Overview

In Where the Past Begins, bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Valley of Amazement Amy Tan reveals herself in a way she never has before, delving into her childhood, adolescence, family history, beginnings as a writer and professional life to explore the answers to questions of purpose and meaning that we all ask ourselves as we get older. Moving from her childhood in Oakland and growing up with her Chinese parents through her success as a novelist, Amy Tan delves into her creative interests in music, the paralysis of beginning a new project, journal-writing and travelling. Where the Past Begins chronicles the making of a writer. With characteristic humor and poignant observation, Tan weaves a nontraditional introspective narrative that is as complex and vibrant as this beloved American novelist's fiction. Interspersed with direct correspondence between the author and her editor, this audiobook will give fans and critics unparalleled insight into the author's process, her thoughts on the literary enterprise, and her singularly warm, intelligent mind.

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9781538455418

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Reviews

Add capable audiobook narrator to the list of Amy Tan's many talents. Her unique memoir is made all the more accessible and personal through her animated performance...Tan's rendering of her mother's Chinese-American accent carries both authenticity and respect and reminds listeners that Tan's perspective has been shaped by her status as a first-generation American. -- AudioFile In her ambushing and revealing memoir, beloved novelist Tan chronicles with striking candor, sharp wit, and storytelling magic stranger-than-fiction traumas...A profound work of endless fascination, discovery, and compassion. -- Booklist (starred review) In this wise and profound memoir, novelist Tan, now 65, looks back on her life, illuminating the path that led her to writing...For Tan, the past is ever present, serving as a wellspring of emotion and writing inspiration. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) The best new memoir I've read in a decade is Amy Tan's breath-taking high-wire act of memory and imagination...[a] classic of the form...A must-read for the ages. -- Mary Karr, New York Times bestselling author

In her ambushing and revealing memoir, beloved novelist Tan chronicles with striking candor, sharp wit, and storytelling magic stranger-than-fiction traumas...A profound work of endless fascination, discovery, and compassion. -- Booklist (starred review) The best new memoir I've read in a decade is Amy Tan's breath-taking high-wire act of memory and imagination...[a] classic of the form...A must-read for the ages. -- Mary Karr, New York Times bestselling author In this wise and profound memoir, novelist Tan, now 65, looks back on her life, illuminating the path that led her to writing...For Tan, the past is ever present, serving as a wellspring of emotion and writing inspiration. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) Add capable audiobook narrator to the list of Amy Tan's many talents. Her unique memoir is made all the more accessible and personal through her animated performance...Tan's rendering of her mother's Chinese-American accent carries both authenticity and respect and reminds listeners that Tan's perspective has been shaped by her status as a first-generation American. -- AudioFile

Add capable audiobook narrator to the list of Amy Tan's many talents. Her unique memoir is made all the more accessible and personal through her animated performance...Tan's rendering of her mother's Chinese-American accent carries both authenticity and respect and reminds listeners that Tan's perspective has been shaped by her status as a first-generation American. -- AudioFile The best new memoir I've read in a decade is Amy Tan's breath-taking high-wire act of memory and imagination...[a] classic of the form...A must-read for the ages. -- Mary Karr, New York Times bestselling author In this wise and profound memoir, novelist Tan, now 65, looks back on her life, illuminating the path that led her to writing...For Tan, the past is ever present, serving as a wellspring of emotion and writing inspiration. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) In her ambushing and revealing memoir, beloved novelist Tan chronicles with striking candor, sharp wit, and storytelling magic stranger-than-fiction traumas...A profound work of endless fascination, discovery, and compassion. -- Booklist (starred review)

Author Information

Amy Tan is the author of The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God's Wife, The Hundred Secret Senses, The Bonesetter's Daughter, The Opposite of Fate: Memories of a Writing Life, Saving Fish from Drowning, and two children's books, The Moon Lady and The Chinese Siamese Cat, which was adapted into a PBS television series. Tan was also a coproducer and coscreenwriter of the film version of The Joy Luck Club. Her essays and stories have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, and her work has been translated into thirty-five languages. She lives with her husband in San Francisco and New York. Daniel Halpern is the president and publisher of Ecco. He is the author of nine books of poetry, including Tango and Something Shining, and the founder and long-time editor of the literary magazine Antaeus. He was born in Syracuse, New York, and lives in New York City. Julie Strand is a retired psychologist in Seattle.

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