RaveThe Los Angeles Review of BooksSelf-Portrait with Boy is Rachel Lyon’s first book, and it is definitely far from being a lucky accident. Lyrically written, emotionally complicated, and surprising in many ways, it is hard to put down. It explores what constitutes success and fame and art. A single chance occurrence creates something out of nothing, and someone out of no one — but at an enormous expense. Rachel Lyon has given us much to think about.
Lisa See
RaveThe Los Angeles Review of BooksIt may be present day, but Li-yan is not at all like the Chinese-American girls of China Dolls or Dreams of Joy. This book takes us someplace entirely fresh … Luckily, mothers are no longer expected to inflict such literal pain, but the mother-daughter relationship is still too often fraught with demands and disappointments. See makes it clear that modern times have given women more freedom and more choices, but it comes with a different kind of pain…The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane explores these issues and reveals the difficulties inherent in our decisions … The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane was not originally conceived to commemorate Carolyn See, but what a beautiful and fitting memorial it has become.
