A Literary Feast
and cozy effect that I imagined, if we had been wearing costumes of the 1800s, we would have fit right in to our surroundings.
Meg Jewett, our hostess of the evening and chair of the Lexington Public Library Foundation, greeted us with grace and
enthusiasm. Later, as waiters and waitresses dressed in black and white offered hors’doeuvre to guests, Meg found me in the
crowd and told me how much she enjoyed reading my book.
“Your family story helped me gain a much better understanding of the Cultural Revolution,” she said. “And I loved your
grandmother Nainai.” I was touched by her comment and amazed she pronounced Nainai accurately. Then I saw Katie O’
Brien. I recognized her from the photo in a newspaper article about the event that featured her and my book. Her brilliant smile
and radiant energy were exactly the same. We hugged and greeted each other as if we had been friends for a long time. I was
immediately drawn to her openness and warmth.
I enjoyed the evening tremendously, talking with authors such as Andre Dubus III whom I had long admired for his
presentation of immigrants with dignity and pride in “House of Fog and Sand”; Gioia Diliberto, a prolific author whose latest
book is “The Collection”; Katherine Bateman, author of “Kentucky Clay,” with whom I found an immediate bonding; Qanta
Ahmed, warm-hearted and articulate, author of “In the Land of Invisible Women”; and my long time supporter and friend Ellis
Goodman, who recently published his debut novel “Bear Any Burden.” The guest of honor was Iraqi Ambassador Samir al-
Sumaida’ie and his Chinese wife Yang Ying, who also went by the name of May Sumaida’ie. We enjoyed a long conversation in
Chinese.
The following day, each of the authors went to his or her host family for another dinner. A group of local families opened
their houses to receive library patrons and their friends who were interested to meet and dine with the author of their choice. I
went to Katie and Jim O’Brien’s house. They received more than 20 people in their residence for a reception and hosted an
elaborate Chinese dinner in their guest house, which was separated from the main building by an outdoor swimming pool.
Cathy, a friend of Katie’s, told me “Mulberry Child” opened her eyes to the hardship in China during the Cultural Revolution.
“I stopped complaining about the inconvenience brought by the loss of the power when I thought about what your family had
gone through,” she said. Eric, Katie’s Chinese instructor, sat on my left at the dining table. He told me he was in tears when he
read my book: “Your writing brought back suppressed memories of my childhood in China around the same period of time,” he
said. “Thank you for telling the stories of our lives.” I was genuinely touched by their comments.
I was pleasantly surprised by the authentic Chinese meal: the five-spiced beef, dumplings, cucumber and mung bean clear
noodle salad for appetizers, and spare ribs, string beans, tofu, and green vegetables for entries, and even red bean with
tapioca for desert. “I didn’t expect to have authentic Chinese food in Lexington,” I said to Katie as I placed one item after another
onto my plate. Katie introduced me to Lily Cheng with pride, the honored chef of the evening, who was a college professor and
nutrition consultant, not a professional chef. Time passed fast as we made our discoveries and chatted throughout the
evening. By the time I left their house, it was after midnight.
Early the following morning when Katie came to the hotel to take a group of authors to the Joseph Beth Booksellers for book
signing, she told me the last couple of guests didn’t leave until 1:30 a.m. and by the time she went to bed, it was already 4 o’
clock in the morning. “We had a great time,” she said. “I did, too!” I replied and gave Katie a long hug. Katie didn’t look like
someone who had slept less than five hours the night before. She kept us company during the two-hour book signing event,
and after a quick lunch, drove us all the way to the Lexington airport. When I waved her goodbye and watched her driving away, I
felt connected to her and looked forward to seeing her, Jim and their adopted Chinese daughter Mei Li again soon.
I left Lexington with an enormous sense of gratitude and inspiration. The “feasts” we had were not only literary. The level of
support the Lexington Library Foundation received from the local communities for this event, the generosity and hospitality of
the host families to their patrons and authors, and the personal connection all the participants built over the course of
programs were feasts of humanity at their best.
Jian Ping is the author of “Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China.” She has dual master’s degrees in film and international affairs
from Ohio University. Please visit www.mulberrychild.com for more information. Post comments on this article or Jian Ping’s
other writings at www.smearedtype.com.
Meg Jewett, our hostess of the evening and chair of the Lexington Public Library Foundation, greeted us with grace and
enthusiasm. Later, as waiters and waitresses dressed in black and white offered hors’doeuvre to guests, Meg found me in the
crowd and told me how much she enjoyed reading my book.
“Your family story helped me gain a much better understanding of the Cultural Revolution,” she said. “And I loved your
grandmother Nainai.” I was touched by her comment and amazed she pronounced Nainai accurately. Then I saw Katie O’
Brien. I recognized her from the photo in a newspaper article about the event that featured her and my book. Her brilliant smile
and radiant energy were exactly the same. We hugged and greeted each other as if we had been friends for a long time. I was
immediately drawn to her openness and warmth.
I enjoyed the evening tremendously, talking with authors such as Andre Dubus III whom I had long admired for his
presentation of immigrants with dignity and pride in “House of Fog and Sand”; Gioia Diliberto, a prolific author whose latest
book is “The Collection”; Katherine Bateman, author of “Kentucky Clay,” with whom I found an immediate bonding; Qanta
Ahmed, warm-hearted and articulate, author of “In the Land of Invisible Women”; and my long time supporter and friend Ellis
Goodman, who recently published his debut novel “Bear Any Burden.” The guest of honor was Iraqi Ambassador Samir al-
Sumaida’ie and his Chinese wife Yang Ying, who also went by the name of May Sumaida’ie. We enjoyed a long conversation in
Chinese.
The following day, each of the authors went to his or her host family for another dinner. A group of local families opened
their houses to receive library patrons and their friends who were interested to meet and dine with the author of their choice. I
went to Katie and Jim O’Brien’s house. They received more than 20 people in their residence for a reception and hosted an
elaborate Chinese dinner in their guest house, which was separated from the main building by an outdoor swimming pool.
Cathy, a friend of Katie’s, told me “Mulberry Child” opened her eyes to the hardship in China during the Cultural Revolution.
“I stopped complaining about the inconvenience brought by the loss of the power when I thought about what your family had
gone through,” she said. Eric, Katie’s Chinese instructor, sat on my left at the dining table. He told me he was in tears when he
read my book: “Your writing brought back suppressed memories of my childhood in China around the same period of time,” he
said. “Thank you for telling the stories of our lives.” I was genuinely touched by their comments.
I was pleasantly surprised by the authentic Chinese meal: the five-spiced beef, dumplings, cucumber and mung bean clear
noodle salad for appetizers, and spare ribs, string beans, tofu, and green vegetables for entries, and even red bean with
tapioca for desert. “I didn’t expect to have authentic Chinese food in Lexington,” I said to Katie as I placed one item after another
onto my plate. Katie introduced me to Lily Cheng with pride, the honored chef of the evening, who was a college professor and
nutrition consultant, not a professional chef. Time passed fast as we made our discoveries and chatted throughout the
evening. By the time I left their house, it was after midnight.
Early the following morning when Katie came to the hotel to take a group of authors to the Joseph Beth Booksellers for book
signing, she told me the last couple of guests didn’t leave until 1:30 a.m. and by the time she went to bed, it was already 4 o’
clock in the morning. “We had a great time,” she said. “I did, too!” I replied and gave Katie a long hug. Katie didn’t look like
someone who had slept less than five hours the night before. She kept us company during the two-hour book signing event,
and after a quick lunch, drove us all the way to the Lexington airport. When I waved her goodbye and watched her driving away, I
felt connected to her and looked forward to seeing her, Jim and their adopted Chinese daughter Mei Li again soon.
I left Lexington with an enormous sense of gratitude and inspiration. The “feasts” we had were not only literary. The level of
support the Lexington Library Foundation received from the local communities for this event, the generosity and hospitality of
the host families to their patrons and authors, and the personal connection all the participants built over the course of
programs were feasts of humanity at their best.
Jian Ping is the author of “Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China.” She has dual master’s degrees in film and international affairs
from Ohio University. Please visit www.mulberrychild.com for more information. Post comments on this article or Jian Ping’s
other writings at www.smearedtype.com.
By Jian Ping
I had never expected to walk into a city of ice when I went to a book event at Lexington,
Kentucky. Trees, large and small, were bent low, if not crushed, with a heavy crust of crystal-like
ice that glistened in the freezing air. Power lines, roof tops, and horse farm fences were no
exception. I felt like I had stepped into a winter wonderland. Everywhere I looked, there was a
thick layer of ice. However, despite the cold and the inconvenience of a flight cancellation that
caused me to take a detour to Louisville, I couldn’t help but marvel at the power of nature and
enjoy the surreal yet magnificent beauty.
It was January 28, 2009. I had been invited to attend “A Night of Literary Feasts,” an annual
fund-raising event for the benefit of the Lexington Library. It was organized by the Lexington
Public Library Foundation, and I was one of 15 authors who had come from all over the country. I
had been looking forward to meeting the other authors, the event organizers I had talked with
over the phone, the local library patrons and of course, my host family, Katie and Jim O’Brien.
The event had programs scheduled over a period of two-and-a-half days, and each of the invited
authors had a designated family to host a dinner.
I had attended the Printers Row Book Fair in Chicago when my book “Mulberry Child: A
Memoir of China” was released in June 2008. It was a large book fair, with many book sellers
I had never expected to walk into a city of ice when I went to a book event at Lexington,
Kentucky. Trees, large and small, were bent low, if not crushed, with a heavy crust of crystal-like
ice that glistened in the freezing air. Power lines, roof tops, and horse farm fences were no
exception. I felt like I had stepped into a winter wonderland. Everywhere I looked, there was a
thick layer of ice. However, despite the cold and the inconvenience of a flight cancellation that
caused me to take a detour to Louisville, I couldn’t help but marvel at the power of nature and
enjoy the surreal yet magnificent beauty.
It was January 28, 2009. I had been invited to attend “A Night of Literary Feasts,” an annual
fund-raising event for the benefit of the Lexington Library. It was organized by the Lexington
Public Library Foundation, and I was one of 15 authors who had come from all over the country. I
had been looking forward to meeting the other authors, the event organizers I had talked with
over the phone, the local library patrons and of course, my host family, Katie and Jim O’Brien.
The event had programs scheduled over a period of two-and-a-half days, and each of the invited
authors had a designated family to host a dinner.
I had attended the Printers Row Book Fair in Chicago when my book “Mulberry Child: A
Memoir of China” was released in June 2008. It was a large book fair, with many book sellers
setting up booths on the streets and many panels, interviews, and lectures going on
simultaneously at the Harold Washington Library Center, the University Center and other nearby
facilities. It was a wonderful opportunity to kick off the launch of my book and I enjoyed meeting
the other three authors on the memoir panel I was on and seeing many of my friends who came
to show their support. Different from the Printers Row Book Fair, the Lexington Event was set in a
much more personal environment — the reception and dinner were all scheduled to be held at
the private homes of local families.
On the night of our arrival, a reception and dinner were offered at Walnut Hall, a mansion built
in the mid-1800s that sits in the middle of an historic horse farm. At a time when most of the
side streets in town were still covered with snow and ice, the long winding road leading to the
mansion was cleared and clean. William Watts, the Foundation Director, arranged to transport
all the authors to the mansion. Helen, a volunteer for the event, drove four of us in her car. As
soon as we were out of the city center, I could feel the pulse of the Bluegrass Country despite the
snow and ice cover.
I felt I had stepped back in time the moment I walked into the magnificent Walnut Hall — its
spacious entry hall, dining room and study on the first floor were decorated with original
furnishings of the 1800s, ancestral portraits, dark paneled wood, and rich, burgundy color wall
papers. The mansion, like many other houses in Lexington, had lost power that day. It was lit
with numerous candles and dimmed lights powered by a backup generator. It gave such a warm
simultaneously at the Harold Washington Library Center, the University Center and other nearby
facilities. It was a wonderful opportunity to kick off the launch of my book and I enjoyed meeting
the other three authors on the memoir panel I was on and seeing many of my friends who came
to show their support. Different from the Printers Row Book Fair, the Lexington Event was set in a
much more personal environment — the reception and dinner were all scheduled to be held at
the private homes of local families.
On the night of our arrival, a reception and dinner were offered at Walnut Hall, a mansion built
in the mid-1800s that sits in the middle of an historic horse farm. At a time when most of the
side streets in town were still covered with snow and ice, the long winding road leading to the
mansion was cleared and clean. William Watts, the Foundation Director, arranged to transport
all the authors to the mansion. Helen, a volunteer for the event, drove four of us in her car. As
soon as we were out of the city center, I could feel the pulse of the Bluegrass Country despite the
snow and ice cover.
I felt I had stepped back in time the moment I walked into the magnificent Walnut Hall — its
spacious entry hall, dining room and study on the first floor were decorated with original
furnishings of the 1800s, ancestral portraits, dark paneled wood, and rich, burgundy color wall
papers. The mansion, like many other houses in Lexington, had lost power that day. It was lit
with numerous candles and dimmed lights powered by a backup generator. It gave such a warm
(Left-right) Gioia Diliberto, Ellis
Goodman, Francis Kwong, Jian
Ping, and Qanta Ahmed.
Goodman, Francis Kwong, Jian
Ping, and Qanta Ahmed.
| Jian Ping |