Description

Leslie Li’s paternal grandfather, Li Zongren, was China’s first democratically elected vice president, to whom Chiang Kai-shek left control of the country when he fled to Formosa in 1949. Nine years later, Li’s wife, Nai-nai, comes to live with her son’s family in New York City, bringing a whole new world of sights, smells, and tastes as she quickly takes control of the kitchen. Nai-nai’s tantalizingly exotic cooking opens up the heart and mind of her American granddaughter to her Chinese heritage – and to the world. Through her grandmother’s traditional cuisine, Leslie bridges the cultural divide in an America in which she is a minority – as well as the growing gap at home between her rigid, traditional Chinese father and her progressive American-born mother. Interspersed throughout her intimate and moving memoir are the author’s personal recipes, most from Nai-nai’s kitchen, that add a delicious dimension to the work. A loving ode to family and food, Daughter of Heaven is an exquisite blend of memory, history, and the senses.

About the Author
Leslie Li is the author of Bittersweet: A Novel and coauthor of Enter the Dragon, a book of children’s plays based on Chinese folktales. She has written personal essays and feature articles for various publications, including The New York Times, Gourmet, Saveur, and Travel & Leisure. She divides her time between New York City and Vermont.