Last of Her Name
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the 2020 PEN America Literary Award for Debut Short Story Collection, Mimi Lok's Last of Her Name narrates the interconnected lives of diasporic women from ’80s UK suburbia to WWII Hong Kong and contemporary California
Mimi Lok’s Last of Her Name is an eye-opening story collection about the intimate, interconnected lives of diasporic women and the histories they are born into. Set in a wide range of time periods and locales, including ’80s UK suburbia, WWII Hong Kong and contemporary urban California, the book features an eclectic cast of outsiders: among them, an elderly housebreaker, wounded lovers and kung-fu fighting teenage girls. Last of Her Name offers a meditation on female desire and resilience, family and the nature of memory.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Lok's impressive debut spills over with the diasporic voices of women displaced, disconnected, and discarded. From WWII Hong Kong to the streets of California over the last few decades, readers sail through various time periods, locales, and even genres. In the title story, a young girl, frightened by a stalker, is taught to defend herself by her quiet mother, who trained as a warrior during WWII in Hong Kong. As the young girl grows stronger, her mother finds the warrior within that she abandoned years ago. In "Wedding Night," Lok uses an almost poemlike format pages with one small phrase or paragraph on each as readers witness the inner thoughts of a young couple on their wedding night, and learn of the past betrayal between them. And in the collection's piece de resistance, "The Woman in the Closet," readers follow Granny Ng, an elderly woman whose son wants to place her in an abusive nursing home. Instead, she escapes, first living in homeless encampments before sneaking into a young professional's home, living in his closest for a year, and secretly cleaning and cooking for him. In all her stories, Lok is an expert at peeking into the souls of those who have been displaced or disregarded: through war, neglect, and even lost love. Seemingly simple yet deep in heart, this touching collection is easy to pick up and hard to put down.
