BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Potluck Asian America - ECPv6.18.3.1//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Potluck Asian America
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/New_York
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20250309T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20251102T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20260308T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20261101T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20270314T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20271107T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20280312T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20281105T060000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260514
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20270125
DTSTAMP:20261102T225547Z
CREATED:20260522T200133Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261102T225547Z
UID:10002669-1778716800-1800835199@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Exhibition: Ed Young’s Bright Worlds
DESCRIPTION:For over 60 years\, Ed Young (1931–2023) invigorated the world of children’s books through intimate storytelling\, inventive artistry\, and potent emotionality. This first U.S. retrospective features original artwork from 15 of his most significant projects—focusing on works drawn from his personal story and Chinese folktales—alongside a selection of his sketchbooks\, family photos\, and personal effects. \nYoung achieved distinction as a beloved storyteller and illustrator who challenged younger audiences with pictorial and moral complexity. He was a towering figure in children’s literature\, reaching wide audiences while earning the field’s top honors. His retelling of the Chinese “Little Red Riding Hood\,” Lon Po Po\, introduced generations of children to Chinese folklore and won the Caldecott Medal; he also received two Caldecott Honors for earlier works. Across his career\, he garnered numerous accolades\, including multiple selections for The New York Times’ “10 Best Illustrated Children’s Books” list. \nThe exhibition traces Young’s family life in Shanghai\, where he was the fourth youngest of five children. As a teenager\, he and his brother were sent to live in Hong Kong to flee the civil war in China. He immigrated to America for college\, eventually earning an art degree from the ArtCenter School in Los Angeles\, and then moved to New York. “I set out with $20 borrowed money in my pocket to bet my life in New York City\,” he wrote. After being laid off from an advertising studio\, he submitted sketches to children’s book publisher Ursula Nordstrom\, who hired him to illustrate The Mean Mouse and Other Mean Stories (1962)\, launching a career that would span over 100 books. \nHis most memorable projects were deeply personal. Ed Young’s Bright Worlds guides viewers through key moments of his life and oeuvre with original artwork from The House Baba Built (2011)\, about his childhood in Japan-occupied Shanghai; Voices of the Heart (1997)\, exploring Chinese culture through the relationship between writing\, image and his lifelong tai chi practice; My Mei Mei (2006)\, on adopting his daughters; and Bright World (2024)\, a book published posthumously in China\, meditating on the cyclical nature of life. \n“So many of us grew up on Ed Young’s art and storytelling\,” said Herb Tam\, MOCA’s Chief Curator. “This exhibition will reveal what went into crafting masterworks of the children’s book form. Visitors will be enchanted by his fluent handling of media—from pastel and cut paper to pen\, ink\, and collage—and inspired by his story as a resourceful immigrant striving to make his mark in a creative field.” \n“As a father of three\, I’ve seen firsthand how children’s books shape the way we see the world\,” said Michael Lee\, MOCA’s President. “The imagery and storytelling stay with us—they become part of our family conversations\, our imaginations\, and even the way we share stories later in life. It’s a special honor to explore the life and mind of Ed Young\, whose work has inspired generations. Through this exhibition\, we not only celebrate his extraordinary achievements but also revisit how deeply his art was shaped by his journey as a Chinese American—reflecting his early life in China and the graceful balance he found as a lifelong practitioner of tai chi.” \nEd Young’s Bright Worlds is part of MOCA’s Luminaries for America250\, a yearlong celebration of Chinese American historymakers at the Semiquincentennial. For more about the Luminaries project\, visit https://www.mocanyc.org/2026/01/02/moca-luminaries-for-america250/ \nPhoto of Ed Young by Sean Kernan
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/exhibition-ed-youngs-bright-worlds/
LOCATION:Museum of Chinese in America\, 215 Centre Street\, New York\, NY\, 10013
CATEGORIES:Art,Book
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-22-at-3.54.46-PM.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261114
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261116
DTSTAMP:20261108T175919Z
CREATED:20261108T175345Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261108T175919Z
UID:10003670-1794614400-1794787199@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Indo-American Arts Council Literary Festival
DESCRIPTION:2 days. 20 sessions. The best of Indian literature\, in New York. Novelists\, poets\, historians\, chefs\, economists and thinkers come together for the IAAC Literary Festival 2026. ​ \nFree to attend. Register in link. \nTHE LINEUP \nScreenshot \nDr. Pratibha Ray (Padma Bhushan\, Jnanpith Award): My Life\, My Time\, in conversation with Bhavani Parameswar​\n@osanynj \nKenneth I. Chenault: Equal to the Task\, former Chairman and CEO of American Express\, in conversation with Ash Gupta​ \n@manilsuri: The Death of Vishnu and A Room in Bombay\, in conversation with @the_other_arun \nDevesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian: A Sixth of Humanity\, with panelists Chip Kaye and CS Venkatakrishnan\, moderated by Sonal Shah \n@rakeshkkaul: WaterFire Day Zero\, with Magsaysay Award winner @watermanofindia. \nKaran Mahajan: The Complex\, with @yoshita.singh \n@rachelgurjar\, chef and former Bon Appetit food editor: East to East\, with @tanyasic.​ \n@neerajkhemlani: The Coffee Can Investor\, with Mathew Veedon​ \n@makrandparanspe: Hindutva and Hind Swaraj ​ \n@radha_vatsal: No. 10 Doyers Street​ \nArno Klein: Ellora​ \n@brinda_charry2: Hocus Pocus ​ \n@priya.hajela: For Whose Dear Sake Our Fathers Died ​ \nSanjay R. Srivatsa: Four Minutes Past Midnight \n@advaitavadini: Kapila Jnanagarbha​ \n@sandip_ranjan_das\, @alkajena and @_pallavi.das: The Orissan​ \nPoetry Panel: @sudeepsen1889\, @poetpreeti and Subhashini Kaligotla\, moderated by @empurpler
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/indo-american-arts-council-literary-festival/
LOCATION:Bohemian National Hall\, 321 E 73rd St.\, New York\, New York\, 10021
CATEGORIES:Book,Writing
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/Literary-Festival-2-copy.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261117T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261117T151500
DTSTAMP:20260626T175150Z
CREATED:20260626T173942Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260626T175150Z
UID:10002799-1794924000-1794928500@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Reading America: Viet Thanh Nguyen on Maxine Hong Kingston: Acclaimed Authors on Great Writing That Resonates Today
DESCRIPTION:An eight-part series of online classes with Annette Gordon-Reed\, Joshua Cohen\, Colm Tóibín\, Viet Thanh Nguyen\, and more\n\n\nStarting this June\, Library of America presents an eight-part series of online classes featuring leading contemporary authors on the LOA writers that resonate deeply with them and have something vital to tell us at this moment. \n\n\nYou can purchase access to the entire series and save on the per-session cost\, or pick and choose individual sessions to attend. See below for more information on registration. \n\n\n  \nREGISTRATON INFO \n\nNov. 17: Viet Thanh Nguyen on Maxine Hong Kingston\nBeginning with her stunning 1976 memoir The Woman Warrior\, Maxine Hong Kingston has forged a profound\, richly imagined\, and genre-defying narrative of the American experience from her vantage as the daughter of Chinese immigrants. In this session\, we explore Kingston’s most influential books\, The Woman Warrior and China Men\, as she intended—back-to-back\, as one longer epic about Chinese Americans. These hybrid books move between fiction and nonfiction\, imagination and history\, realism and fantasy\, as they weave Chinese immigrants and their descendants into the fabric of the United States\, where they have belonged since the middle of the nineteenth century.\n\nEight Sessions (scroll down for full descriptions) \n\nJune 1: Annette Gordon-Reed on the Declaration of Independence and Lemuel Haynes’s “Liberty Further Extended”\nJuly 9: Joanne B. Freeman on Alexander Hamilton and Alexis de Tocqueville\nJuly 28: Nell Painter on Ralph Waldo Emerson and Sojourner Truth\nAug. 18: Joshua Cohen on Isaac Bashevis Singer\nSept. 24: Parul Sehgal on Arthur Miller\nOct. 29: Colm Tóibín on Elizabeth Bishop\nNov. 17: Viet Thanh Nguyen on Maxine Hong Kingston\nDec. 3: Namwali Serpell on William Faulkner and Toni Morrison\n\n\n\nSessions will take place on Zoom and last 75 minutes. Attendees are encouraged to share questions in advance and during the class. Each session will be recorded and shared with registrants to watch anytime. Space is limited and registration will be on a first-come\, first-served basis. \n\n\n  \nPRICING \nSeries pass: $350 (includes access to all sessions and 25% off all titles on the LOA Web Store) \nLOA Members get the special members’ rate of $300 ($50 off). Learn more about the perks of becoming an LOA Member. \nIndividual session: $50 ($40 for LOA Members) \n\n\n  \nSCHOLARSHIPS \nLOA is committed to making our programming accessible to as many people as possible. \nIf the cost to attend this series presents a hardship\, or you are a teacher interested in attending for professional development\, we are pleased to offer a number of scholarship places at a reduced rate. For more information and to request a tuition waiver\, please e-mail support@loa.org. \nIf you would like to support Library of America’s online programming and help sponsor a reduced-rate scholarship for a deserving student or teacher\, please consider making a $50 donation at checkout on Eventbrite or reach out to support@loa.org. \n\n\n  \nSESSION DESCRIPTIONS \nAll sessions meet at 2 pm ET. \nAnnette Gordon-Reed on the Declaration of Independence and Lemuel Haynes’s “Liberty Further Extended”\nMonday\, June 1\n“The American story\, from the very beginning\, has been multifaceted\, multicultured\, and multiracial\,” writes Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Annette Gordon-Reed. “People of color\, even in the most dire situations\, have always found ways to make their thoughts and feelings known.” Lemuel Haynes (1753–1833) was a Revolutionary War veteran\, the first ordained Black minister in the United States\, and the first African American to receive an advanced degree. In the opening session of Reading America\, we will discuss the Declaration of Independence and Haynes’s response to it\, a 1776 essay entitled “Liberty Further Extended: Or Free Thoughts on the Illegality of Slave-Keeping.” \nJoanne B. Freeman on Alexander Hamilton and Alexis de Tocqueville\nThursday\, July 9\nThroughout our nation’s history\, its citizens\, residents\, and foreign observers have wrestled with the meaning of American democracy. In this session\, we look at two writers with much to say on the topic: Alexander Hamilton and Alexis de Tocqueville. Hamilton had lifelong doubts about democracy\, even as he worked to create and uphold America’s new democratic republic. Tocqueville\, a French visitor to the United States in 1831–32\, was a witness par excellence\, describing and judging American democracy as only an outsider could. Putting these men in conversation reveals democracy in all its complexity\, and exposes the beating heart of America. \nNell Painter on Ralph Waldo Emerson and Sojourner Truth\nTuesday\, July 28\nRalph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)\, giant of American letters\, and Sojourner Truth (ca. 1797-1883)\, feminist abolitionist stalwart\, were near contemporaries\, living ninety-five miles apart in Massachusetts in the 1840s. Emerson’s classic books\, Essays and Self-Reliance\, were published in the 1840s\, while Truth’s self-published Narrative of Sojourner Truth appeared in 1850. Both promoted and sold their books in person on the lecture circuit\, but they never met. In this session\, we stage a meeting of Emerson and Truth’s minds through a closer look at their lives and works. \nJoshua Cohen on Isaac Bashevis Singer\nTuesday\, August 18\nWhat makes a writer an American writer? Is it the accident of his birth\, or perhaps the circumstances of his exile? His language? His themes? His audience? The works of Isaac Bashevis Singer\, the seventh American citizen to be awarded the Nobel Prize for literature\, raise these questions in fascinating ways. This session discusses three short classics by America’s great Yiddish writer: “Gimpel the Fool\,” “The Destruction of Kreshev\,” and “The Cafeteria.” Together\, they bring the reader from Galician Poland to Manhattan’s East Side\, and illuminate starkly different jewels—sweet\, bitter\, humorous\, sexual—in the crown of this impish giant. \nParul Sehgal on Arthur Miller\nThursday\, September 24\nArthur Miller’s plays of the 1940s and 1950s—All My Sons\, Death of a Salesman\, The Crucible\, A View from the Bridge—electrified theatergoers and established him as one of the indispensable voices of the postwar era in America. With a particular focus on All My Sons\, this session explores some of the characteristic conflicts of Miller’s work—between fathers and sons\, desire and obligation\, self and community—while paying close attention to the effect his mastery of dramatic devices such as motive\, psychology\, and resolution has on readers and audience members. \nColm Tóibín on Elizabeth Bishop\nThursday\, October 28\nThe poems of Elizabeth Bishop are “more wryly radiant\, more touching\, more unaffectedly intelligent than any written in our lifetime\,” wrote James Merrill. She is “our greatest national treasure.” Bishop’s work is notable for its use of narrative\, its precision and reliance on exact detail\, its reticence and power. This session will explore\, via poems and letters\, her ideas of loss and exile\, plus the tone she takes: melancholy\, precise\, hushed\, attentive\, and careful to say nothing more than what each occasion demands. \nViet Thanh Nguyen on Maxine Hong Kingston\nTuesday\, November 17\nBeginning with her stunning 1976 memoir The Woman Warrior\, Maxine Hong Kingston has forged a profound\, richly imagined\, and genre-defying narrative of the American experience from her vantage as the daughter of Chinese immigrants. In this session\, we explore Kingston’s most influential books\, The Woman Warrior and China Men\, as she intended—back-to-back\, as one longer epic about Chinese Americans. These hybrid books move between fiction and nonfiction\, imagination and history\, realism and fantasy\, as they weave Chinese immigrants and their descendants into the fabric of the United States\, where they have belonged since the middle of the nineteenth century. \nNamwali Serpell on William Faulkner and Toni Morrison\nThursday\, December 3\nWhile delivering the keynote address at a 1985 Faulkner conference in Oxford\, Mississippi\, Toni Morrison remarked that “in a very personal way\, as a reader\, he had an enormous effect” on her. Morrison’s engagement with Faulkner was a lifelong project\, from her examination of The Sound and the Fury in her master’s thesis to ongoing reflections on his work in university lectures. This session delves into novels by Faulkner and Morrison—Absalom\, Absalom! and A Mercy\, respectively—to explore their treatment of Native Americans\, their interest in co-created stories and invented language\, Sutpen’s Hundred in relation to Jacob Vaark’s unfinished house\, and the overlapping themes of possessive love and stopped time. \n\n\nCourse curator: Bernard Schwartz \n\n\nLibrary of America\, a nonprofit organization\, champions our nation’s cultural heritage by publishing America’s greatest writing in authoritative new editions and providing resources for readers to explore this rich\, living legacy.
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/reading-america-acclaimed-authors-on-great-writing-that-resonates-today/
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Book,Virtual,Writing
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-34.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261117T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261117T193000
DTSTAMP:20261022T213249Z
CREATED:20261022T213213Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261022T213249Z
UID:10003612-1794940200-1794943800@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Book Launch | Tiger's Mouth by Lucy Tan
DESCRIPTION:When two young men meet during a tech internship\, it sparks an intense friendship—and even more intense competition—in this sweeping novel of privilege\, identity\, and ambition from the acclaimed author of What We Were Promised. \nJack Chen\, the oldest son of caterers from Queens\, is an expert at studying the rich from afar. When he finagles his way into a prestigious internship at tech giant K.O. Systems\, he’s prepared to fake everything: his credentials\, his confidence\, even his past. What he isn’t prepared for is his officemate\, Jack Owens\, the depressed son of the company’s billionaire founder\, who’s only there for a summer reprieve from his father’s scrutiny at the family vacation house. \nTheir connection is immediate\, built on mutual admiration. Chen sees in Owens the advantages he’s been denied; Owens sees in Chen someone free of the pain he’s been taught to hide. Owens\, Chen\, and Chen’s girlfriend quickly become close friends\, but by summer’s end the three can no longer outrun the lies they’ve told themselves and each other. As pressures build throughout the next few years\, the two Jacks circle each other like opponents in their favorite board game\, Go\, each chasing the life the other was born into\, from career to family to lovers. But the path to success and matters of the heart can test even the closest of friendships—and not all of them survive. \nNostalgic\, heart-wrenching\, and propulsive\, Tiger’s Mouth is a nuanced portrait of complex friendship\, family dynamics\, and love in its most unexpected forms. \nABOUT THE AUTHOR \nLucy Tan is the author of What We Were Promised\, which was a Barnes and Noble Discover Pick\, longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize\, and named a best book of the year by The Washington Post. Tan holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison\, where she was winner of the August Derleth Prize. A recipient of support from Kundiman and the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing\, Tan has published in journals such as American Short Fiction\, McSweeney’s\, and Ploughshares. She currently lives and writes in Seattle\, where she is also a bookseller at Secret Garden Books. \nIN CONVERSATION WITH \nJoanne Kwong is the president of Pearl River Mart\, the iconic NYC Asian emporium established in 1971. \nAfter the 2016 closing of the historic store\, she joined her in-laws and reinvented the brand\, establishing new locations and pop-ups in SoHo\, Chelsea\, Chinatown\, and Flushing. \nToday\, under Joanne’s leadership\, Pearl River remains the joyful shopping experience beloved by generations. It now also serves as a hub for the AAPI community and a springboard for entrepreneurs and artists. Pearl River Mart’s community-based approach has been recognized by The Wall Street Journal as “the future of retail” and by New York Magazine as one of its “Reasons to Love NY.” \nBefore leading Pearl River\, Joanne was an attorney\, law professor\, and non-profit communications executive. She serves on the boards of New York Public Radio\, Light Up Chinatown\, the Meatpacking Business Improvement District\, and the Columbia College Alumni Association\, and was appointed to the U.S. Commission to Study the Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture. In recent years\, Joanne has been named one of Crain’s NY Business’ Notable Asian Leaders\, Gold House’s A100 Most Impactful Asians\, and Time Out NY’s “9 Amazing Women Who Changed New York for the Better.”
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/book-launch-tigers-mouth-by-lucy-tan/
LOCATION:Yu and Me Books\, 44 Mulberry St.\, New York\, NY\, 10013\, United States
CATEGORIES:Book,Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/11.17.26LucyTan-copy.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261120T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261120T200000
DTSTAMP:20260911T213646Z
CREATED:20260911T213646Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260911T213646Z
UID:10003344-1795199400-1795204800@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Jung Chang: My Life After China
DESCRIPTION:Join us at Asia Society⁠ for a special conversation with Jung Chang\, the internationally acclaimed author of the multimillion-copy bestseller Wild Swans\, as she discusses her powerful new memoir\, Fly\, Wild Swans: My Mother\, Myself\, and China (Harper\, January 2026). Moderated by New Yorker staff writer Jiayang Fan\, this event offers a rare opportunity to hear from one of the most influential chroniclers of modern Chinese history and memory. \nIn Fly\, Wild Swans\, Chang returns to the themes that made Wild Swans a landmark work\, while charting a deeply personal new chapter. The memoir intertwines two lives separated by geography but bound by history: Chang’s own journey after leaving China in 1978 to begin a new life abroad\, and the story of her mother\, who remained behind as China entered a period of profound transformation. Across continents and decades\, mother and daughter navigate distance\, longing\, and the lasting emotional consequences of political upheaval. \nWith her signature clarity and narrative force\, Chang reflects on exile\, belonging and the enduring pull of home. The book mirrors the ups and downs of China’s transformation from an isolated state to a world power\, illuminating the human dimensions of China’s dramatic social and political changes in the late twentieth century. Through personal memory and historical reflection\, Fly\, Wild Swans explores what it means to leave a country without ever fully leaving its past behind. \nCopies of Fly\, Wild Swans will be on sale\, with the author available to sign them. \nJung Chang is the bestselling author of Wild Swans\, Mao: the Unknown Story (co-written with Jon Halliday)\, Empress Dowager Cixi\, Big Sister\, Little Sister\, Red Sister\, and most recently Fly\, Wild Swans (2026). She was born in China in 1952\, moved to England in 1978\, and has been awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for services to literature and history. She lives in London with her husband. \nJiayang Fan is a Chinese-American journalist and staff writer for The New Yorker since 2016. She was born in Chongqing and immigrated to the United States at the age of seven. Her works include cultural and political commentary\, personal history\, and food critique. She published her first book Motherland in 2024.
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/jung-chang-my-life-after-china/
LOCATION:Asia Society\, 725 Park Avenue\, New York\, NY\, 10021
CATEGORIES:Book,Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Jung-Chang-copy.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261201T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261201T200000
DTSTAMP:20261015T143951Z
CREATED:20261015T143951Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261015T143951Z
UID:10003553-1796151600-1796155200@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:Book Launch | To Grieve Is to Carry Another Time by Matthew Salesses
DESCRIPTION:From the critically acclaimed author of The Sense of Wonder and Craft in the Real World comes a deeply personal\, poignant memoir\, weaving together Salesses’ multiple identities: adoptee\, Asian American\, husband\, father\, and\, finally\, widower. \nMatthew Salesses has spent his career writing about the power of storytelling\, but he wasn’t prepared for the story of his own life to fall apart. A Korean American adoptee\, Salesses grew up unsure of who he was—until he fell in love and started a family with a native Korean\, Cathreen. But when Cathreen was diagnosed with stage four stomach cancer\, the map they made together suddenly led nowhere. After her untimely death\, Salesses realized he would need new paths\, new stories\, new philosophies\, new ways of understanding the world\, to navigate the unknown landscape of loss. \nTo Grieve Is To Carry Another Time is a stunning\, thought-provoking meditation on what grief can offer the grieving\, illuminating the way to embracing yourself\, finding your community\, and even loving and changing the world. \nABOUT THE AUTHOR \nMatthew Salesses is the author of The Sense of Wonder (Little\, Brown\, 2023)\, Craft in the Real World (Catapult Books\, 2021)\, Disappear Doppelgänger Disappear (Little A\, 2020)\, and other books. He was adopted from Korea and lives in Blacksburg\, VA\, where he is an Associate Professor of Creative Writing in the Virginia Tech MFA Program. \nIN CONVERSATION WITH \nKirstin Chen is the New York Times best-selling author of four novels\, including Counterfeit\, a Reese Witherspoon book club pick\, a Roxane Gay book club pick\, and a New York Times Editors’ Choice. Her latest\, Tech Wives\, is forthcoming in April.
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/book-launch-to-grieve-is-to-carry-another-time-by-matthew-salesses/
LOCATION:Chatham Square Library – NYPL\, 33 East Broadway\, New York\, NY\, 10002
CATEGORIES:Book,Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/12.1.26MatthewSalesses-2-copy.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261209T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261209T210000
DTSTAMP:20260825T032839Z
CREATED:20260817T045206Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260825T032839Z
UID:10003104-1796842800-1796850000@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Min Jin Lee | Fundraiser for New Life Community Development
DESCRIPTION:This event is benefiting New Life Community Development Corporation\, a 501c3 nonprofit serving low income individuals in Elmhurst and Corona. \nDoors open at 6:30! \nJoin Min Jin Lee in conversation with Lucy Yu in the bestselling author’s very own hometown of Elmhurst\, NY\, to celebrate the arrival of her latest novel American Hagwon\, and to fundraise for an Elmhurst-based non-profit. \nTicket price will include a signed copy and a donation to New Life Community Development Corporation\, a 501c3 organization serving low income individuals in Elmhurst and Corona with a food pantry\, health center\, financial literacy\, and social emotional wellness programming. \n10% of each purchased copy of American Hagwon will also be donated towards New Life Community Development Corporation. \nABOUT THE BOOK \nThe National Book Award finalist and New York Times bestselling author of Pachinko returns with a breathtaking contemporary epic: a masterpiece by turns sweeping and intimate\, that reckons with ambition and moderation\, lust and loyalty\, personal dreams and familial duty. \nMin Jin Lee brings grand ambition\, fierce heart\, and the tenderest hope to a novel I didn’t want to end.” —Roxane Gay\, bestselling author of Bad Feminist and Hunger \nIn schools and churches\, hotel rooms and nail salons\, law firms and fried-fish shops; in cramped\, dingy apartments and luxury\, gated communities\, the men\, women\, and children in American Hagwon struggle to find satisfaction and meaning in a world that seems to grow less forgiving with each passing year. Once comfortably middle class in Korea\, John and Helen Koh and their three children—Bo\, DH\, and Mido—find their lives upended\, first by a shocking betrayal by John’s oldest friend\, then by the 1997 Asian financial crisis. \nDesperately striving to regain their footing\, they leave Seoul for Sydney and eventually settle in Southern California—where new vistas of opportunity open up for the children as their parents\, strangers in a strange land\, must adjust to a new life in which their experience and education mean little\, and they set their sights on whatever it takes to provide for their children’s futures. The Kohs\, their friends\, relatives\, and even their foes move in and out of each other’s lives as they navigate new courses across the years\, always nursing the almost all-consuming faith that education will lead the next generation to success and security. \nIn American Hagwon\, Min Jin Lee has crafted an unforgettable\, panoramic novel where the smallest of gestures can have enormous repercussions\, where the bonds of family and of memory twist and fray but rarely break\, and where willful self-sacrifice—for the benefit of loved ones and even strangers—is a kind of prayer. \nABOUT THE AUTHOR \nMin Jin Lee was born in Seoul\, South Korea and immigrated to Queens\, New York with her family when she was seven years old. She is a writer whose award-winning fiction explores the intersection of race\, ethnicity\, immigration\, class\, religion\, gender\, and identity of a diasporic people. \nLee’s debut novel Free Food for Millionaires (2007) was a Top 10 Books of the Year for The Times of London\, NPR’s Fresh Air\, USA Today\, and a national bestseller. Pachinko\, her second novel\, is an epic story which follows a Korean family who migrates to Japan; it is the first novel written for an adult\, English-speaking audience about the Korean-Japanese people. Pachinko was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction\, runner-up for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize\, winner of the Medici Book Club Prize\, a New York Times 10 Best Books of 2017\, and is one of Kirkus Review’s Best Books of the 21st Century (So Far). A New York Times Bestseller\, Pachinko was also a Top 10 Books of the Year for the BBC\, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation\, and the New York Public Library. Pachinko was a selection for “Now Read This\,” the joint book club of PBS NewsHour and The New York Times. It was on over 75 best books of the year lists\, including NPR\, PBS\, and CNN. Pachinko has been translated into over 35 languages and is an international bestseller. President Barack Obama selected Pachinko for his recommended reading list\, calling it\, “a powerful story about resilience and compassion.” In 2024 Pachinko (#15) was named one of the New York Times Book Review’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century. \nIN CONVERSATION WITH \nLucy Yu is a writer and multi-disciplinary artist living in Brooklyn\, New York. She is also the owner of Yu & Me Books in Manhattan’s Chinatown\, the first queer Asian American bookstore in New York City. Yu & Me Books specializes in immigrant stories\, writers of color\, and historically marginalized experiences. \nAbout the New Life Community Development Corporation \nFounded in 1994 by members of New Life Fellowship Church\, New Life Community Development Corporation seeks to serve the poor and marginalized in Elmhurst and Corona\, NY. New Life CDC envisions a neighborhood where every neighbor has the financial\, emotional\, and social resources to thrive\, and every neighbor is valued and recognized as worthy\, capable\, and deserving of investment and support. Annually\, New Life CDC serves over 1\,400 children\, youth\, adults\, and senior neighbors through culturally and linguistically accessible programs and services. New Life CDC’s programs provide relief\, cultivate restoration\, deepen relationships and model reinvestment with neighbors across the spectrum of poverty\, including those experiencing food or housing insecurity\, uninsured community members\, undocumented day laborers living on the streets\, survivors of domestic violence\, and working class families. Its core programs include a food and clothing pantry\, health center\, financial empowerment programs\, and social emotional wellness programs for low-income families at local schools and shelters.
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/an-evening-with-min-jin-lee-fundraiser-for-new-life-community-development/
LOCATION:New Life Community Development Corporation\, 82-10 Queens Boulevard\, Elmhurst\, NY\, 11373\, United States
CATEGORIES:Book,Discussion,Fundraiser
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Min-Jin-copy.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261212T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261212T203000
DTSTAMP:20260710T190059Z
CREATED:20260710T190059Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260710T190059Z
UID:10002829-1797102000-1797107400@potluckasianamerica.org
SUMMARY:American Hagwon: A Conversation with Min Jin Lee
DESCRIPTION:Join internationally acclaimed author Min Jin Lee for a special evening celebrating the release of her highly anticipated new novel\, American Hagwon. \nFrom the bestselling author of Pachinko comes an epic\, deeply moving saga that follows a Korean family across Seoul\, Sydney\, and California’s Orange County from 1992 to 2007. Through the lives of the Koh family and those around them\, Lee explores the pursuit of opportunity\, the pressures of academic achievement\, the impact of economic upheaval\, and the enduring bonds between parents and children. \nAt the heart of the novel is the world of the hagwon—Korea’s private education system and a powerful symbol of ambition\, sacrifice\, and social mobility. As fortunes rise and fall against the backdrop of the Asian financial crisis and the Korean diaspora experience\, American Hagwon asks timeless questions about identity\, success\, family\, and what ultimately makes a good life. In this special live conversation\, Min Jin Lee will discuss the inspiration behind her sweeping new novel\, her creative process\, and the themes that have made her one of the most important literary voices of our time. A book signing will follow the program. \nDon’t miss this rare opportunity to hear from the celebrated author of Pachinko as she introduces her most ambitious work yet. \nTickets: $15 + fees (Event Ticket Only); $45 + fees (Event Ticket + Copy of American Hagwon\, Pick-Up at Kew & Willow Books in Kew Gardens); $51 + fees (Event Ticket + Copy of American Hagwon\, U.S. Shipping Included). \nBook pick-up and shipping will begin on September 29\, 2026\, the official publication date of American Hagwon. Limited signed editions by Min Jin Lee available—don’t wait\, order now! \nPlease note that discounts on tickets are only available for Queens College students. With a valid QC student ID\, Queens College students receive 50% off the Event Ticket. The student discount is available for in-person purchases at the KCA Box Office only. Students may also purchase the Event Ticket + Book Pick-Up option; though the 50% discount applies to the Event Ticket portion only. Instead of picking up the book at Kew & Willow Books\, Queens College students will receive their book at Colden Auditorium on the day of the event. \nFor any additional questions\, please contact our Box Office at (718) 793-8080.
URL:https://potluckasianamerica.org/event/american-hagwon-a-conversation-with-min-jin-lee/
LOCATION:Queens College – Colden Auditorium\, 153-49 Reeves Avenue\, Flushing\, NY\, 11367
CATEGORIES:Book,Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://potluckasianamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Min-Jin-Lee.png
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR