A Prize-winning Book: ‘Taiwan Travelogue’ by Yang Shuang-zi

Speakers:

Yang Shuang-zi, author
Lin King, writer and translator

Moderator: 

Andrew J. Nathan, Class of 1919 Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science, Columbia University

Yang Shuang-zi’s novel Taiwan Travelogue, translated by Lin King, received the U.S. National Book Award for Translated Literature in 2024 and the Baifang Schell Book Prize for Translated Literature from the Asia Society in 2025. The story follows two young women, one Japanese and one Taiwanese, in 1930s Japan-ruled Taiwan. Presented as a lighthearted look at food culture and railway travel, the novel dives deep into themes of colonial power imbalance, political identity, linguistic erasure, and interpersonal relationships.

This event is hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and co-sponsored by the Taipei Cultural Center in New York and the Andrew J. Nathan Taiwan Lecture Series.

Registration:

• To attend this event in-person, please register HERE.
• To attend this event online, please register HERE.