In late January, we had a book reading event with the acclaimed author Min Jin Lee at the Shin Choi store. Min Jin's first book was published last May 2007 from Warner Books, and immediately garnered attention and praise from the top critics as well as the general reading public. The event at the store was packed with enthusiasts eager to hear the author breathe life into the complex, fragile, and charismatic characters she created.
Min Jin was startlingly eloquent and honest. Tall and slender, she naturally glowed a kind of earnest and probing intelligence. Speaking of beginning her writing career after her successful years as a lawyer, she was unafraid to speak of unending periods of rejection, emotional trauma, and the gripping mystery of the creative process. She told the most quotidien stories: writing while having a child, transitioning from introducing herself as a "lawyer" to "writer" to acquaintances, in a telling way that really highlighted the essential heart of the matter.
Her writing style in Free Food for Millionaires is just as incisive, elegant, yet convicted as she herself is. It's certainly one of the best novels of the year. Min Jin takes you on a story that navigates the societal platforms of wealth, education, and individualism in America while keeping at the heart of the story a young woman's struggles with alienation and intimacy, ambition and exuberance. It is a lusciously beautiful read.
Congratulations, Min Jin, on your continued success and all the best wishes on all your travels this year.
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