Amy Tan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Amy Tan
Tan in 2018
Born	Amy Ruth Tan (1952-02-19) February 19, 1952 (age 73) Oakland, California, U.S.
Occupation	Writer
Education	San Jose State University (BA, MA)
Notable works	The Joy Luck Club (1989), The Bonesetter's Daughter (2001)
Notable awards	National Humanities Medal
Spouse	Lou DeMattei (m. 1974)
Signature
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	譚恩美
Simplified Chinese	谭恩美
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Tán Ēnměi Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Taam4 Jan1mei5

Amy Ruth Tan (born February 19, 1952) is an American author. She is most famous for her novel The Joy Luck Club (1989). This book was even made into a movie in 1993.

Amy Tan has written many other books. These include novels, collections of short stories, and books for children. She has also written a memoir, which is a true story about her own life.

She has won several awards for her writing. These include the National Humanities Medal and the Carl Sandburg Literary Award. These awards celebrate her important contributions to literature.

Some of her other popular novels are The Kitchen God's Wife (1991) and The Bonesetter's Daughter (2001). She also wrote two children's books: The Moon Lady (1992) and The Chinese Siamese Cat (1994). The Chinese Siamese Cat even became an animated TV show on PBS! Her newest book, The Backyard Bird Chronicles (2024), shares her experiences watching birds.

Early Life and Education

Amy Tan was born in Oakland, California. Her parents were Chinese immigrants. Her father was an engineer and a minister. He came to the United States to escape the Chinese Civil War.

When Amy was 15, her father and older brother both sadly passed away. After this, Amy and her family moved to Switzerland. She finished high school there.

Later, Amy Tan returned to the U.S. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees in English and linguistics from San José State University. She also took advanced classes at other universities.

Becoming a Writer

Before becoming a famous author, Amy Tan worked many different jobs. She was a switchboard operator, a carhop, a bartender, and even a pizza maker!

She then started working as a freelance business writer. This meant she wrote for big companies like AT&T and IBM. She often used different names for these projects.

The Joy Luck Club

In 1985, Amy Tan began writing her first novel, The Joy Luck Club. While writing, she joined a special workshop for writers. There, she got help to make her story better.

A teacher at the workshop, Molly Giles, told Amy to send her writing to magazines. Amy says Molly helped her a lot to finish the book. Parts of The Joy Luck Club were published in magazines like Seventeen.

The Joy Luck Club tells eight connected stories. These stories are about four pairs of Chinese–American mothers and their daughters. Amy Tan dedicated the book to her own mother. She wrote, "You asked me, once, what I would remember. This, and much more."

By 1991, her book had been translated into 17 different languages. This shows how popular it became around the world.

The Kitchen God's Wife

Amy Tan's second novel, The Kitchen God's Wife, also explores the bond between a Chinese immigrant mother and her American-born daughter.

Amy's mother told her that she liked The Joy Luck Club. But she wanted Amy to tell her own story next. So, Amy wrote The Kitchen God's Wife based on her mother's life.

This novel also shares important history from China. It talks about the 1930s and 1940s, including events like the Nanjing Massacre.

Other Books

Amy Tan's third novel was The Hundred Secret Senses. This book was different because it focused on the relationships between sisters. Part of the inspiration came from one of her half-sisters.

Her fourth novel, The Bonesetter's Daughter, returned to a familiar theme. It again explored the connection between a Chinese immigrant woman and her American daughter.

In 2024, she published The Backyard Bird Chronicles. This book is about her love for birds.

Where the Past Begins: A Writer's Memoir

In 2017, Amy Tan published her memoir, Where the Past Begins. A memoir is a true story about a person's life. In this book, she used family photos and her own journal entries.

She wrote about her relationship with her mother. She also shared stories about her father and brother who passed away. The book includes tales of her half-sisters in China. She also wrote about her health journey and what it's like to be a writer.

Amy said writing a memoir is "unvarnished." This means it's very honest and real. She shared how her memories shaped her life.

Amy Tan in Other Media

Amy Tan's stories have been made into different types of media. The Joy Luck Club became a play in 1993. That same year, it was made into a movie.

The Bonesetter's Daughter was even turned into an opera in 2008. Her children's book, Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat, became a popular animated TV show on PBS.

In 2021, a documentary about her life was released. It was called Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir. You can find it on PBS and Netflix.

Personal Life

Amy Tan is married to Lou DeMattei. They met on a blind date and got married in 1974.

Amy has experienced some health challenges. She believes she developed a condition called chronic Lyme disease in 1998. She has helped start an organization called LymeAid 4 Kids. This group helps children who don't have insurance get treatment for Lyme disease.

Interesting Facts About Amy Tan

• She is the second of three children in her family.
• When she was 15, her father and older brother both died from brain tumors. This happened within six months of each other.
• While she was in college, her roommate tragically passed away. This event made Amy temporarily unable to speak. She said that for ten years, on the anniversary of that day, she would lose her voice.
• Amy and her mother did not speak for six months at one point. This was after Amy left a college her mother wanted her to attend.
• Amy thought The Joy Luck Club would only be in bookstores for six weeks. She believed most first novels disappear quickly.
• She lives near San Francisco in Sausalito, California.
• In recent years, she has become very interested in birding. This means watching and identifying birds. She also enjoys nature journaling.

Awards

Amy Tan has received many awards for her writing, including:

• 1989, Finalist for the National Book Award for The Joy Luck Club
• 1989, Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for The Joy Luck Club
• American Library Association's Notable Books
• American Library Association's Best Book for Young Adults
• The Joy Luck Club was chosen for the National Endowment for the Arts' Big Read program.
• Parents' Choice Award, Best Television Program for Children (for Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat)
• 1996, Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement

See Also

In Spanish: Amy Tan para niños

• Chinese American literature