Meet Maizy Chen!
Okay, okay. That's not really Maizy Chen. That's Lisa Yee when she was Maizy's age. But here's what Lisa has to say about writing this book . . .
Okay, okay. That's not really Maizy Chen. That's Lisa Yee when she was Maizy's age. But here's what Lisa has to say about writing this book . . .
Above: Lisa and her grandmother.
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I must admit I’m a little nervous. Maizy Chen’s Last Chance is the most personal book I’ve ever written. Like Maizy, my story began in China - a place I’ve never been to. Like Maizy, I'm a Chinese American from Los Angeles. And, like Maizy, when I was 11-years old I knew little about my family history.
This novel is a work of fiction about a contemporary girl. But it’s also about Maizy's family, the owners of the Golden Palace restaurant and, for generations, the only Asian Americans in Last Chance, Minnesota. What else is on the menu? For starters, there’s a mystery, history and humor, a beloved bear named Bud, and lots of mouth-watering Chinese food. Plus, a story-within-the-story features the adventures of Maizy’s great great grandfather Lucky Chen. This includes the racism he faced and the friendships he forged beginning when he set sail to America in the 1860s. But most of all, Maizy Chen's Last Chance about love, acceptance, and the power of family, friends, and neighbors. 
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Maizy Chen's Last Chance is a Newbery Honor Book, National Book Awards Finalist, and Asian Pacific American Children's Literature Award winner. Other honors include the Judy Lopez Memorial Award, Chinese Library Best Book, Junior Library Guild Gold Standard, and more!
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Want to hear Lisa read the first chapter of Maizy's book?
CLICK HERE! 
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Selected as Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Book!
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Below: Lisa learned how to make fried wontons from her grandmother.
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Signed copies of Maizy Chen's Last Chance, and Lisa's other books, are available at www.highfivebooks.org/ -- and they ship, too!!!
Above: Poring through hundreds of old Chinese restaurant menus at the Museum of Chinese in America in New York.
"This fast-paced, humorous, heartwarming tale of family and history is likely to appeal to readers of all ages." -- School Library Journal Starred Review and Best Books of the Year Click Here to see more photos of Maizy's friend Bud The Bear. |
CLICK HERE to read Lisa's interview about MAIZY at TIME FOR KIDS!
"Celebrates the power of food, family, and stepping up when it matters most."
-- Kate Messner, Golden Kite Winner |
Below: Lisa toured the bank the Jesse James and his gang robbed in Northfield, MN.
Lisa also went to to San Francisco's Chinese Historical Society of America and the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles. Plus she ate at dozens of Chinese restaurants -- for research of course!
Below: Click to Read what the Children's Cooperative Children's Book Center says about Maizy! 
Recognized as a Common Sense Media Best Book of 2022 |
Above: Lisa's maternal grandparents were immigrants from China. Her mother is in the front row, on the right, of the family portrait. Below: The fortune cookie factory in San Francisco's Chinatown that Lisa visited while researching.
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Here, Lisa talks with Roger Sutton from The Horn Book about her research, writing, and Chinese food when she was a kid, and more!
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"This charming and heartfelt coming-of-age tale thoughtfully tackles identity, racism, and immigration, making it a must-read for kids."
-- a Common Sense Media Best Book of the Year
Check out Lisa's Q&A
with We Need Diverse Books . . .
-- a Common Sense Media Best Book of the Year
Check out Lisa's Q&A
with We Need Diverse Books . . .
