The Immortal Woman - by Su Chang (Paperback)

About the Book

A sweeping generational story of heartbreak, resilience, and yearning, revealing an insider's view of the fractured lives of Chinese immigrants and those they leave behind.  Lemei, once a student Red Guard leader in 1960s Shanghai and a journalist at a state newspaper, was involved in a brutal act of violence during the Tiananmen Square protests and lost all hope for her country. Her daughter, Lin, is a student at an American university on a mission to become a true Westerner. She tirelessly erases her birth identity, abandons her Chinese suitor, and pursues a white lover, all the while haunted by the scars of her upbringing. Following China's meteoric rise, Lemei is slowly dragged into a nationalistic perspective that stuns Lin. Their final confrontation results in tragic consequences, but ultimately, offers hope for a better future. By turns wry and lyrical, The Immortal Woman reminds us to hold tight to our humanity at any cost.

Book Synopsis

Longlisted, 2025 Toronto Book Awards

A sweeping generational story of heartbreak, resilience, and yearning, revealing an insider's view of the fractured lives of Chinese immigrants and those they leave behind.

Lemei, once a student Red Guard leader in 1960s Shanghai and a journalist at a state newspaper, was involved in a brutal act of violence during the Tiananmen Square protests and lost all hope for her country. Her daughter, Lin, is a student at an American university on a mission to become a true Westerner. She tirelessly erases her birth identity, abandons her Chinese suitor, and pursues a white lover, all the while haunted by the scars of her upbringing. Following China's meteoric rise, Lemei is slowly dragged into a nationalistic perspective that stuns Lin. Their final confrontation results in tragic consequences, but ultimately, offers hope for a better future. By turns wry and lyrical, The Immortal Woman reminds us to hold tight to our humanity at any cost.

Review Quotes

"An urgent debut that deserves to be read and reread." - The Ampersand Review

"The Immortal Woman ... skilfully shows how the immigrant's dream of leaving their former life behind proves unattainable." -- Winnipeg Free Press

"An inviting, intimate look at ordinary people living through times of momentous change." - Kirkus

"A great read, with delicate and engaging prose, well-researched, and mesmerizing in its depictions of the tragic and difficult choices the characters make throughout." --The Seaboard Review

"Chang's writing is extremely lyrical ... Compelling." -- The Miramichi Reader

"This insightful and satisfying novel offers nuanced looks into the lives of contemporary Chinese families." -- Booklist

"The Immortal Woman is a promising debut with some unforgettable passages. " -- Washington Independent Review of Books

"Su Chang paints a complex picture of intergenerational trauma and the meaning of home." -- Quebec Library Association

"Chang's writing is powered by raw emotion ... [The Immortal Woman is] a cathartic account of a family buffeted by the winds of modern Chinese history." -- Publishers Weekly

"Defying limits with triumph and aplomb ... Chang's lyrical, spinning and dizzying prose creates a vivid sense of the ever-shifting ground beneath her characters' feet." -- 49th Shelf