Wayson Choy facts for kids

Wayson Choy was a Canadian novelist. He wrote two novels and two memoirs. He is known as an important writer in Asian Canadian literature. He helped shape Canadian stories for many readers.

Early Life and Education

Wayson Choy was born in Vancouver, Canada, in 1939. He grew up in the city's Chinatown community. He learned later in life that he had been adopted. This discovery became a part of his memoir, Paper Shadows.

Choy went to Gladstone Secondary School. After that, he studied creative writing at the University of British Columbia.

Writing Career and Books

Wayson Choy wrote short stories while at university. One of his stories was even in a famous collection called The Best American Short Stories. After college, he taught English for many years. He taught at Humber College from 1967 to 2004. He later returned to writing full-time.

The Jade Peony

Choy's first novel was The Jade Peony, published in 1995. This book won the Trillium Book Award. It also won the City of Vancouver Book Award. In 2010, the book was chosen for CBC's Canada Reads competition. It was a very popular book.

Paper Shadows: A Chinatown Childhood

In 1999, Choy published his memoir, Paper Shadows: A Chinatown Childhood. A memoir is a book about a person's own life. This book shared stories from his childhood in Vancouver's Chinese Canadian community. It also talked about finding out he was adopted. The book won the Edna Staebler Award. It was also a finalist for the Governor General's Award for English-language non-fiction.

All That Matters

His second novel, All That Matters, came out in 2004. This book was nominated for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. It also won Wayson Choy his second Trillium Book Award.

Not Yet: A Memoir of Living and Almost Dying

Wayson Choy faced some serious health challenges. In 2001, he had a severe asthma attack. He was in the hospital for a long time. In 2005, he had another heart attack. These experiences inspired his second memoir. He wrote Not Yet: A Memoir of Living and Almost Dying in 2009. This book was about dealing with life-threatening illnesses.

Awards and Recognition

In 2005, Wayson Choy was made a member of the Order of Canada. This is a very high honor in Canada. In 2015, he received the George Woodcock Award. This award celebrates writers from British Columbia for their lifetime achievements.

Wayson Choy passed away on April 28, 2019. He is remembered as a pioneering voice in Canadian literature.