brave memoir, you will share in the celebration of a life, allowing us to experience her presence again. Full of courage and conviction, full of life. --Richard Rhodes, from the Introduction

Iris Chang was a history hero. She discovered, researched and told a story of horror that otherwise would have been unknown and ignored by the world. And she lived a life that was shortened by her own horrors which her mother, Ying-Ying Chan, has chronicled in a caring and graceful memoir that also deserves wide attention. The Woman Who Could Not Forget is a moving, superb book.--Jim Lehrer, host of PBS Newshour

A poignant tribute of hard work and grit. The strong bond between mother and daughter is clear. The Woman Who Could Not Forget ultimately isn't a sad story, but rather the celebration of Iris' remarkable life. The Woman Who Could Not Forget is the most moving and powerful book I've read in the last ten years. I stayed up all night reading it-I could not put it down. It's about an extraordinary woman whose legacy lives on, but it's also a heartbreaking mother-daughter love story. After all the sensationalist media speculation, it was shocking to learn the truth. This book holds more than one important lesson for us all. -- Amy Chua, Yale Law Professor and author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother The Woman Who Could Not Forget, a new biography by her mother, Ying-Ying Chang, provides new insights into the pressures that the world put on Iris, who as the author of the late 1990s best seller The Rape of Nanking came not only to fear for her own safety but for that of her loved ones. Ying-Ying had accomplished what she set out to do. Iris Chang will not be forgotten. Theirs is a story of love for their star child and a search for answers to her shocking demise. It's clear in the memoir, which includes many of the long, passionate letters Ms. Chang wrote to her parents, that she was driven to make her mark on history. This is a brave and serious book, a worthy memorial to a brave and serious daughter. -- Simon Winchester, author of The Professor and the Madman Iris Chang was a history hero. She discovered, researched and told a story of horror that otherwise would have been unknown and ignored by the world. And she lived a life that was shortened by her own horrors which her mother, Ying-Ying Chan, has chronicled in a caring and graceful memoir that also deserves wide attention. The Woman Who Could Not Forget is a moving, superb book. -- Jim Lehrer, host of PBS Newshour An intimate portrait of a brilliant historian and a beloved daughter. -- Ted Leonsis, author of The Business of Happiness The Woman Who Could Not Forget is a must read if you want to personally experience the spirit of dedication and determination and sense of justice of Iris Chang. -- Thekla Lit, President of B.C. ALPHA (Association for Learning & Preserving the History of WWII in Asia) Iris Chang showed elemental courage in challenging some of the world's most formidable vested interests. Here finally is the biography she deserves. Suffused with love, this book is a powerfully written page-turner that will touch the heart of every reader. -- Eamonn Fingleton, author of Unsustainable: How Economic Dogma Is Destroying American Prosperity My eulogy to Iris Chang is found in the appendix of this book. Read the eulogy and you'll understand the global significance of Iris and her work. Read this book by her mother and you will know her as the courageous woman she was. -- James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers, Flyboys, and The Imperial Cruise Distressing and poignant, yet ultimately inspirational. Iris Chang's courage, her tenacity and conviction reverberate through this excellent biography. -- Mo Hayder, author of Birdman and The Devil of Nanking Ying-Ying Chang celebrates the life and legacy of her extraordinary daughter in this courageous and moving memoir. Iris Chang changed the world by empowering memories. In these heartfelt pages, Prof. Chang's own memories advance the cause of justice to which Iris devoted her life. -- David Henry Hwang, author of the plays M. Butterfly and FOB This beautiful and courageous memoir is the gift of a mother's love and has a storyteller's fine detail and is told with heartfelt honesty. Ying Ying Chang's moving insights help us to better understand the triumphs and travails and the life and suicide of her beloved warrior-daughter Iris. -- Helen Zia, author of Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People With her motherly wisdom, perseverance and courage, no wonder Ying-Ying could produce a daughter such as Iris Chang who could write the book The Rape of Nanking. A moving memoir reveals the profound caring and loving bond between a mother and a daughter. -- Theresa Chao, Founder of the National Council of Associations of Chinese Language Schools Iris Chang almost single-handedly unearthed the unspeakable atrocities committed by the Japanese Imperial Army in Nanking, shocking the world. Now, Ying Ying's book reveals the details about the events that shaped Iris to be a fighter for justice. She shows Iris as a student, as a daughter, and as a human being with emotions and human weaknesses, so we can further understand Iris as the person whose short existence of 36 years contributed so immensely to humanity. Tremendously touching and moving. -- Dr. Joseph Y. K. Wong, Executive Producer of the docudrama Iris Chang: The Rape of Nanking To (Iris's) mother, Dr. Ying-Ying Chang, a Harvard trained research scientist, the death of Iris has made her question about the meaning of her own existence. She searches for answers by documenting her memories of Iris in a new book, The Woman Who Could Not Forget. Ying-Ying's book contains numerous letters written by Iris. This correspondence reveals a brilliant and often work-obsessed young woman who loved her mother. In an emotional aside, Ying-Ying confessed that she could never have written her book had it not been for her daughter's constant refrain that one person can make a difference. -- Georgia Strait The memoir's introduction is by Richard Rhodes, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who was impressed by the determination of Chang's mother to celebrate her daughter's life. In this brave memoir, you will share in the celebration of a life, allowing us to experience her presence again. Full of courage and conviction, full of life. -- Richard Rhodes, from the Introduction The Power of One was Iris' credo. She was a caring human rights champion and spoke from her heart and soul. The Woman Who Could Not Forget is an insightful book, a great gift from her mother to the public to honor the memory of her beloved daughter. -- Ignatius Y. Ding, VP of Global Alliance for Preserving the History of World War II in Asia, from the Foreword

Iris Chang showed elemental courage in challenging some of the world's most formidable vested interests. Here finally is the biography she deserves. Suffused with love, this book is a powerfully written page-turner that will touch the heart of every reader. --Eamonn Fingleton, author of Unsustainable: How Economic Dogma Is Destroying American Prosperity

Author Information

Ying-Ying Chang is the mother of Iris Chang. She has a Ph.D. from Harvard in biochemistry and was a research associate professor of microbiology at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign with her husband, Shau-Jin, a physics professor. She lives in San Jose, California, and is on the board of the Iris Chang Memorial Fund.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available