Zhuqing Li
ChinaAbout
Zhuqing Li is a professor of East Asian Studies at Brown University and a faculty curator at the university’s Rockefeller Library. Born in Fuzhou, in China’s Fujian province, she grew up during a period of profound political upheaval. Her parents were sent to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution, and she spent much of her childhood moving between relatives. Li later built an academic career specializing in Chinese linguistics, authoring four scholarly books before turning to her family’s history. Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden is her first work of family history and memoir, recounting the extraordinary lives of her maternal aunts, Jun and Hong, whose separation reflects the political divisions between mainland China and Taiwan. Combining historical scholarship with intimate family recollections, Li explores the lasting effects of revolution, exile, and divided national identity.
