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"A sexy, unflinching portrait of a woman revolting against the life she makes for herself."
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Read this starred KIRKUS review of Beauty!
"As our culture continues to grapple with the meanings and effects of the #MeToo movement, her voice is a courageous addition to our understanding of the intersections of race, gender, and sexual politics."
"The year has gotten off to a rocky start worldwide, but we hope this semi-annual Millions tradition will be a bright spot."
Beauty, a novel by alumna Christina Chiu '00, is being released this Friday, May 1, from 2040 Books/The Santa Fe Writers Project. The book follows Amy Wong, an up-and-coming designer in the New York fashion industry who is derailed again and again by the chauvinist workforce and familial expectations.
"Novelists are often admonished to “write what you know”; Christina Chiu instead decided to know what she wrote.
The Asian-American writer now has a sideline as shoe designer, something she learned as an integral part of writing her most recent novel set in and around the fashion industry.”
"Christina Chiu’s novel “Beauty” examines trauma, addiction and social inequality through one woman’s life journey."
Read this International Examiner review of Beauty to see why reviewers think its "angle is fresh and worth exploring"
​"Indestructible: Christina Chiu Gives Us A New Literary Heroine."​Read Tupelo Quarterly's review of Beauty and see why you need to read this novel.
Buzzfeed Books includes Beauty in Memorial Day's "Which Book Should You Read This Weekend?"
​Editor Arianna Rebolini recommends Beauty For Your Reading List: "A sharp, thought-provoking, and unabashed look at sexuality, fashion and power dynamics, and how race and gender intersect with both.... Get your copy now!"
Challenging boundaries of race, gender and sexuality"
Chiu said she would like women who read her book to consider that beauty is a feeling and an emotion. 'If you close your eyes and imagine something beautiful that makes you smile, or do something creative in which you lose yourself, it may make you feel infinitely more beautiful than all the products in the world.'”
"Readers, this is a book you won’t be able to put down, and writers, this novel is another example of don’t let anyone tell you you can’t."
“I’ve struggled with writer’s block most of my life, but writing my novel, Beauty, taught me a lot. What got me in the flow of the writing—and helped me to stay there—was taking a shoemaking class.